Abrams’ Article Named Best of 2013

An article by Social Welfare professor Laura Abrams has been named the best article of 2013 to be published in the academic journal Social Service Review.

Abrams’ article, “Juvenile Justice at a Crossroads: Science, Evidence, and Twenty-First Century Reform,” was selected as the winner of the Frank R. Breul Memorial Prize, named for a University of Chicago professor of social service administration. The award carries with it a $1,000 honorarium.

Weaving together a survey of the history of the juvenile justice system with a detailed narrative of recent efforts to use scientific advances to spur policy reforms, Abrams’ article argues that “social workers ought to play a more visible role” in shaping the future of the system. Only the input of those who work most closely with troubled youth — and their families, schools and neighborhoods — can help build a better system, she writes.

The journal’s editorial board heralded Abrams’ inclusion of historical context, admiring the article’s ability to drive “the profession to take stock and to rethink its current direction.”

Abrams, who chairs UCLA Luskin’s doctoral degree program in Social Welfare, most recently wrote Compassionate Confinement: A Year in the Life of Unit C, which draws on a decade of research and more than a year of fieldwork she and her co-author conducted at a juvenile justice facility in Minnesota. Reviews have recognized its “engaging narratives, rich observations, and descriptive depictions of human experiences.” In October 2013 Abrams was selected to deliver the Seabury Memorial Lecture at UC Berkeley.

Abrams’ article appeared in the December 2013 issue of Social Service Review, Vol. 87, No. 4, pp. 725-752.

Madeleine Albright to Deliver Luskin Lecture, Accept UCLA Medal

Former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright will present remarks and participate in a public discussion hosted by the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs, Wednesday, Jan. 29, at 7 p.m. at UCLA’s Royce Hall.

Prior to her address, presented as part of the Meyer and Renee Luskin Lecture Series, Albright will receive the UCLA Medal, the university’s highest honor, from former UCLA Chancellor Albert Carnesale.

When President Bill Clinton appointed her as Secretary of State in 1997, Albright became the highest ranking woman in the history of the U.S. government. She led the country’s diplomatic corps during a dynamic period of expanding global engagement, advocating for democracy and human rights around the world. Her other government experience includes service as the U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations and as a member of President Jimmy Carter’s National Security Council.

Today, Albright is chair of Albright Stonebridge Group, a global strategy firm, and chair of Albright Capital Management, an investment advisory firm focused on emerging markets. She is also the Mortara Endowed Distinguished Professor in the Practice of Diplomacy at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service. She chairs both the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs and the Pew Global Attitudes Project and serves as president of the Truman Scholarship Foundation. In 2012 President Barack Obama honored her achievements with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

“It is a privilege for the campus to bestow the UCLA Medal upon Secretary Albright, whose tireless commitment to expanding democracy and ensuring human rights around the world are an inspiration to countless people,” said UCLA Chancellor Gene Block. “”With principled vision, she has been a trailblazer for women and a champion for diplomacy throughout her life.”

The UCLA Medal is bestowed on those with exceptionally distinguished academic and professional achievement whose bodies of work or contributions to society illustrate the highest ideals of UCLA. Recipients have included national and international leaders in government, education, science, industry and the arts. Previous recipients include Nobel laureates, President Bill Clinton, UCLA alumnus and Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley, basketball coach John Wooden, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Harry Blackmun and UCLA alumnus and astronaut Anna L. Fisher.

In her lecture, “The Next Generation of Global Leadership,” Albright will apply her unique perspective to the pressing questions of equality, democracy and leadership that face the next generation of diplomats, elected officials and public intellectuals. Her address will be followed by a question-and-answer period moderated by UCLA Luskin Dean Franklin D. Gilliam, Jr.

“The students and scholars at UCLA Luskin work to bring positive change to the world, and they stand ready to be a part of the changing face of leadership that is addressing challenges in an environment of rapidly shifting political and cultural landscapes,” Gilliam said. “I am delighted to welcome Secretary Albright to the UCLA community, and I look forward to a stimulating discussion.”

