When Rear Adm. Pamela Schweitzer graduated from Cal State Fullerton in 1982 with a bachelor’s degree in biological sciences, she wasn’t exactly sure where her career path would take her.

Schweitzer’s time at CSUF laid the foundation for a nearly 30-year career in federal service that included regional and national positions within Indian Health Service and a four-year term as the assistant surgeon general and 10th chief pharmacist officer of the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps.

Her service to our country, along with her continued commitment to the Titan community, has earned Schweitzer a selection as a 2024 CSUF Vision & Visionaries Distinguished Alumni award winner.

A Placentia native and one of five children, Schweitzer attended Troy High School in Fullerton and applied to CSUF because it was the most affordable college option for her family. She lived at home during her undergraduate years but spent time on campus whenever she could, participating in various clubs and activities.

One of Schweitzer’s most influential professors was the late Miles D. McCarthy, a CSUF founding faculty member and founding chair of the Department of Biological Sciences. McCarthy’s impact fostered a love for her chosen field.

“The light bulb turned on, and I really loved that college was so different than high school,” Schweitzer said. “McCarthy had this health professions group that I participated in, and he introduced us to all the different career options that were out there for health professionals. He was so excited that we were interested in going into the health profession.”

Once she earned her bachelor’s degree, Schweitzer stayed at CSUF to pursue a master’s degree in immunology but left for UC San Francisco after being accepted into the university’s School of Pharmacy. After earning her doctorate in pharmacy, she completed her residency in ambulatory care/administration at UC Irvine Medical Center, eventually working as an outpatient pharmacy supervisor.

Her next career steps took Schweitzer to the Black Hills of South Dakota, where she worked for Indian Health Service, the federal health program for American Indians and Alaska Natives within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. She spent time at Pine Ridge Indian Reservation and then relocated to Northern Arizona, where she worked in Tuba City and on the Gila River Indian Reservation, helping to ensure access to public health services.

“I love helping people, and so it was an adventure being able to go and work on the Indian reservations and help there,” Schweitzer said.

After advancing to national positions within IHS, she headed to Washington D.C. to work with the Department of Health and Human Services and other federal agencies on regulatory and policy matters. While there, Schweitzer was appointed assistant surgeon general and 10th chief pharmacist officer, the first female to hold this position, serving under former U.S. Surgeon General, Dr. Jerome Adams, and current U.S. Surgeon General, Dr. Vivek H. Murthy.

During her term, which ran from 2014 – 2018, Schweitzer provided leadership and oversight to more than 1,300 Public Health Service pharmacy officers across the country and focused on emergency response initiatives that included Ebola, H1N1 and the opioid crisis. The role was a 24/7 commitment, but she loved every minute.

“I worked with absolutely amazing people,” Schweitzer said. “I felt like I was really fortunate to be around a lot of people that were very committed.”

Although currently retired, Schweitzer is still active in the health care space, serving on advisory boards to help with strategic planning on several public health initiatives, splitting her time between Washington, D.C.; South Dakota and Arizona. She is also a member of CSUF’s Philanthropic Foundation Board of Governors and enjoys sharing her story with the next generation of Titans.

Her years at CSUF set the stage for a career path that captured both her interest in science and her heart for others while instilling a love for learning that remains with her to this day.

“When I was there (at CSUF), I learned to love learning,” Schweitzer said. “I had this great attitude, and I acquired it from the professors because they loved their subjects so much. I’ve kept that attitude my whole career, and I’m grateful that I had those experiences at Cal State Fullerton where people really, genuinely wanted to help me learn.”

Schweitzer and her family will join the other five 2024 Vision and Visionaries honorees at an awards dinner on Feb. 24 where their accomplishments will be celebrated. She is grateful for the recognition and credits those who have provided unwavering support throughout her career.

“This is not about me, it’s about the team, the people that have been around me,” Schweitzer said. “I’ve had amazing people to work with. This is not something I did. None of us can do anything without our wonderful support systems.”

An assistant professor in Cal State Fullerton’s Department of American Studies, Rowe teaches courses such as “Women, Race and Ethnicity in American Culture” and “The Body in American Culture,” where she and her students examine the intersection between beauty, pop culture, race and gender politics.

Rowe’s passion for research and her many published works in this area resulted in an invitation to contribute to the 2022 Comcast Xfinity docuseries, titled “The Black Beauty Effect,” a three-part series that focuses on the history, evolution and contribution of Black people in beauty and culture.

