Expanding Equity In Educational Research
Marcela Cuellar, Jacob Hibel, and Isabella Cantu: Hispanic-Serving Institutions
On Thursday, November 14, 2024, Profs. Marcela Cuellar and Jacob Hibel and Ph.D. student Isabella Cantu presented at the School of Education Expanding Equity in Educational Research speaker series. The event opened with welcome remarks from Profs. Danny C. Martinez and Gloria Rodriguez, and it was moderated by Prof. Kevin Gee.
Cuellar presented “(Re)framing Excellence & Servingness: The Opportunities at Hispanic-Serving Research Institutions (HSRIs),” addressing how the intersection of Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs) and R1 universities can transform learning spaces. Hibel and Cantu presented “Early Lessons from an HSI Graduate School Pathway Program,” discussing the positive impact that the UC Davis Broadening Participation in Social Inequality Research summer program is having on pathways to higher education.
Our Speakers
Dr. Marcela G. Cuellar
Marcela G. Cuellar is an associate professor in the School of Education at the University of California, Davis. Her research examines Latinx/a/o student experiences and outcomes at HSIs and emerging HSIs, campus climate, and community college baccalaureates. She is currently a co-PI on a research project examining the unique role of R1 HSIs, especially within the University of California, and a collaborator on a project examining the development and implementation of community college baccalaureate programs in California community colleges.
Jacob Hibel
Jacob Hibel is an associate professor in the Department of Sociology. His research focuses on large-scale immigration’s consequences for children, schools and communities. He is particularly interested in community-level effects: the consequences of living and attending school in an immigrant-rich community versus one with lower historical immigration levels. Specific projects in this thread include examinations of cross-community discrepancies in immigrant children’s disability identification, neighborhood influences on Mexican American immigrant children’s academic achievement, and historical trends in migration, segregation and public school funding in the United States.
Isabella Cantu
Isabella (Bella) Cantu is a 3rd year Ph.D. student in the Department of Sociology and assists in research with both Dr. Cuellar and Dr. Hibel. Cantu grew up in the Inland Empire region of Southern California and earned her bachelor’s degree in sociology from CSU San Bernardino, an HSI. Her research examines students’ educational pathways from K-12 to higher education and disparities in access and attainment of postsecondary education. She is particularly interested in how Latinx/e students’ life and K-12 academic experiences affect their postsecondary decisions.
About the Series
Presented by the UC Davis School of Education and Graduate Group in Education, the Expanding Equity in Educational Research speaker series highlights multidisciplinary experts that explore how faculty and students can use their research to shift practices and create more equitable outcomes across the educational field.