The event is the latest in the school’s signature Luskin Lecture Series, which has featured speakers including former Vermont Gov. and Democratic presidential candidate Howard Dean, New York Police Commissioner William Bratton, and Children’s Defense Fund founder and president Marian Wright Edelman.

Please note: This event is sold out. Click here for more information.

Marian Wright Edelman Delivers Stirring Speech

By Max Wynn
UCLA Luskin Student Writer 

Marian Wright Edelman, the second speaker in the 2013-14 UCLA Luskin Lecture Series, delivered a stirring call to action to the community members, city leaders, educators and students who had gathered to hear her speak on Wednesday.

Edelman is the founder of the Children’s Defense Fund, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, as well a veteran of the civil rights movement, and her speech at the California African American Museum emphasized that child advocacy and the struggle for social equity were inseparably linked.

Click here to see Edelman’s “The Art of Leadership video”

Edelman described child advocacy as a marathon, but there was a sense of urgency as she outlined the issues facing America’s children and the nation as a whole.

“If we don’t break up that cradle to prison pipeline we are going to lose the last 50, 60 years of social progress,” she said. “We’ve got to replace massive incarceration and private prisons with early child education and health care and good schools.

“If we don’t save our children we cannot save this nation’s future,” she said.

Having established the critical role of child advocacy in securing a stronger and more equitable United States, Edelman declared that it was time for a movement. She emphasized throughout the night that for the nation’s children to overcome the formidable obstacles they face, Americans must share a renewed dedication to serving the greater good.

In his introductory remarks, Duane Dennis, the executive director of the child advocacy group Pathways, and a commissioner of First 5 LA, explained that to really know Marian Wright Edelman is to understand the value she places in service.

“Service is the rent we pay for being, it is the very purpose of life and not something you do in your spare time” he read, quoting her words. He went on to say that “her service, her life, her very being has enriched us all.”

As the lecture drew to a close Edelman told the story of a dinner party Dr. Martin Luther King attended less than a year before his death. Dr. King shocked the guests at the party by stating that he feared that they were integrating into a burning house. He feared that the country was going to be undone by extreme materialism, extreme militarism, and extreme racism. All there was to be done, he said, was to go out there and be firemen, to sound the alarm.

“I want to tell you that it’s time to get out there and sound the alarm” Edelman said, her voice growing louder. “This is a dangerous time, but we can turn danger into hope.”

Following the lecture, as the audience filed out of the auditorium many stayed behind to chat or have their picture taken with Edelman. One audience member turned to her friend and, with a palpable sense of joy, compared talking to Edelman with meeting Dr. King.

The Luskin Lecture Series is designed to enhance public discourse on topics relevant to today’s societal needs. Bringing renowned public intellectuals and scholars together with national and local leaders, the Luskin Lecture Series presents issues that are changing the way our country addresses its most pressing problems. For more information on upcoming Luskin Lecture Series events, please click here.

The Art of Leadership: William Bratton

Former Chief of the Los Angeles Police Department William J. Bratton is our latest in the series, “The Art of Leadership.”

Prior to speaking during the Luskin Lecture Series, Bratton discussed his ideas and thoughts on the subject of leadership, a subject that is important to UCLA Luskin. Leadership is one of the many things the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs emphasizes for its students with the Leadership Initiative, pairing tomorrow’s leaders with the leaders of today.

To see the Luskin School’s other Art of Leadership interviews, please visit our YouTube page.

 

Bratton Opens Luskin Lecture Series With Lively Talk

By Max Wynn
UCLA Luskin Student Writer
 

Former Los Angeles police chief William J. Bratton kicked off the new academic year’s UCLA Luskin Lecture Series last week with a speech that highlighted the ability of the police to be a force for positive social change. 

Community members and city leaders joined UCLA students, alumni and faculty at the Japanese American National Museum in Downtown Los Angeles to hear the former Chief speak. Bratton’s lecture linked the experiences of his 40 years of police work, during which he has also served as Police Commissioner in Boston and New York, with the evolution of the profession as a whole.