As an English major undergraduate student, Rowe was drawn to storytelling, film and pop culture. At the same time, she decided to join the contemporary natural hair movement, when a critical mass of Black women stopped chemically straightening their hair via relaxers in favor of natural hair styles.

Prior to that time, a significant part of Black beauty culture was centered on chemical relaxers. Rowe argues that at that same juncture, there became an overarching interest across races around going green, going organic and going natural, with an emphasis on “dechemicalizing” various aspects of our lives.

These movements, along with the introduction of YouTube in 2005, allowed the internet to become a space for Black women to teach each other how to style and maintain their natural hair. It wasn’t long before a community took shape, and Rowe felt the pull to contribute to the discussion.

“It was really just being in it,” Rowe said. “Being in the community, in the movement, being a product of it and observing things. And it was thinking that someone should write this down or unpack this.”

When the team from FaceForward Productions contacted Rowe in 2021, they explained the project and that they were looking for published experts to speak on the field of Black hair and Black beauty. She spent a day at Soho Works in West Hollywood being interviewed for the documentary, placing her voice alongside significant Black cultural creators, such as celebrity makeup artists, magazine editors, scholars and cosmetic company founders.

“The Black Beauty Effect” debuted in November 2022, highlighting the “social change in the beauty industry through the lens of successful Black women.”

The docuseries is in three parts: Episode 1 – “The Beat Effect” focusing on makeup, Episode 2 – “The Skin Effect” spotlighting skin care, and Episode 3 – “The Crown Effect” focusing on hair, the episode where Rowe makes the most significant contributions.

Rowe attended a premiere for the documentary in Los Angeles and is more than pleased with the finished product.

“I keep describing it as kind of an archival love letter,” Rowe said of the documentary, “the way they put all the voices in conversation with each other, along with the images and the video footage.”

Rowe feels the topics surrounding Black beauty are important and timely, with the docuseries playing a role in archiving and sharing the history of these contributions to society. She also sees the project as an entry point for wider discussions around race and gender.

“There are so many things to talk about,” Rowe said. “What do people have access to and how does that inform their experiences? How do different modes of presentation vary from class to class? There’s not just race, but ethnicity … body and size politics … all these things are embodied and wrapped up in beauty as well.”

While Rowe has not made viewing “The Black Beauty Effect” a required part of her courses, she has informed her students about the docuseries and introduces many of the topics into the curriculum of her upper-level classes and electives.

Additionally, Rowe is under contract to write a book on art, pop culture and representation in the context of the contemporary natural hair movement using a black feminist framework to review texts and new media.

All three episodes of “The Black Beauty Effect” are now available for viewing on Netflix, and Rowe feels it is a critical project that contributes to a relevant conversation.

“I think what they’ve made is so wonderful and so important,” Rowe said. “It is a topic that a lot of people connect to because it provides language and scholarship for things they’ve observed in their world and in their bodies … If it had nothing to do with me, I would still encourage you to watch it.”

Beginning this fall, SCC will expand that support by offering credit courses and a full associate’s degree program specifically for youth offenders in Orange County Juvenile Hall. This will be possible thanks to a $1.5 million Juvenile Justice Program grant that was awarded to SCC through the California Community Colleges Rising Scholars Network.

In 2018, SCC formalized its support of incarcerated and formerly incarcerated students through Project RISE, a bridge program that removes the barriers of higher education for these members of society through credit and noncredit courses, vocational certificate training, education planning and counseling support. The campus has served nearly 3,000 students in the adult jails.

Project RISE also serves juvenile offenders, which in the state of California can include those through age 25. SCC has offered credit courses to that group of students since 2021. California recognized that this specific population has unique needs when it comes to higher education and created the Juvenile Justice Program grant.

SCC will begin receiving disbursement on the five-year grant award this month and will use the funds to build a full credit program that focuses on dual enrollment courses, as well as Career and Technical Education training and the Associate Degree for Transfer.

“With the dual enrollment program, we can get them that dual credit, so when they get their high school diploma, they’re already ahead of the game in college, whether they’re taking the college program inside the juvenile hall or they’ve been paroled and are joining a college outside of the hall,” said SCC Vice President of Academic Affairs Jason Parks, who will oversee the expansion of the program. “The CTE will give them a certificate in training to get a job after they are paroled, and then the ADT program guarantees them a spot in one of the CSUs.”

The students will be provided laptops, and a full suite of course offerings will be available either online or in person, hosted inside the facility. Counselors will guide students in meeting requirements for high school diploma completion, as well as degree advancement. Parks has a background working with the juvenile offender population and feels this approach will spotlight a path that many may not have considered.

