SBVC is one of the few community colleges that takes psychology students to major conferences, where they get an opportunity to present their research in poster sessions. This spring, Dr. Amy Jennings, psychology instructor, brought seven students from research methods and statistics classes to the Western Psychological Association conference in Portland.

In addition to presenting their class projects, they also attended sessions on psychological research and graduate school, networked, and met up with six recent SBVC graduates who have transferred to CSUSB, and were there to present their research from last spring. Typically, only upper-division undergraduates from research universities attend such conferences, which is why it’s so outstanding that Jennings ensures that students taking lower-division courses at a community college are able to participate.

Several departments donated funds so the students could afford to travel and stay in Portland, including administration of justice, economics, history, and philosophy/religious studies, and Jennings said she was “very grateful” for their support.