In no small part thanks to Chief Bratton’s contributions, policing has moved from responding to crimes that were committed, to preventing those crimes and improving the communities in which they occur. Crime prevention, and the importance of the relationship between the police and the community, were key elements of both his speech and the policies he implemented during his time as Los Angeles’ Chief of Police, which lasted from 2002-09.

LAPD Bureau Chief and UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs board member Gerald Chaleff said, during his introductory remarks, that these policies have “made the Los Angeles police department into a place where everyone else in law enforcement now comes to learn and be trained.”

Chief Bratton’s policies reduced crime in Los Angeles and repaired the reputation of the police department, but he believes that quality policing can have an even greater impact. 

“If we the police get it right in delivering public safety in a way that we build trust, in a way that improves race relationships, in a way that improves our efficiency,” he said, “then we are effectively a force multiplier for expanding on all the promises of democracy that go back to the creation of our country, and our constitution, and our Declaration of Independence.”

Throughout his speech Chief Bratton repeated his mantra “cops count, police matter”, and as his speech drew to a close he built upon this phrase, adding that “we can matter so much more if we do it the right way.”

Following the lecture Frank D. Gilliam Jr., Dean of the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs, joined Chief Bratton on stage. The two had a conversation about a wide range of topics, among them terrorism, gun control, trends in crime statistics, and how to best enforce stop-and-frisk policies.

The Luskin Lecture Series continues with “A Conversation with Marian Wright Edelman.” The civil rights activist and founder of the Children’s Defense Fund will be speaking on December 4th at the California African American Museum. For more information and to RSVP, please click here.

The Luskin Lecture Series is designed to enhance public discourse on topics relevant to today’s societal needs. Bringing renowned public intellectuals and scholars together with national and local leaders, the Luskin Lecture Series presents issues that are changing the way our country addresses its most pressing problems. For more information on upcoming Luskin Lecture Series events, please click here.

 

Social Welfare Presentation — Fast Cars and Battle Scars: Understanding the Modern Combat Veteran and PTSD Army veteran Andrew Nicholls speaks on military social work

By Ramin Rajaii
UCLA Luskin Student Writer

How is a military man supposed to assimilate back into society following a traumatic experience abroad?

UCLA senior Andrew Nicholls served eight years in the U.S. Army, including a year in Iraq, providing him with a unique perspective on the subject.

Now, he’s sharing his firsthand perspectives about the military and combat through a UCLA psychology course entitled, “Fast Cars and Battle Scars: Understanding the Modern Combat Veteran and PTSD,” the purpose for which is raising awareness of what it is like to serve and return to civilian society.

On Tuesday afternoon, Nicholls spoke on the subject at the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs, in a lunchtime chat presented by the Social Welfare department to promote military social work.

Nicholls led a discussion regarding the seminar, and various ways in which we can re-forge hope for war veterans.

Combat veterans make up 9% of the U.S. population. In their training, they must endure both extremely high mental and physical standards. As a result, returning to an entirely different world from which you have been disconnected is a near insurmountable task.

“You’ve been on an adrenaline rush the entire time,” Nicholls said, “Then you get home to a mundane life, and a lot of guys start racing motorcycles, skydiving and finding other thrill-seeking activities.”

Without such outlets, many veterans suffer from severe cases of PTSD – post-traumatic stress disorder, experiencing everything from their ears ringing spontaneously and tunnel vision to a sudden inability to breathe.

In the talk, Nicholls emphasized that civilians must recognize war veterans for having provided service to their countries, and in so doing, military members have “written a check up to and including their lives.”

Nicholls is teaching the course through the UCLA Undergraduate Student Initiated Education Program, which enables outstanding juniors and seniors in the College of Letters and Science to develop and teach a one-unit seminar, under faculty supervision.

The class also will cover the experience of basic training, unique issues facing female veterans and how military training prepares prospective soldiers to kill.