“Inside juvenile hall, there is a lot of forced programming, and college is suddenly giving them agency,” Parks said. “We’re going into this space and we’re saying, ‘Tell us what you want to study. Tell us what you’re interested in, and we’re going to come back and provide options that cater to your interests.’ ”

SCC Dean of Instruction and Student Services Joanne Armstrong prepared the Juvenile Justice Program grant application and has seen firsthand how Project RISE can open the minds of the students it serves.

“The entire point (of Project RISE) is exposure and access,” Armstrong said. “It’s hearing them say, ‘I didn’t know I could learn until I learned. I didn’t know I was capable until I was in your class.’ It’s those kind of things where you’re planting a seed somewhere that somebody cared enough to be there to support them, regardless of where they’re at.”

Armstrong also notes the impact of higher education on the family unit and how these opportunities can work toward breaking a cycle.

“Incarceration impacts entire family systems, and so when you change even one degree of somebody’s trajectory, you change the path of their life,” Armstrong said. “We like to call it pivot points. If I catch you at just the right time, it may be a pivot point where we just shifted the direction of your life minutely now, but the trajectory is really going to make an impact on that whole family.”

The program currently serves 20-30 juvenile students with credit courses, but with the Juvenile Justice Program grant, Parks is looking to double that number. SCC will also be providing counselors who are specifically trained in the ins and outs of credits and transfer eligibility to further support these students on their academic journey.

Above all, Parks envisions a future that includes graduation ceremonies where these juveniles are dressed in regalia and able to celebrate their accomplishments and their commitment to a better path.

“We’re working with a population of human beings who didn’t come into life and live their youth with a lot of advantages,” Parks said. “This is an opportunity for them, while they’re paying their time, to find a way back into society and rejoin as productive citizens, without starting over.”

He chose SCC for its location, tucked away in the hills, away from the hustle and bustle of Orange County. After deciding to becoming a history professor, Stenersen began to unravel the often complicated and confusing journey of veterans’ benefits.

Stenersen hit several roadblocks in that journey. In search of help, he found himself at SCC’s Veterans Resource Center, where staff and peers provide veterans, active duty, reservists and their dependents and spouses assistance in navigating and accessing their VA education benefits. Not only did he find help for himself, but he quickly became a go-to in providing help to others who experienced similar struggles.

“My first semester, I was very standoffish, and I didn’t want to be around anybody,” Stenersen said. “But by going (to the VRC), I kind of got a little acclimated and adjusted. … And that got me engaged with the office. Then I started the Veterans Club (Student Veterans of America – SVA) here on campus to help not only myself but other vets get acclimated to transitioning out of the military.”

During his time at SCC, Stenersen continued to get more involved in serving his veteran peers through SVA and VRC and found an inclusive space and a strong community of support as he pursued his education goals.

“At SCC, I was a person,” Stenersen said. “It didn’t matter if it was a dean, a manager or even the president, for example. He knew who I was, and he knew my story because he had engaged with me. It was very welcoming and very much like a family.”

After graduating from SCC in 2017 with three associate degrees, Stenersen transferred to Cal State Long Beach where he earned a bachelor’s degree in history with a focus on Latin America. During a visit back at SCC, he was offered a work-study position in the VRC which eventually turned into his current full-time position as a Student Services Specialist and peer mentor. While this is not the path he expected, he is happy to be paying it forward.

“I didn’t think I’d work at a college doing something like this, but what I like about it is what they do for vets and what they did for me,” Stenersen said. “Transition out of the military, as similar as it is for everybody, what happened here is that it wasn’t a one size fits all. When the vets come here, it’s very individualized. That was the reason I took the job. I saw what they did, and I saw how they were growing the program.”

The VRC is celebrating its 11th year on SCC’s campus and is in its third year as a standalone program, located in Building A206. The VRC currently serves approximately 625 veterans, dependents and spouses, which includes 15% growth from year to year, with more than half coming to campus from outside of Orange County.

Statistics show that over 55% of veterans make education their first stop after leaving the service, and SCC’s Veterans Resource Center is prepared to help them not only seek their education benefits but other veterans’ services as well, such as VA work study, disability benefits and support from community partners in providing emergency grants.

“I think there’s a misconception, and I’d like to put out there that all veterans don’t get everything,” said SCC Assistant Dean for Student Services LaKyshia Perez. “Once they’re done with their service, it’s just kind of figure it out, and we’re here to help them figure that piece out. I think that’s one of the biggest things that we do. Most of our veterans are dependent 100% on their education benefits.”

