Did you know Westridge awards research grants to our faculty? (It's true!) In a long-running program, Westridge awards grants of varying size to the faculty to pursue the research needed to build on the content in different courses across the curriculum and to create new ones--encouraging a deeper divean what's possible during the school year. The grants range from discipline to division, often building on teachers' passions and promoting an "intellectual adventure."

This summer, for example, History Department Chair Melissa Kelley received one of the grants for her Research in History course to look into the teaching and recording of public and environmental history of Altadena after the Eaton fire. She has spent time learning how professional historians think about the history of natural disasters, and particularly how to understand the social implications and impact of such events, as well as the social history of Altadena and how history impacts recovery and rebuilding for BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) households.

"We recognize that there are certain courses where teachers have to go above and beyond what is within the traditional time constraints of their jobs during the school year,” said Westridge Director of Teaching & Learning James Evans. "As we're designing courses from the ground up, there is often a lot of research, gathering of and sifting through materials, and working out how best to share that to engage and inspire our students."