 

Debra Duardo: From Drop-Out to Drop-Out Preventer 2013 Social Welfare Alumna of the Year, Duardo, changed her life with an education and then helped others do the same

It was more than being a teenage mother, a life-altering event in itself.

It was more than having a child barely after being allowed to have a driver’s license.

It was more than blinking hard, realizing you’re 15, a high school dropout, married, working at Kentucky Fried Chicken and soon thereafter, holding a baby in your arms.

It was the moments after, the days and weeks when the teenage Debra Duardo was standing there and a revolving door of specialists were telling her things she couldn’t comprehend.

That the child in her arms was born with a bubble on his back, identified as spina bifida, and would need nearly a dozen surgeries in his first year of life.

Somewhere between that joy of a baby and the agony of learning the infant had a neural tube defect, Debra Duardo needed to make another life-changing decision.

Hadn’t she made enough already?

***

The Los Angeles Unified School District took away the interim portion of Duardo’s title last week, completing a meteoric rise where she is now the Executive Director of Health and Human Services.

Hired directly out of her internship through the UCLA Luskin School’s Social Welfare department, Duardo began her careDebra Duardo, center, is joined by Dr. Joseph A. Nunn and Jorja Leap.er at Wilson High in Los Angeles as a Pupil Services and Attendance Counselor. The scope of the job focused on working with students who had attendance problems.

It would seem that would be a great fit for Duardo, who, as a teenager, attended high school for a week before deciding that earning money at Kentucky Fried Chicken was more important than an education.

But she was far from coming full circle.

Between her first position and her current one, Duardo has mostly worked with students who have attendance problems. In between, though, she served as the Assistant Principal of Le Conte Middle School — the same middle school she attended shortly before dropping out of high school for good.

“When you’re in a school as an assistant principal, you’re running the intervention program and Saturday school,” Duardo said. “You’re helping students and families who are under-represented and who are really struggling. You’re a counselor and you’re doing home visits and you truly understand that some families are living in garages without electricity or two entire families are living together.”

Several years later, Duardo was named the Director of Dropout Prevention and Recovery, something she could truly relate to.

“I think that’s my passion because I experienced it,” said Duardo, who wrote grants to bring back more than $12 million to maintain the Diploma Project, a program that places social workers at schools with high dropout rates to help bring back students to the classroom. “There are some, who are like me, and didn’t think school was interesting. Others drop out because they’re really smart and bored, some have issues with substance abuse or violence, or they have kids of their own.

“I wanted to touch students and tell them the only way to get ahead is to get an education.”

***

Bruce, the oldest of Duardo’s four children, is 33 years old now and lives independently. This is a major achievement, since the spina bifida left him a quadriplegic despite 10 operations before his first birthday.

It was his birth defect that forced Duardo to make that paramount life-changing decision. She needed an education.

“I was a teen mom and I was in the hospital and all these specialized doctors kept coming to see me,” Duardo said. “I didn’t understand everything they were saying and I thought ‘This child will have a lot of needs, I need an education.’”

And, it was the blessing of a newborn — not the meager paycheck from a fast food restaurant — that pushed Duardo to a classroom.

***

It took Duardo a decade to finish her high school education through Los Angeles City College.

Why so long?

Well, she was working, having given up frying the colonel’s chicken and taking a job with the Los Angeles Commission on Assaults Against Women. She also had three more children with her husband, after they had eloped to Las Vegas when she was 15 and he was 19. By the time she finished, she applied to two schools — Cal State Los Angeles and UCLA.

“It was equidistant from where we lived,” she explained.

When she was accepted to attend class in Westwood, she was pleased. But it didn’t garner the I’m-a-high-school-dropout-and-now-I’m-going-to-a-premier-university excitement one would expect.

“I thought anybody who applied got in,” she says now, laughing at her naivety.

During her undergraduate years as a Chicano/a Studies and Women’s Studies double-major, Duardo continued to think of the women she came across at the Commission, women who were also social workers. She decided that the education she had put off for so long needed to continue.

