Biography
Dr. Stephanie Lemus grew up in the Pico-Union/Westlake area of Los Angeles with her Salvadoran immigrant mother and her two siblings. She attended California State University, Northridge (CSUN) where she double-majored in Anthropology and Central American Studies, with a minor in African-American Studies.
After graduating from CSUN, she earned a Master's Degree in Latin American Studies from California State University, Los Angeles (CSULA) where her primary research focused on the community of the Salvadoran diaspora in Los Angeles. In 2021, Stephanie earned her Doctorate in Education from the University of Southern California (USC) Rossier School of Education. She has worked with various non-profit organizations and groups for the past 15 years in community outreach, education, advocacy, healthcare, workforce development and public health.
Currently, Stephanie is an adjunct professor at CSUN's Central American Studies Department, Chicana/o Studies in the Los Angeles Community College District, and Ethnic Studies at Orange Coast Community College. She serves as a Community Advisory Board Member of the Cedars-Sinai Cancer Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) Steering Committee, also as President of the Southern California Association of Latin American Studies (SCALAS), and Vice-President of Paving the Road to Success a 501c3 organization that provides intervention/prevention and re-entry services to youth/young adults, families and communities.