Graduate Division welcomes new Graduate Programming Assistant

The Graduate Division is excited to welcome our new ​​​Graduate Programming Assistant, Chava Nerenberg. ​She will be working closely with the staff of the Graduate Student Resource Center ​on programming and initiatives that support our campus' graduate students. Read on to find out more about Chava!

	​HER STORY I grew up in San Diego, California and completed my Bachelor's degree at Cornell University in upstate New York. I then joined the Peace Corps, where I spent two years in Niger, West Africa. I returned to Washington, D.C., where I completed a Master's degree in International Development, then moved overseas, where I worked for nonprofits in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. I also served as a U.S. Foreign Service Officer in two countries before coming back to UCSB to complete my PhD in Counseling, Clinical, and School Psychology. UCSB was a clear choice for me when considering PhD programs due to the ​exciting research our department conducts on resilience and its focus on multicultural populations. I am thrilled to be combining my overseas experience with the excellent clinical and research training offered at UCSB, and hope to leverage these experiences into a career that includes both research and therapy.
	HER RESEARCH My research focuses on how people can recover from trauma and build their psychological resilience. I am especially interested in risk and resilience factors for aid workers, who often live outside of their home culture for years at a time while providing services to vulnerable populations.
	FUN FACTS I love travel and have been privileged to live in 10 countries because of my past work. I also really enjoy cooking and try to learn at least one new recipe whenever I travel someplace new. I love cats and promise to appreciate all of your cute cat photos.
	HER ​ROLE As the new Graduate Programming Assistant, I am excited to support programs to help graduate students develop professionally and prepare for jobs after graduation. I am looking forward to sharing my experience in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors to help peers who might be interested in similar positions. I have benefited greatly from this kind of programming ​in the past, and am excited to pay it forward and to connect graduate students to the many resources available at UCSB.

Welcome, ​​​​Chava!