Melvin L. Oliver Racial Justice Initiative
Validating and Supporting Counterspaces for Minoritized Students at Liberal Arts Colleges
Date
April 18, 2023
Time
Reception: 5:30–6 p.m. | Presentation: 6–7 p.m.
Founders Room, McConnell Center Pitzer College
Speaker bio
Roberta Espinoza serves as vice provost for Global-Local Affairs and professor of sociology at Loyola Marymount University. She received her BA from Pomona College and her MA and PhD in Sociology from the University of California, Berkeley.
At LMU, Espinoza oversees the Office of Study Abroad, the Office of National & International Fellowships, the Center for the Study of Los Angeles, and the Center for Urban Resilience. As LMU’s inaugural senior international officer, she facilitates collaborations among LMU faculty, staff, alumni, and other institutions on comprehensive internalization (global) and strategic community engagement (local).
Espinoza previously served as interim associate dean of Global and Local Programs and director of the Institute for Global-Local Action & Study at Pitzer College. She grew the Global Local Mentorship Program that exposed students to immersive education abroad and local community engagement. She created Pitzer’s First-Gen Program and oversaw the Office of Fellowships and Scholarships.
Espinoza’s expertise on higher education access is informed by her experience as a first-generation Latinx student. She has written several books, peer-reviewed journal articles, book chapters, and magazine articles for educational practitioners on the role of social and cultural capital in the educational advancement of first-generation students of color.
