Josh Sides

California State University, Northridge’s annual Whitsett Graduate Seminar and Lecture will spotlight the rising academic stars in the area of California history.

The graduate seminar features the work of 10 graduate students and engaging discussions with leading experts in topics related to California. The event will be held Thursday, April 24, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in CSUN’s Whitsett room, located in Sierra Hall room 451.

“Each year, we invite submissions from graduate students in history or related fields,” said history professor Josh Sides, CSUN’s Whitsett Chair of California History. “And each year, we end up selecting some of the nation’s rising stars. It says a lot about the reputation of CSUN’s history department in the American history profession.”

The event will continue in the evening with the Whitsett Graduate Seminar and Lecture at 7:30 p.m. Guest speaker Natalia Molina’s will talk on, “What Gentrification Erases from Echo Park: The Importance of Place and Place-makers in the Life of a Los Angeles Community.” Molina is a professor of history and associate dean for faculty equity, division of arts and humanities at UC San Diego. Molina is also the author of books “Fit to be Citizens,” and “How Race is Made in America.”

“Our seminar and lecture reaches different audiences differently,” said Sides. “For undergraduates, the events expose them, perhaps for the first time, to a professional academic conference in which scholars debate, refine and re-imagine historical narratives; for graduate students, it provides them with high-level insights into the profession that will aid them in the completion of their studies and the refinement of their professional goals. For the broader campus audience and for the surrounding community, the events are fun, entertaining, edifying, and, best of all, free.”

The seminar and lecture is open to the public. To RSVP or to find out more information, call (818) 677-3566.