Meet the Faculty: Lucrecia Santibañez, Educational Studies

CGU is always pleased to welcome new faculty members. Here is Lucrecia Santibañez, who will be teaching at the School of Educational Studies. She received her PhD from Stanford University.

WHY DID YOU CHOOSE TO COME TO CGU?
I have a deep commitment to issues around equity and school access for underprivileged children, both in the United States and internationally. CGU’s faculty and students in the School of Educational Studies share that passion.

WHAT ARE YOUR RESEARCH INTERESTS?
My main line of research focuses on understanding how to improve teaching and learning for low-income children in the U.S. and abroad. I am currently developing a new line of research to study how to improve education for English language learners.

WHAT IS THE BEST BOOK YOU COULD GIVE SOMEONE TO GET THEM INTERESTED IN YOUR FIELD?
It’s hard to choose just one, but Guadalupe Valdes’ Con Respeto is one book that always reminds me of the value of education and the (wrong) assumptions we often make about people who are different from us.

WHAT TEACHER/MENTOR MADE THE MOST IMPACT ON YOU AND WHY?
My high school English teacher because he loved teaching and really inspired students to go beyond the obvious.

WHAT IS YOUR MOST COMMON FORM OF PROCRASTINATION WHEN TRYING TO GET WORK DONE?
Doing house- and children-related stuff.

IF YOU COULD CHOOSE ANY CAREER OUTSIDE ACADEME, WHAT WOULD IT BE?
I would like to be a journalist. Either that or an emergency-room doctor.

WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE GRAD STUDENTS THAT YOU YOURSELF DIDN’T LEARN UNTIL AFTER YOU RECEIVED YOUR PhD?
Don’t shut yourself out of any potential job until you have had a chance to explore opportunities fully and openly. Also, invest in your writing skills early on. Most important of all, choose with the heart. Study something that you are really passionate about because it’s going to become a lifelong companion.