First-Year Student Balances Research, Social Justice, and Passion for Community

In her first year at Dominican University of California, Emberly López Escobar ’29 is already making an impact—advancing housing justice, researching ocean acidification, and volunteering at a health clinic that cares for low-income patients.

And she’s only just begun to explore all the opportunities Dominican offers its undergraduates. 

This semester Emberly was selected as one of three students to work on a housing justice initiative with Canal Alliance, the San Rafael nonprofit committed to breaking the generational cycle of poverty for Latino immigrants and their families. 

The students are working alongside community leaders on door-to-door outreach to residents to inform them of their rights as tenants and showing them the steps that can be taken to protect those rights. 

The teams also are collecting data from residents about the issues they experience as renters and the impact these challenges have on their lives. The data, which will be used to support future advocacy and programs, is essential in documenting the impact of housing issues on the lived experience of Canal residents. 

For Emberly, the work is personal. Her parents met in the Canal. Emberly and her younger brother were born and raised in the Canal. She is committed to empowering her neighbors with knowledge and resources.

“I love the Canal. The Canal is my community, and it is a really close and supportive community.” 

Going door-to-door and hearing people’s stories of being afraid to complain to their apartment managers about conditions - mold, insects, broken alarms going off at all hours - inspires in Emberly a commitment to advocacy.

“I care, and I want to help. I want to be a voice.”

A love of science in high school led Emberly to join Dominican as a biological sciences major. She added a second major in social justice, inspired by a presentation during a summer bridge program at Dominican.  

For her fall service-learning class in her first semester, she served with RotaCare, a nonprofit providing healthcare to low-income clients. There, she witnessed stark healthcare inequities—even in wealthy communities such as Marin County—and found her calling in assisting patients with limited access to care. The experience sparked her interest in pursuing a career focused on dismantling healthcare inequality.

As with her work with Canal Alliance, Emberly is moved by the patients’ stories. “Those stories - they just stick to my heart,” she says. 

“That mission of providing healthcare to people who do not have insurance or have no income really calls to me,” she says. “It is rewarding and empowering to see how by working at RotaCare I can help people in my community at a time when they need the support. I hear their stories - they are heard -  and I cannot let them down.”

The experience made such an impact that when her service-learning placement ended, Emberly continued to work at RotaCare as a volunteer.

While in high school, Emberly enjoyed visiting the Dominican campus, which is located only about two miles from the Canal neighborhood.

“When I was about 15, I fell in love with the Dominican campus, especially the nature and the calm energy. It is very different from where I lived in the Canal, which is always busy with cars and people. 

The first in her family to attend college, Emberly was initially nervous about the transition from high school to college.

“As a first-gen student I was really scared of what college looks like and if I could succeed in college,” she recalls. “I was really nervous about college.”

Emberly found early support through the university’s Marin Advantage Program (MAP), which offers scholarships to students who have graduated from a Marin high school. Through MAP, Emberly was able to attend a summer bridge program prior to the beginning of her first year. The program is designed to foster belonging and connection, and Emberly said the experience eased her nerves.

Indeed, it was during the summer program that Emberly initially heard about Dominican’s service-learning program. 

“Professor Emily Wu came and talked with us about service-learning, and it intrigued me so much that students have so many opportunities to work in the community,” she recalls “I thought ‘sign me up’ — I was born here, I grew up here, and I love my community. But there’s so much to improve on — there is always room for improvement.”

Because of Emberly’s strong academic performance, she was selected to join the inaugural cohort of students awarded scholarships through Dominican’s Fletcher Jones Emerging Leaders Scholarship & Integrative Coaching Initiative. Funded by a $1 million grant from the Fletcher Jones Foundation, each year Dominican will provide a cohort of eight incoming students scholarship support for tuition, on-campus housing, and study abroad programs. The program prioritizes first-generation students who demonstrate academic accomplishment and a commitment to community service. 

It wasn’t long before Emberly’s love of science was noticed. She was invited to join Dr. Diara Spain’s research lab, which is examining the impact of ocean acidification on intertidal crabs in Northern California. The students are documenting the exoskeleton weight, size, and composition of the crabs, which are housed in a wet lab in the science center. Findings will be presented next month at the Scholarly & Creative Works Conference. 

Not only is Emberly gaining insight into the scientific process, she also is gaining a community. Each Friday, all the research groups gather in Dominican’s Science Center to share their work. Talking about her research each week with faculty and fellow science students has expanded Emberly’s confidence and professional network.

And, if a passing tour group of high school students stops by, Emberly is more than happy to share her experiences.

“It’s been a great way to practice my public speaking skills,” she notes. “I’ve talked with many groups about the crab research. High schoolers and College of Marin students come in and ask many questions. It’s fun to talk about Dominican and my work, and I enjoy hearing what the other students are saying about their research.”

Now, Emberly is exploring future opportunities at Dominican that will help her deepen her interests in healthcare and scientific research.

In the coming semesters, she looks forward to learning more about opportunities for research at the Buck Institute for Research on Aging. Since 2009, Dominican and the Buck Institute have partnered to offer a Master of Biological Sciences program, with some undergraduates also working in the labs.

Emberly is also interested in the Dominican/Kaiser Permanente Pre-Med Mentor Program, which gives Dominican students the opportunity to spend two semesters shadowing Kaiser Permanente physicians. The program offers undergraduates a rare chance to observe the daily responsibilities and real-world role of a physician firsthand.

“I’m so blessed to be here,” she says. “It’s exciting to discover where I’m meant to make a difference.”