Stenersen’s unique experience and skill set are a perfect fit for assisting fellow vets and allow him to connect with them as someone who has been in their shoes and has walked their path.

“They’re the most humble folks that you will run into,” said Perez of SCC’s veterans. “So having peers like Steven and the other folks that we have in the office, they can have a different conversation and say, this is what we’re going to give you. And that works really well in our office.”

Stenersen has been integral in developing the mentorship program that assists veterans, their spouses and dependents with accessing available services, and he is excited to be part of an effort that makes a difference in the lives of fellow vets, just as the VRC did for him.

“I have found that this job is essentially similar to the same calling I had for joining (the VRC),” Stenersen said. “That’s why I’m still here. And that’s why I do what I do.”

In the U.S., the average American checks their mobile device nearly 160 times a day, and almost half of Americans say they watch user-generated social media content more than they watch movies or television through streaming services.

Like most aspects of technology, there are positives and negatives associated with social media use.

Tara Suwinyattichaiporn, assistant professor of human communication studies at Cal State Fullerton, and Ester Gonzalez, associate professor of information systems and decision sciences, have seen both sides in their research when it comes to social media and its interconnectivity with communication and relationships.

One of the effects Suwinyattichaiporn has found, specifically for Gen Z users, is a possible negative effect on mental health, or what she refers to as online social comparison. This is when users develop anxiety associated with seeing other people’s heavily filtered and highly curated lives online.

“The main negative effect is mental health issues, and that typically comes from online social comparison processes,” Suwinyattichaiporn said. “They assume that everyone else is having a great time, while they are not, so it causes a lot of anxiety, particularly in Gen Z.”

Another negative effect Suwinyattichaiporn cites is a decrease in attention span. Gen Z has grown up with information at their fingertips that is delivered in bite-size pieces within seconds. But she has seen this effect in older generations as well, and shortened attention spans can lead to other challenges.

“It affects other parts of people’s lives, including interpersonal relationships,” Suwinyattichaiporn said. “So, when it comes to communicating in real life, people … apply similar short attention spans to listening to people, and they can’t hold a conversation for that long.”

All that said, Suwinyattichaiporn is a supporter of social media and has found that if used in moderation, social media can have positive effects. The strongest positive outcome she has seen in her research is that the platforms can be effective in developing and maintaining relationships.

“I think it’s a great way for people to maintain social relationships and even strengthen those bonds … and to share experiences that they’re having that their friends perhaps don’t have access to,” Suwinyattichaiporn said.

Gonzalez has seen this effect in her research as well. She and Xuefei (Nancy) Deng, associate professor of information systems at Cal State Dominguez Hills, co-authored a 2022 paper, “Social Inclusion: The Use of Social Media and the Impact on First-Generation College Students.”

Through data gathered from first-gen students at Cal State Dominguez Hills during 2019 and 2020, Gonzalez identified four key outcomes that were experienced by the students as a result of social media use:

• interconnections — creating initial connections with peers, faculty and staff.
• inspiration — gaining new ideas from others and finding those who share those ideas in common.
• insightfulness — obtaining access to a new level of resources that was not previously accessible and leveraging that access to share, brainstorm and collaborate.
• intense comfort — a way for the students to de-stress and provide their minds a break.

As a first-generation college student herself, Gonzalez felt that using social media not as a social tool but as a place for academic resources and support is unique to this population.

“Their perspective of the tool is as a resource, versus someone else who already had resources and therefore may not necessarily look at (social media) in that way,” Gonzalez said.

As a counterargument to the mental health concerns surrounding social media use, Suwinyattichaiporn has seen the benefits of people using the platforms to take control of their own mental well-being.

“There is so much mental health and wellness information on social media, including mental health advocates, influencers and content creators that talk about different methods of self-care and taking care of your mental health,” Suwinyattichaiporn said.

Related to Gonzalez’s findings, Suwinyattichaiporn sees social media use as a benefit when it comes to self-actualization and career opportunities. Through social media, users can promote themselves and their skills and gain access to entrepreneurial paths that would have been difficult to access in prior decades.

“I think social media allows for more opportunities for Gen Zs to achieve their dreams without the gatekeepers,” Suwinyattichaiporn said.

Both Suwinyattichaiporn and Gonzalez see intentional use of social media in moderation to be the key to achieving positive outcomes.