She enrolled in UCLA Luskin’s Social Welfare program in 1994 and an internship led to her first job as an attendance counselor with LAUSD.

***

This is a spring full of milestones for Durado: She is on track to earn her doctorate from UCLA’s GraduateSchool of Education and Information Studies, and this past weekend she was named UCLA Luskin’s Department of Social Welfare Joseph A. Nunn Alumna of the Year, a highlight that earned her accolades across LAUSD.

In her current role she oversees a vast amount of projects — from student medical services, to nursing, mental health, pupil services and dropout education, among others — while also serving on the City of Los Angeles Commission of Children and Families, a designation given her by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.

While she has reason to be amazed at her personal and professional journey, Duardo is happiest about something that won’t earn her a plaque.

“I raised four amazing human beings who are following their love,” she said. “They are good people who are very social and justice conscious.”

And, obviously, educated. They’re her “Killer B’s,” as she refers to them.

Following Bruce is Brandon, who graduated from Georgetown with a Master’s degree in sports management so he could create sports programs for physically disabled youth. The kind of programs his older brother could have participated in, had they previously existed.

Beverly earned her undergraduate degree at UC Berkeley and is now in a nursing program at Marymount University in Virginia. The youngest, Bianca, is in Israel on a five-month internship supporting girls who were sexually assaulted.

***

Duardo has a simple message:

“If I can do it with four kids, then anyone can do it.”

The best part of her creed is that she’s putting her past into someone else’s future. Working with Los Angeles-area teens to promote the benefits of an education, Duardo can always dip into her tale to get a message across.

“That continues to be my passion, to get kids to understand that they’re entitled to that education,” Duardo said. “When a student drops out of school, it affects all of us as a community because they’re more likely to be in poverty or depend on welfare. They’re more likely to be involved in criminal activities.

“I wish someone had been there to help explain what school is all about, and how much a diploma would mean to my future. That experience informs my work every day — I want to make sure every at-risk student in our district has the opportunity I never had.”

Debra Duardo Named Social Welfare Alumna of the Year Debra Duardo, a 1996 Master of Social Welfare graduate from the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs and LAUSD Student Health Director, has been selected to receive the Joseph A. Nunn Award

By Luskin Staff

Debra Duardo, a 1996 Master of Social Welfare graduate from the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs, has been selected to receive the Joseph A. Nunn Award, honoring her as the department’s Alumna of the Year. The award will be presented to Duardo in a ceremony on Saturday, April 20.

The Social Welfare Alumnus of the Year award recognizes outstanding social work professionals who have contributed leadership and service to the school, university, and/or community, and who have otherwise distinguished themselves through commitment and dedication to a particular area of social work.

Duardo is currently the executive director of student health and human services for Los Angeles Unified School District, the second-largest school district in the United States. As the executive director she is responsible for the administrative oversight of support services and district programs designed to address the physical health, mental health, and home and community barriers that prevent student academic success, including student medical services, school nursing, pupil services, dropout prevention and recovery, school mental health, community partnerships, and Medi-Cal programs.

In this role she manages a $100 million budget and over 3,000 employees including directors, specialists, pupil services and attendance counselors, psychiatric social workers, nurses, organization facilitators, and healthy start coordinators.

After graduating from UCLA with a major in Women Studies and Chicana/o Studies in 1994 Duardo earned her Master of Social Welfare degree at UCLA in 1996 with a specialization in school social work. Since that time she has earned her school administrative credential and is currently completing her Ed.D. in the Graduate School of Education and Information Studies at UCLA. Following completion of her MSW, Debra started her career serving as a school social worker and the Healthy Start project director at Wilson High School.

She advanced to being the LAUSD Healthy Start District Administrator. Since that time she has served as assistant principal at Le Conte Middle School, the director of dropout prevention and recovery for LAUSD, and director of pupil services for LAUSD.  Through all of these positions she has maintained her focus on the important of health and social services for children and families.

