(Left) Health Sciences faculty Suzanne Spear and students visit the office of California Assemblyperson Matt Dababneh who represents District 45, which includes the communities near CSUN.
Thanks to a grant from the California Endowment, for the third year in a row students from the Department of Health Sciences traveled to Sacramento to attend a two-day Health Policy conference, meet with officials and observe hearings in the assembly and the senate.
This past April, eleven Health Sciences students traveled to Sacramento to learn more about how the state legislature functions. They were accompanied by Suzanne Spear, Assistant Professor, Health Sciences. For the third year in a row, the conference was funded by a grant from the California Endowment, and organized by public policy expert Dr. Walter Zelman, Chair of the Department of Public Health at Cal State LA.
Health Sciences students and faculty from a total of 12 CSUs were in attendance. Some of the highlights of the trip included visiting the state capital, hearing from members of the California Assembly, observing health committee hearings in both the Assembly and Senate. The students even got direct career advice from Secretary of State Alex Padilla as well as officials from the California Department of Public Health.
Cindy Quijivix, Health Sciences student, class of 2015, commented that the conference opened her eyes to the many career possibilities for young people who are passionate about health sciences, public health and community service, “Hearing the different stories of various policy analysts and state officials was extremely motivating. As a first generation college student, this experience expanded my knowledge on possible careers paths and definitely served as a motivation to continue my work in the community and above all my educational advancement.”
“The students were keen to learn that many policy makers in Sacramento are CSU graduates,” said Spear. “The trip was the first time that this group of CSUN students visited Sacramento.”