“I do think that social media algorithms were created to keep people on apps, but I believe in free will, and I believe that we can monitor and regulate our own behaviors,” Suwinyattichaiporn said. “So as long as there’s enough education and awareness around social media addiction and social comparison, I think people can use it more moderately and to their own benefit.”

Whether he is developing marketing solutions for his clients through his agency, Concept Zombie, producing original artwork for local gallery showings or inspiring the next generation of graphic design students, Del Rosario is always creating.

Earlier this fall, Del Rosario shared some of his personal artwork with the SCC community when a portion of his Real Heroes collection was on display at the SCC Art Gallery in September.

The genesis of the Real Heroes collection is rooted in Del Rosario’s childhood love for comic books. Born in the Philippines, he and his family moved to Detroit when he was 11 years old in search of a better life.

During those first years in the U.S., Del Rosario began reading and collecting comic books. To him, they were a portal into the fantastic world of superheroes, with inspiring stories of how the characters helped those around them who were less fortunate.

“When we came to America, a lot of people helped us out, from helping us find an apartment or a house to rent, to clothes that I wore in middle school and high school,” Del Rosario said. “So when I read these books, the stories really resonated with me.”

Born with the creative gene, Del Rosario graduated from Detroit’s College for Creative Studies with a graphic design degree. He later moved to Southern California to pursue marketing and advertising work with the agency that handled Taco Bell. But he never had the heart to part with the comic books he spent hours reading as a child.

So, as creatives do, Del Rosario came up with a unique solution for his beloved collection – he reimagined the comic books into large-scale pieces of art, a way to share the love and joy these stories and characters gave him as a young boy with a new audience through a different medium.

These mixed-media pieces were created by taking pages from the vintage comic books and assembling giant patterned collages, some as large as four feet by seven feet. To incorporate messages within his art, Del Rosario added quotes from those he considers to be real-life superheroes, words from the likes of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Maya Angelou and Malala, to name a few.

Over the past 10 years, Del Rosario has completed more than 200 pieces in his collection, a labor of love that has allowed him to experience a new level of creative freedom.

“As a creative director in design and marketing, every piece of work that I create, whether it be a logo or an ad or a billboard, I’m servicing a client, a brand, a company or an organization,” Del Rosario said. “This art that I create is really for me. That level of freedom of creating something, regardless of whether people will accept it or not, is quite freeing as an artist.”

As it turns out, Del Rosario’s Real Heroes work has been well-received, as the 20-plus pieces he had on display this fall at the SCC Art Gallery marked the 59th gallery showing for his collection.

Although Del Rosario has been teaching at various colleges and universities for the last 21 years, this is his first semester at SCC, and it was always his desire to have the chance to share his work with the campus community, an opportunity that has allowed him a new way to engage with his students.

“To be able to share that in a college-level venue is equally as freeing and amazing because I’m able to share that story with the next generation of creatives, the next generation of artists,” Del Rosario said. “And to be able to say to them, ‘I totally understand the value of creating something for a career,’ but in addition to that, they should equally and unapologetically pursue creating something for themselves.”

Even today, Del Rosario is still creating and adding to his Real Heroes collection. Previous gallery showings in Orange County have included Las Laguna Art Gallery, Chuck Jones Center for Creativity and John Wayne Airport. Current showings include the Mission Viejo Library and the Kaleidoscope Center in Mission Viejo.

With a focus on introducing students to the “wonderful, amazing and creative world of graphic design,” Del Rosario takes seriously his role at SCC and hopes that being able to share his personal art within the campus walls inspires a sense of bravery in his students as they pursue their own creative paths.

“I want to be able to speak to the next generation … to have the courage to put themselves out there,” Del Rosario said. “It’s difficult to be vulnerable, but I think it’s part of the creative process, to conjure up that courage to not just create it, but to share it.”

Originally from Iran, Abtahi and his family moved to Paris, France, and then Houston, Texas, before settling in Irvine when he was in the third grade.

As a freshman at University High School in Irvine, he aspired to play professional soccer. With those dreams cut short by an injury, Abtahi took an acting class his junior year and enjoyed the experience more than he expected. Most of all, he felt seen.

“It was the first time in my life I felt like I belonged to a group because I never really felt like I belonged to the jocks,” Abtahi said.

But it was during his time as a Titan that Abtahi’s interest in acting turned into a true passion and a career pathway.

Abtahi, a 2002 graduate, landed at CSUF with the intent of pursuing a degree in advertising. Familiar with the stage from his time in high school, he enrolled in an acting class for nonmajors as part of CSUF’s general education requirements. The class coincided with Abtahi’s first real break-up, and acting became a much-needed outlet for what he was experiencing.