The Joseph A. Nunn Social Welfare Alumnus of the Year award was established to honor Joseph A. Nunn, former director of field education at the Department of Social Welfare at UCLA. Dr. Nunn brought leadership and service to UCLA and the Social Welfare program at the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs for over two decades. Dr. Nunn received his B.S., M.S.W. and Ph.D. degrees from UCLA. After working as a probation officer for 15 years, he became a member of the field education faculty in 1980, and except for a three-year, off-campus appointment, remained at UCLA until his retirement in 2006. During his last 15 years, he served with distinction as the director of field education and, simultaneous for the last decade, as vice chair of the Department of Social Welfare, where he supervised the field education program.

A Secure Retirement for All Americans

By Ramin Rajaii
UCLA Luskin Student Writer

“What kind of America do you want?”

This was the question posed by A. Barry Rand at the latest UCLA Luskin Lecture Series event. Rand is the CEO of AARP, the world’s largest nonprofit, nonpartisan membership organization dedicated to improving the quality of life for individuals over the age of 50.

“For us at AARP,” Rand said, “we want a society in which everyone lives with dignity and purpose, achieves their dreams, and enjoys lifelong financial security. Every individual should have the opportunity to achieve the American Dream, whether they are young or old.”

Rand believes that discussions regarding the future of aging in America have never been more pertinent; as the nation undergoes changes in health policy, we are pressed to contemplate their impacts on an aging society.

According to Rand, the idea of old age was transformed from a “life in purgatory” to a desired destination beginning in the 1950s. At once, old age became known as “leisure years,” a reward for a lifetime of hard work.

Changing demographics are challenging the reward of retirement, Rand said. “America is experiencing a dramatic change. This is the first time that minorities account for over half of all births in the past twelve months,” he said. “By 2030, racial and ethnic minorities will be 42% of the US population. This new ethnographic makeup becomes new ‘American mainstream’ – where minorities become the majority in the aging population.”

The goal of AARP, outlined by Rand, is primarily to help the growing aging population make a contribution to society while allowing them to be financially prosperous after retirement. In his eyes, three main strategies need to be employed.

First, as social security remains a critical foundation for income security, AARP seeks to promote a full-blown discussion of how it contributes to the wellbeing of older Americans, and how it can be modified to improve effectiveness.

Second, Rand believes it critical to continue lowering growth and healthcare spending system wide – a major tenet of the Affordable Care Act signed into law in 2010.

Finally, “in order to thrive and take advantage of life possibilities,” Rand explained, “people need to live in age-friendly communities.” From his perspective, the nation needs to become more welcoming to residents of all ages.

When asked what AARP should do to position themselves as national advocates for the growing U.S. aging population, Rand succinctly summarized their mission: “We strive to help people have access to affordable healthcare and be financially secure. We are focused on how to be creative in getting the costs down, while ensuring that all generations have the ability to enjoy social security benefits.”

Rand has long fought for social change. He has served as chairman and chief executive officer of Avis Group Holdings, CEO of Equitant Ltd., and executive vice president, Worldwide Operations, at Xerox Corporation.

Read Rand’s remarks (PDF)

The Luskin Lecture Series enhances public discourse on topics relevant to the betterment of society. The Series features renowned public intellectuals, bringing together scholars as well as national and local leaders to address society’s most pressing problems. 

Stephen Cheung Making Waves at LA Port

The port of Los Angeles and Long Beach is the busiest port in the United States and currently receives 44 percent of all cargo shipped to our country. In 2012, this amounted to about eight million cargo units with global trade partners including China, Japan and South Korea.

Stephen Cheung, a 2007 graduate from the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs with a Master of Social Work degree, is now the Director of International Development at the Port of Los Angeles and is in charge of overseeing international port trade. Cheung works to maintain Los Angeles as a dominant international trading hub by attracting new partners and strengthening current relationships.

