![Annika Anderson](/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/upload/image/2025/BANNER_Annika-Anderson.jpg.webp?itok=78EwrdJU)
Driven by a desire for change, Annika Anderson, associate professor and the executive director of Project Rebound, channels her personal connection to the criminal justice system – shaped by her family members’ transitions out of correctional facilities – into her teaching and leadership. She integrates service, research and education to challenge the stigma surrounding formerly incarcerated individuals and create pathways for change.
![Yawen Li (at right), CSUSB professor of social work, with CSBS Dean Christina Hassija. Li recently presented a virtual talk for a forum at Peking University.](/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/upload/image/2024/NewsSlide_Yawen_Li_A32I7275.jpg.webp?itok=r-xWSmwY)
Yawen Li’s talk, "Community-Based Long-Term Care for Minority Older Adults in the U.S.: The Role of Adult Day Care Centers," was delivered virtually on Dec. 6.
![PDC faculty members](/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/upload/image/2024/Web%20Publishing%20%5BPOST%5D%20-24_7660%20AA-PDC_New%20Tenure%20Track%20Faculty.jpg.webp?itok=fjS9L9EK)
As the Palm Desert Campus continues to expand its programs and services to meet the needs of the local community and beyond, the addition of these accomplished faculty members underscores the university’s dedication to providing high-quality education and fostering an inclusive learning environment.
![Chemical Sciences bldg., Faculty in the News](/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/upload/image/2024/Faculty-in-the-News-CNS_2.jpg.webp?itok=6zWUiPkE)
Stuart Sumida (biology) will be a panelist at San Diego Comic-Con on Sunday, July 28; Yawen Li (sociology) presented a talk at Yunnan University in China; and research by Brian Levin (criminal justice, emeritus) was cited in a news article about U.S. political violence.
![Center for Global Innovation building, Faculty in the News](/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/upload/image/2024/Faculty-in-the-News-CGI_3.jpg.webp?itok=0irR6JlC)
Rigaud Joseph (social work) was interviewed for an article about charities that accept furniture donations for those in need, Meredith Conroy (political science) participated on a 538 live blog following the Maryland primary election, and Brian Levin (criminal justice, emeritus) was asked to comment on the case of a man charged with federal hate crimes who shot two Jewish men in 2023.
![art sculpture](/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/upload/image/2024/Faculty-in-the-News-Art.jpg.webp?itok=WUYQR26y)
Katherine Gray (art) returns for season four as resident evaluator in Netflix’s “Blown Away,” Brian Levin (criminal justice, emeritus) commented on the role of politicians’ rhetoric and the increase in hate crimes against Latinos, Yawen Li (social work) was interviewed for an article about body image, and Justin Schneider (nursing) was part of a research team that examined barriers faced by transgender individuals.
![CSBS, Faculty in the News](/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/upload/image/Faculty-in-the-News-SBS_65.jpg.webp?itok=I7XM40EV)
Meredith Conroy (political science) cowrote a study on the electoral success of women at lower-level offices, Gisela Bichler and Nerea Marteache (criminal justice) led a team that studied the impacts of illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, and Yawen Li (social work) was part of a team that published a recent study that examined the rapid development of digital health technology.
![Rigaud Joseph, associate professor of social work](/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/upload/image/Homepage%20%5BPOST%5D%20Banner%20-20_4379%20OSC_DFV_26%20-Rigaud%20Joseph_0.jpg.webp?itok=EwNoJbtT)
Rigaud Joseph, associate professor of social work, expresses how diversity at CSUSB allows for no student to be left behind.
![A presentation at the CSUSB Palm Desert Campus on Oct. 11 for the 2023 California Economic Summit](/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/upload/image/NewsSlide_PDC_CVSummit_16Oct2023.jpg.webp?itok=_M5QiP8F)
A component of the three-day event was a stop at the CSUSB Palm Desert Campus for a special presentation. In addition, on the second day of the summit, Robert Nava, vice president University Advancement, participated in roundtable discussion with Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis on how PDC serves the region’s higher education needs.