“I found (acting) to be a very therapeutic, cathartic tool to work on these emotions that I didn’t know what to do with,” Abtahi said. “I realized that I wanted it, and I needed it. In high school it was fun, but it hit different in college.”

Acting had his heart, and while he remained in advertising, Abtahi added the second major to his degree plan so he could take as many acting, voice and movement courses as possible. And he had the full support of the CSUF Department of Theatre and Dance, including professors Madonna Young Magee, Jim Taulli, Svetlana Efremova-Reed and Joe Arnold, all of whom were influential in challenging him to look at life through new perspectives.

“What I love most about what I do in this profession is that it requires you to sample different kinds of life experiences that wouldn’t necessarily be your own,” Abtahi said. “It kind of opens your eyes to what is in the world … and you experience life in a much fuller way.”

After graduation, Abtahi won a three-week scholarship to the Sundance Institute Theatre Labs, where he worked with the “who’s who” of New York theater and secured his first stage role in a regional production.

At the same time, he worked for the late casting director Mali Finn. It was there that Abtahi learned the art of auditioning, a skill that helped him land his first television guest starring roles in popular shows such as “JAG” and “24.”

But it was his recurring role as Salim in “American Gods” that he credits with leading him to the role of a lifetime.

“It wasn’t until I did ‘American Gods’ in 2017 that you got to see me act,” Abtahi said. “It was a popular show, and it really put me on the map with the industry. Then I got ‘The Mandalorian’ offer.

Abtahi admittedly had not seen much of the “Star Wars” franchise before he was offered the role of Imperial cloning scientist Dr. Pershing. He did his due diligence, watching the entire catalog of movies to prepare, but seeing the “Star Wars” storylines through the eyes of his now 8-year-old son brought the experience to life for him.

Abtahi was given significant time in season 3 of “The Mandalorian” to develop the role and story of Dr. Pershing, a character that rides a morally gray line between good and evil. It’s an aspect of acting that draws him specifically to television work.

“I love to grow with the character … and where I thrive is when I bring who I am into a character,” Abtahi said. “With the help of the writers, that character grows and grows over the seasons. … That’s my favorite kind of acting.”

The nearly four-month American actors union SAG-AFTRA strike earlier this year put the future of Dr. Pershing and other opportunities for Abtahi on hold, but he is looking forward to getting back to work at the start of the new year on several new projects.

While this career path is far from what he envisioned as a teen, Abtahi credits much of his success to his time at Cal State Fullerton. To him, being a Titan means being proud of his work, and he knows he would not be the actor he is today without the training he received while at CSUF.

“What impacted me more than anything was the friends I made there, the people I met and the quality of relationships,” Abtahi said. “I have taken that with me into my professional life, and I have sought not quantity but quality in relationships. I don’t know if I would be the same without that experience.”

The memories are vivid: New Year’s Eve parties hosted by his parents became multi-day events for friends and family – and him.

“They’d come over at midnight, and they would then walk down to the parade route,” Aghajanian said, reflecting on growing up in a neighborhood just north of Pasadena High School. “My dad would save seats for everybody, and we’d watch the parade on Sierra Madre Boulevard just before Paloma.”

• For related, see: 2024 Rose Parade lineup: Your guide to every float, band and equestrian unit, in order

Fast forward to now, and Aghajanian is about as rosy as you can get about the annual spectacle, which reaches tens of millions across the globe, all the way from his hometown.

After spending more than half of his life volunteering for the Tournament of Roses, Aghajanian is president of the Tournament of Roses for its 135th edition on Jan. 1. Talk to him for a little while, and the enthusiasm for the tradition pours out. You’ll find a guy who’s still enchanted with the parade, which this year, in particular, became a platform for his love for music.

“The Tournament of Roses kicks off the year with a really wonderful celebration,” Aghajanian said. “I want everyone to get up in the morning, and I want everyone to go tune into the parade and get that sense of joy, that sense of excitement, that sense of it’s a new year. Let’s all start it off together.”

Not rosy enough for you? Let’s keep going.

Aghajanian’s ties to Pasadena and surrounding communities are more than just geographic.

As an attorney practicing law for more than 35 years, the Law Offices of Alex P. Aghajanian is on its third generation of serving clients. He also is a former member of the Pasadena Unified School District Board of Education, has served on the board of directors for the Boys and Girls Club of Pasadena and has coached in the local AYSO soccer and Little League youth sports programs.