“We have been the ideal and more advantageous destination,” Cheung said, “but by 2015 places like the gulf coast and the new Panama Canal are going to create more competition. So we have to be more strategic and look at new partnerships and commodities to attract and retain business. Before the rest of the world can catch up we still have the opportunity to market ourselves and look at new areas, including Vietnam and Brazil as potential trading partners.”

Cheung said the Port has a significant impact on the local and national economy, generating 3.3 million jobs nationally. The port can also have a negative environmental impact through high levels of pollution. Cheung believes the role the port has in building strong communities through economic vitality and the potential to reduce the environmental impact makes his job unique and interesting.

“Los Angeles is a global leader in trade and in mitigating our environmental footprint,” says Cheung. Before coming to the Port, Cheung worked for Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and helped create and run the Clean Air Action Plan.

The Clean Air Action Plan (CAAP), started in 2006 as a five-year program to reduce emissions at the LA and Long Beach port by 45 percent. The aggressive plan invested $2 billion and partnered with the U.S Environmental Protection Agency and local air quality organizations. Replacing older diesel using trucks and using new technologies to reducing truck emission is another key element to the plan.

Although all goals have not been met yet, the program was considered successful and was renewed in 2010. New standards include reducing residential cancer risk of port-related emissions by 85 percent.

“It’s not just about making money,” Cheung said. “The port helps create economic opportunity but also is committed to the surrounding community. We are a leader on environmental issues. Our connectivity can help shape our outlook and what we can do together.”

It might seem unlikely that an alum with a Master’s of Social Work works for International Development at the Port, but Cheung sees it as a very natural progression.

Cheung praised the internship requirement as a UCLA Luskin student and credited his current career to his internship with Representative Karen Bass’s office while at Luskin. He began working in government at the Mayor’s office soon after graduating in 2007.

“My experience working at Karen Bass’ office prepared me for working in local and state government. It was very a practical and hands-on experience that helped build my career with the Mayor’s office,” Cheung said.

Cheung also credited the vast networking opportunities available to Luskin students and urged current students to not get overwhelmed and take advantage of what is offered, including the Senior Fellows program. Cheung participated in the fellowship program and worked with Jean Ross, then Executive Director of the California Budget Project.

“Take advantage of everything and do some digging to find support,” Cheung advised. “Don’t get too overwhelmed with the academics.”

Cheung said we was encouraged to see more Luskin alums working in all levels of government. As an example, he referred to his fellow Luskin alum, Antonio Sanchez, running for District Representative for the LA Unified School District. According to Cheung, Luskin alums working in government can use their unique social justice perspective to impact the system in responsible ways to address the concerns and needs of communities.

UCLA Luskin alumni and students are cordially invited to a UCLA Luskin Alumni Student Networking Event at the Port of Los Angeles!

Join us for a special afternoon of networking, a behind the scenes look at the Port of Los Angeles, and a brief Boat Tour.  Don’t miss this opportunity to reunite with fellow alumni and meet current students!

Friday, April 19, 2013

11:30 AM – 3:00 PM

The Port of Los Angeles
425 South Palos Verdes Street
Los Angeles, CA 90731

Lunch will be provided! 

All guests will be charged $10 to cover the cost of the experience.

Schedule for the Day:

11:45 am – 12:00 pm      Welcome to the Port of Los Angeles – Security Check-In

Port of Los Angeles Administration Building

12:00 pm – 12:45 pm   Briefing at the Port of Los Angeles

Port of Los Angeles Administration Building Board Room

1:00 pm – 2:30 pm     Boat Tour of the Port of Los Angeles

Harbor Breeze Vessel, Berth 84

Limited space is available; please RSVP only if you can confirm your attendance when doing so.  An RSVP should not be used as a tentative place holder.  Parking and directions for Check-In will be sent approximately one week prior to the event.

Click here to RSVP.

Feel free to email events@publicaffairs.ucla.edu with any questions!

Available exclusively to UCLA Luskin grads and students, Luskin Online is the best resource for current students and alumni to connect in a Luskin-only setting. Click here to be a part of it!