UCLA professors Susan Ettner and Norma Mendoza-Denton have been appointed associate deans in the Graduate Division. They assumed their new roles March 1.
Ettner and Mendoza-Denton, alongside continuing Associate Dean and professor Joe Watson, will share in the responsibilities of liaising with campus departments and programs, advancing diversity and excellence in graduate education, and working with the Graduate Council and departments to ensure that UCLA graduate students and postdoctoral scholars have the resources they need to be successful in education and in their future careers. Their appointments follow the retirement of Associate Dean Carlos Grijalva.
Ettner is a professor in the UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine, with a joint appointment in the department of health policy and management in the Fielding School of Public Health. In addition to serving on numerous advisory committees in the School of Medicine, she has chaired the UCLA Academic Senate's Faculty Welfare and the Charges Committee, playing a key role in supervising the statistical data analysis for the medical school's gender equity committee. She currently serves on the Grievance Advisory Council, as well as the Center for the Study of Women Advisory Committee. Ettner’s research interests focus on health policy and health services, particularly in the areas of mental health, chronic disability and substance use disorders.
Ettner will bring her expertise in shared governance, mentoring, and professional and career development for graduate students and postdoctoral scholars to the role of associate dean.
Mendoza-Denton is professor of anthropology affiliated with the UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center and the Center for Language, Iinteraction and Culture. A renowned expert in sociolinguistics, youth subcultures and bilingualism, Mendoza-Denton has held significant leadership positions in the American Anthropological Association, including serving as president of its Society for Linguistic Anthropology.
Building on her experience with reaccreditation and program review processes, Mendoza-Denton now serves on the Graduate Council. She has been actively engaged in outreach throughout her career, including guiding 30 minority, female and LGBTQ doctoral students, among others.
Mendoza-Denton is committed to advancing diversity at UCLA, as well as supporting the success of graduate students as they progress through their degree programs and into a wide range of careers.