• Related story: Here’s how a Rose Parade grand marshal is selected

Aghajanian and his wife Paula have been married for 40 years, have three children and their dog Murphy. He enjoys spending time with his family, old Ford trucks, gardening, photography, music, fishing and classic films.

It’s the passion for music that has guided his stewardship of the parade this year.

2024’s Tournament of Roses theme, selected by Aghajanian and Paula, is “Celebrating a World of Music: The Universal Language.” The theme continued to take life on Friday, when Aghajanian announced his pick for the parade’s grand marshal: Performing arts mega-star Audra McDonald. Aghajanian’s theme also impacts the floats, of course, with all manner of musical imagery planned for the big day.

The idea behind the musical theme has its roots in the Pasadena community.

As an elementary student in the Pasadena Unified School District, Aghajanian was introduced to the clarinet in a third-grade music program and went on to play the instrument through middle school and into high school as a member of Pasadena High School’s marching band and symphonic orchestra.

While his career path took him into law, he never lost the love for music — its ability to unite; and its place as an important subject for students to engage in school.

“Statistically, if you are musically inclined or participating in music … you are about 20 basis points more likely to succeed at any of our statistical tests that we give our kids and more likely to excel at school,” Aghajanian said. “Every child should try to play an instrument and be involved in music for what it brings to them academically.”

But just as important to Aghajanian is the idea that music can bring together people from any background and all walks of life.

“Music is a universal language that we can all speak together,” Aghajanian said. “It doesn’t matter what language you speak, we can all still speak music together.”

Aghajanian is looking forward to celebrating this New Year’s Day as he and the 50 million people who watch the Rose Parade annually enjoy a variety of performances that will provide top-notch viewing and listening experiences.

And with the 2024 Rose Bowl Game serving as a College Football Playoff semifinal, he is eagerly anticipating an exciting matchup in what he calls “the best college venue to watch football in the country.”

From football, floats and flowers to the equestrian teams and the marching bands, Aghajanian’s idea behind the theme is to create a worldwide party, one that can bring all people together through the universal language of music.

“A day does not go by without all of us hearing a piece of music or a song in some form or another, in one way or another,” he said Friday, as he announced McDonald as grand marshal, donning his red jacket amid confetti and applause. “It starts with the tap of your foot, or the movement of your finger. Next thing you know, you’re humming along. And the brave among us actually start singing. It does not matter what language a song is. Because we can all enjoy the beat together.

“It transcends everything.”

One local opportunity for Giving Tuesday is to donate in support of Cal State Fullerton’s Basic Needs Services, a critical department on campus that provides resources to students in need in areas such as food insecurity, temporary housing, hygiene products and career clothing.

In addition to providing items of support through the ASI Food Pantry or Tuffy’s Career Closet, CSUF Basic Needs Services also provides Basic Needs Grants, financial assistance for students who are experiencing unforeseen hardships in areas related to housing, transportation, utilities or medical care. Monetary donations received this Giving Tuesday in support of CSUF Basic Needs Grants will help ensure Titans can stay focused on their educational path.

“These grants are provided to (students who) find themselves in very unexpected circumstances where they can’t pay for their housing or their transportation method is taken away from them,” said CSUF Director of Annual Giving, Grace Johnson. “With what we are able to provide with these grants, it gives them options that allow their lives to be as disturbed as little as possible.”

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, CSUF Basic Needs Services has seen triple the requests, which equates to approximately 600 students per week. Economic inflation has played a large role in this increase in need, but Johnson says the objective is to not let the economy keep these Titans from pursuing their educational goals.

“We don’t want those outside factors to be the reason they are getting pulled away from their career path and from where they want to be,” Johnson said. “For any student, Cal State Fullerton is a stepping stone to what they want to do for the rest of their lives. They’re spending these very transformative years here to get somewhere else, and for some people, it’s to get to a better life. With Basic Needs Services, they’re able to stay on track, graduate and get to that next point.”

In the past four years, Giving Tuesday donations have raised more than $50,000 for Basic Needs Grants, and this year, the goal is to surpass $10,000 in giving in support of this emergency funding for students. For 2023, a generous donor is providing a matching gift up to $5,000, allowing each person’s donation to have an even greater impact.

“We’re really grateful for our matching gift donor,” Johnson said. “It allows people who think that their donation might not mean a lot to actually have a really great value. It means a lot when people choose on Giving Tuesday to prioritize Cal State Fullerton because they recognize the value that this institution serves to our Orange County community, which allows us to continue to be a partner in that way.”

