Reyna GaytanCSUSB Faculty across disciplines present their participation in advanced research.
CSUSB students are the heart of the campus, and the faculty are the veins that supply the heart with what it needs. The John M. Pfau Library is hosting the Provost Presents Faculty Research Series to highlight the advanced research our faculty conduct alongside their campus work.
The first presentation of the Fall 2026 Provost Presents Faculty Research Series was held Thursday, Oct. 1, in the Pfau Library Faculty Center for Excellence and on Zoom. This free program, provided by the College of Natural Sciences and CSUSB Library, provides opportunities for faculty, students, and staff across disciplines to exchange ideas, ask questions, and establish connections.
The series features research that spans mathematics, contemporary art and curatorial practice, and artificial intelligence literacy. All presentations are designed for the general public, so no background in math or biology is required to attend.
These conversations offer a great way to engage with various disciplines and build connections between individuals and faculty across different fields of education.
“The series has been ongoing since 2022, and the plan is to continue it into the future so that faculty, especially those early in their careers, can share their research and creative works with the campus community,” said Marketing Communications Professional Rob Madrigal.
Opening the series, Dr. Hector Baños, assistant professor of mathematics, explored how mathematical methods and genomic data can help reconstruct the evolutionary history of life in his presentation “Untangling Evolution through Mathematics.”
“I hope this talk exemplified how mathematics can be useful across many fields and, most importantly, how collaboration between different areas, regardless of the disciplines involved, is essential for addressing important research questions.”
The next presentation in the series on Oct. 29 will feature Professor Matthew Poole, interim chair for the Department of Music and the Department of Theatre Arts. His presentation, titled “Curating the Future of Art,” will discuss “The Edinburgh Companion to Curatorial Futures,” a 32-chapter volume bringing together perspectives from curators, artists, scholars and cultural leaders from around the world.
The last presentation on Nov. 5 will feature Systems and Discovery Librarian Sanjeet Mann and Coordinator of Library Instruction William Ortiz. They will share findings from a multi-campus qualitative research study examining how students and faculty understand AI literacy.
The goal of the series is to exchange ideas and to make connections across a variety of disciplines.
“We love bringing the CSUSB community together in the library, and we hope that the series inspires conversations and connections that might not happen elsewhere on campus,” said Dean of CSUSB Libraries Rebbeca Lubas. “By coming together at the center of campus, the series represents how the whole can be greater than the sum of the parts.”
The Faculty Research Series is held in the Library’s Faculty Center for Excellence and on Zoom for public access between noon and 1 p.m. on Oct. 29 and Nov. 5. The John M. Pfau Library will also launch its Student Research Series, with the first presentation tentatively scheduled for next spring. This series will center on CSUSB student researchers and display their efforts and participation in advanced research.
