In spring 2016, CI students participated in a community collecting initiative titled Latinos and Baseball: In the Barrios and the Big Leagues, sponsored by the Smithsonian’s Latino Initiatives and the National Museum of American History, focusing on the historic role that baseball has played as a social and cultural force within Latino/a communities. Students partnered with CSU San Bernardino in this collecting initiative, by conducting oral history interviews of former players, collecting memorabilia and photographs, and writing blogs. Students even met legendary Dodgers pitcher Fernando Valenzuela who made a surprise visit at the collecting event.

Students also worked with LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes  to develop an educational toolkit and a tour of the exhibition. Peloteros in Paradise: A Los Angeles Béisbol Story which opened on April 22, 2016, until November 2016.

During spring 2016 students organized the exhibition, A League of Their Own: Mexican American Women in Baseball and Softball and their Struggle for Gender Equality, at the Broome Library and hosted a panel discussions and first-pitch ceremony to honor former Mexican American women ballplayers. These baseball and softball players were forerunners of the women’s movement and civil rights era that helped to pass Title IX in 1972, a landmark federal law that seeks to end sex discrimination and advance gender equity in athletics and sports programs.

A former student,  Juan Canchola Ventura who participated in a similar Latino baseball project in spring 2015, continued his involvement beyond graduation because he believed in the importance of this recovery project. This student became the co-author of the book, Mexican American Baseball in Ventura County. along with Ana Bermudez, Richard Santillan and Jose Alamillo.