Giving Tuesday is Nov. 28, but those who want to contribute to the efforts of CSUF’s Basic Needs Services can donate now by visiting give.fullerton.edu/kindness. A monetary gift not only supports Titan students but the greater Orange County community that continues to benefit from CSUF graduates who are making an impact on the local workforce.

“That speaks to the power of this institution and how much we support the Orange County community,” Johnson said. “When someone makes a donation on Giving Tuesday for Cal State Fullerton Basic Needs Services, they’re helping continue to power Orange County and to drive the professional community that much further.

“And not just Cal State Fullerton,” Johnson continued. “It’s greater Orange County that benefits from this. We are putting our graduates out into the workforce. It’s really inspiring to see that people in the community care about our students and about where Cal State Fullerton is going and what we are doing for Orange County by making a donation.”

To donate in support of Cal State Fullerton’s Basic Needs Grants, visit give.fullerton.edu/kindness

To learn more about Cal State Fullerton’s Basic Needs Services, visit https://www.fullerton.edu/basic-needs/

The first of its kind locally, OCSD challenged local university teams to develop innovative design ideas and energy-efficient housing solutions that support California’s goal of becoming “100% reliant on renewable energy by 2045.” With the belief that “education is the key to addressing climate change,” the competition allowed students to showcase their market-ready concepts for the public to tour over the two-weekend event.

As one of the 14 participating schools (10 competitive and four exhibitors), CSUF’s team kicked off the process more than a year ago with Phoolendra Mishra, CSUF professor and chair of the university’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, as its faculty adviser. The project, which was conducted outside of standard coursework, brought together a wide range of majors, including engineering, arts, computer science, biology and business marketing. The students began by putting their heads together to develop unique sustainable solutions that could be implemented in the built environment.

“The process was wide open, so anybody could bring in their ideas,” Mishra said. “The only goal was to identify the problems and come up with sustainable solutions. And then we worked together to say, OK, let’s move ahead with this one.”

The team explored solutions for design and construction methods that reduced energy consumption such as wall membrane and insulation, roof design and ventilation, thermal moisture and soundproofing, and water conservation.

While the Titan team did not participate in the full decathlon competition this year, the CSUF students did construct housing models that were featured in the Exhibition portion of the event. Their exhibit consisted of two structures, constructed side by side — one that demonstrated current California building codes and another that showcased more sustainable approaches. The team built the structures in such a way as to keep their innovative solutions visible to the public.

“We kept it incomplete, meaning you can see inside the house,” Mishra said. “You can see how insulation is done, how our HVAC system is designed … everything was open so people can walk through, and they can see and understand what we are trying to present.”

CSUF senior civil engineering major Daniel Santa Maria was the team lead for the insulation portion of the building process. He and his teammates developed a double-wall construction assembly that reduces thermal bridging, essentially keeping heat out of the structure.

“The biggest problems that you see in standard housing (construction) are that insulation is there, but there are little pockets here and there where heat can slip through,” Santa Maria said. “So to solve that, we decided to emphasize our insulation envelope so that all the way around the house there was consistent insulation.

Isai Jimenez, who is also a senior majoring in civil engineering, worked on the team that was in charge of creating the building envelope, with an emphasis on keeping air and moisture out using a “smart membrane.”

“The idea was to protect the insulation and protect the structure from water damage and air intrusion,” Jimenez said. “We used a membrane … an air retarder and vapor retarder. It separates air from outside and inside, and it also doesn’t allow water vapor to penetrate or diffuse through it all.”

Both Jimenez and Santa Maria were hands-on and worked on the construction phase of the project, building the components that showcased the teams’ solutions. Additionally, they and several other Titans were on hand during the event to walk visitors through the exhibits and explain their design concepts. The experience brought sustainable practices to the forefront of learning for the students.

“I think for this project specifically, it opened up my eyes, especially for why you would want to use sustainable materials,” Santa Maria said. “It’s something that’s simple that could be accessible to people currently and that can be repeated long term.”

The decathlon is held every other year, and with this experience under their belts, Mishra is confident CSUF will be able to enter a full decathlon team during the event’s next cycle. As a result of their participation, the Titans not only gained experience in teamwork and leadership but are now challenged to keep sustainability practices top of mind for future projects.

“Sustainability will be the priority for almost any home design and many of the problems that require solving in the future,” Mishra said. “It’s not just an idea, but they were able to build it. Keeping that in their mind and getting that experience … will make a difference in their careers as they move forward.”