By Sophia Huang McKenzie

Every year CSUMB honors outstanding graduating students with six university-wide awards and five Dean’s Medalist awards. This is one in a series of stories about this year’s winners, as well as other extraordinary graduates in the Class of 2021. For information about commencement celebrations, go to the Commencement webpage.

Brittany Lynn Elsman, Environmental Studies

Alumni Vision Award

Brittany Lynn Elsman says an Environmental Interpretation course at CSUMB and her former job as a California State Parks hiking guide in Big Sur forever changed her beliefs about education.

“This course gave me the ability to exercise new techniques in regards to educating the public in a way that pertained to nature conservation while making the experience engaging, fun, and educational,” she said. “It was a monumental shift from how I perceived teaching and learning to be. I was able to integrate new concepts and transform the environment into a classroom for all ages,” Elsman said.

She later applied these same techniques in Mexico when she taught English in a bilingual school for children up to age 9. She combined hands-on learning, environmental awareness, and sustainable practices into the curriculum.

“I wanted the children to experience science in a practical way by using the resources they had around them. As time went on, it changed my perspective in regards to teaching and the meaning of a quality education, as well as who gets to experience this kind of education,” Elsman said.

In 2018 she began working for the special education preschool program of the Salinas City Elementary School District. In addition, she’s been employed as a respite care provider since February 2021, educating and assisting students with learning disabilities.

After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in environmental studies with a concentration in education, Elsman aspires to earn a master’s degree in special education. Her overall goal is to start an inclusive preschool program in Salinas for low-income families which incorporates environmental education.

“People deserve equal access to educational opportunities. I would like to see a program implemented that incorporates social justice, environmental justice, as well as be a vision for other institutions to integrate or expand upon,” she said.

Sol Rivera, Psychology

Outstanding Senior Award for Social Justice

Sol Rivera — who identifies as a non-binary, Chicanx activist — graduates with a bachelor’s degree in psychology, a minor in social work, and a wealth of social justice experience.

“I truly have grown as a person, as an activist, and as a leader during my time as a student at CSUMB,” Rivera said. “I really do not have to think hard about activism because it comes naturally to me. I just want my community to be safe, to feel loved, appreciated, and wanted in this country.”

Most notably, Rivera has worked for the Immigration Task Force of Monterey County for the last two years as a coordinator and steering committee member. The task force educates immigrant families of their legal rights, helps them prepare in case of detention, and connects them with legal resources.

In the early months of the pandemic, Rivera and the task force helped coordinate Farm Worker Appreciation Caravans in the Salinas Valley with several local organizations. The events sparked others throughout California and drew national attention to farmworkers. In addition to giving thanks, the caravans provided resources, information, and personal protection equipment.

“The events themselves were amazing. ... [Hundreds of] Individuals made signs, had flags, and even decorated their cars with words of appreciation,” Rivera said. The farm workers' laughter and exclamations of disbelief “were the most beautiful sounds that I had ever heard in my life.”

In March 2021, Rivera became vaccine outreach coordinator for the United Farm Workers Foundation, assisting in coordinating, managing, and executing mass COVID-19 vaccination events throughout California.

 

Jaspreet “Jasmine” Bhardwaj, Business Administration

Anthony Josh Fuertes, Biology

Rebecca Harbison, Kinesiology

Associated Students Outstanding Graduates

Jaspreet “Jasmine” Bhardwaj, the first in her family to attend a four-year university, will graduate summa cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in business administration and dual concentrations in accounting, and management and international business.

Bhardwaj served in AS for three years as College of Business senator, vice president of financial affairs, and president. She actively addressed critical concerns facing students such as basic needs, financial aid, classroom instruction, equity and inclusion, and the Fall 2021 repopulation of campus.

As a member of the board of directors for the California State Student Association, she advocated for 480,000+ students on 23 CSU campuses, helping convince state legislators and officials to fully fund Graduation Initiative 2025 and restore CSU budget cuts.

In addition to this award, she received these honors: College of Business Dean's Medalist, Outstanding Business Administration Student, and the President’s Award for Exemplary Student Achievement. Read more about Bhardwaj.

Despite the challenges of the pandemic, Anthony Josh Fuertes managed to engage and grow student organizations at CSUMB this past year as AS Inter-Club Council president and chair. He previously served as ICC public relations officer for two years.

He was also president of the Science Club for three years, secretary of Rotaract at CSUMB, and a member of the College of Science Dean's Student Council, Pre-Veterinary Club, and many other organizations.

Fuertes made the Dean’s List for multiple semesters while earning a biology degree with a concentration in Ecology, Evolutionary, and Organismal Biology and a minor in chemistry. He aspires to study plant pathology in a doctoral program with the goal of developing more efficient and cost-effective crop management strategies.

Rebecca Harbison first joined AS as a senator for the College of Health Sciences and Human Services. She served in that position for two years before becoming vice president of university affairs this past year.

In that role, she collaborated with university departments and provided support to AS senators. She worked on researching AS history and connecting with the organization’s alumni. She’s most proud of helping to bring more student input into the university policy-making process.

In addition, Harbison belonged to the tour guide team for two years and the women’s rugby club since her first year at CSUMB. She will graduate cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in kinesiology and a minor in psychology.