Category: News

HSS student researchers, Nicolas Gutierrez III (Dean’s Award: College of Professional Studies & Fine Arts) and Becki Alvarado (Summer Undergraduate Research Program Award), were among the award recipients at the 2022 Student Research Symposium. Read more here.

“We are proud to select Shawn Flanigan and Megan Welsh’s “Unmet Needs of Individuals Experiencing Homelessness Near San Diego Waterways: The Roles of Displacement and Overburdened Service Systems” as the best article published in JHHSA for volume 43.” Read more here.

“While the difference is not large, the stops-per-crime ratio was far higher in some areas than others. And a comparison of similar beats — or those that have about the same number of reported crimes and similar population totals — revealed significant racial disparities.” Read more here.

“‘This research is important because it comes at a time when government officials in Los Angeles are ditching service-oriented approaches to homelessness in favor of criminalizing its most vulnerable residents,’ said Gutierrez. ‘While my work focuses on Los Angeles, the city represents a microcosm of our nation’s homelessness crisis and inhumane responses.’” Read more here.

“Having access to public restrooms is an issue San Diego’s homeless population grapples with every day, and it’s an issue that’s knocked on the doors of San Diego’s public officials for decades. Still, access to public restrooms is lacking, and it’s contributing to public health threats that have sickened many.” Read more here.

“Welsh is another SDSU professor who will manage to engage the community with their opinions and solutions. She suggested simply investing in rain barrels to harvest rainwater could help prevent water from flowing into storm drains and compounding the problem.” Read more here.

“We must prioritize universal bathroom access for all San Diegans. Here’s how we can do it. Instead of using police to criminalize life-sustaining activities like urination, let’s invest in bathrooms as part of the solution.” Read more here.

“We earnestly believed that providing data on police officer behavior would help to eliminate racial disparities. But we were wrong. Why? Because police departments should not be trusted to reform themselves.” Read more here.

“In this way, criminalization actually perpetuates homelessness: if our goal is to eliminate homelessness from our city streets, criminalization is counterproductive.” Read more here.

“Short-term solutions, such as temporary porta-potties and handwashing stations, are insufficient to meet the needs of the County’s growing homeless population. In order to prevent future infectious disease outbreaks, San Diego’s policymakers should immediately begin work to expand the availability and accessibility of permanent, public bathrooms.” Read more here.