I really enjoyed the structure of the course lectures and how time was dedicated to lecture and lecture concept workshops (discussions). I felt that I truly got to interact with the concepts that were taught by Dr. Herrera. I agree with the other review because I felt that she was definitely left-leaning but did try to make a way to discuss a movement and its respective counter-movement. Show up to lectures. Show up to the discussion. Plan and outline your assignments days and weeks in advance. There are 4 assignments in total that spanned about 4-6 pages (with the final being 10-12). If you really take a few hours each week to write the body paragraphs, you will thank yourself. The third assignment will require you to attend a social movement (zoom/in-person) and you will need to reflect on It. So, if you’re not at all passionate about social movements then I would not recommend taking the class. Even if lecture attendance is not taken, she will bring up super helpful extra tips for the essays so do attend them because she does not post her slides after class!

Sometimes, Dr. Herrera would make statements that may come off as brash and intimidating to students. In addition to this, the presentations felt unorganized and there were many instances where she felt unsure of what she was lecturing about, asking students to verify claims that she would make. Despite this, the times that I did approach her, she was very kind and receptive to my concerns, even offering her advice on how I should approach my essay. She challenged us in many ways that helped us expand how we interpret movements throughout history and just critically evaluate academic material in general.
The readings she selected and her breaking up readings from lecture and discussion-specific sections were absolutely great, as it meant you could split them up during the week. Not only did it spread out the readings throughout the week to make it less heavy for students, but it also helped me and my peers absorb the concepts better. She is surely an expert in her field and has extensive knowledge to share on social movements throughout history. It was also great being able to interact with peers who were genuinely passionate about the social movements that they chose to write about in their assignments.

Dr Herrera is the best. Funny, witty, and full of energy. The class consists of 4 essay assignments (85%), Section (10%), and 5% of your grade being in class workshops. The class is totally manageable as long as you are not leaving things to the last minute. Despite seeming to be left leaning from what I had picked up, she teaches without bias, and often will show different social movements both left leaning and right leaning in the same lecture. She will get to know your name at the beginning of the quarter and it is because she truly does care. Engage in class, with your TA, and follow the rubrics for the papers assigned. Also if you have questions, concerns, or need help... She is extremely approachable and will help you out!

It is clear that Professor Herrera put a lot of thought into the design of this course, which is engaging and well organized. The grading breakdown was 15% discussion section (participation and in-class assignments), 35% midterm essay, 25% group podcast, 15% individual paper and annotated bibliography on the podcast topic, and 10% lecture engagement quizzes. We were given one week to write the midterm essays, for which we were asked to respond to two of three prompts using the course readings. While I didn’t love the format of the podcast final project, I did appreciate the opportunity to examine the concepts we were discussing in class through an analysis of a water-related problem. The individual paper and annotated bibliography assignments changed slightly in the middle of the quarter (the individual paper was originally a brief that was 1-2 pages, and was adjusted to be a 3-5 page paper), but weren’t too bad otherwise. The lecture engagement quizzes were one-question assignments posted on Canvas that were graded on completion and attendance -- if you were in class and responded to the prompt, you got credit.

The readings were relevant and interesting, and needed to be completed by discussion section on Thursdays (they did not have to be completed by lecture on Tuesdays, which was very helpful). All course due dates were before the conclusion of week 10 (so nothing was due finals week), which was great. Overall, this course was very interesting, and I would definitely recommend to those who find the topic interesting.

This was one of the most engaging classes I've ever taken! I really enjoyed learning the material. I definitely now have a very different view about water and its significance. Sometimes the readings were a bit much and I wish she would post slides. I really appreciated the live simulation that Professor Herrera designed, it was fun and helped me understand the material. Overall though, great class!

Great class content, unapproachable and intimidating professor. I loved learning about the politics of water in the Global South (although the class was advertised as just Politics of Water). We each had to make a group podcast on collective action on one of the following topics: drought, flooding, dams, and mining. Classes were lecture-style and very long (almost three hours), and Professor Herrera often cold called people and tracked participation.

I have mixed feelings about Professor Hererra--on the very first day, I really did not like her as she was intimidating, yelled at students to speak up, interrupted them, and was very condescending. By the end of the class I needed to speak with her with help about course material and she was very helpful and gave me detailed feedback when I spoke with her directly. One thing I did not appreciate was her constantly changing the syllabus/requirements. Even though some of these were extensions, which worked in my favor, some were because we actually had two midterm essays due instead of one and 3-5 pages due instead of two due for an essay and I would have appreciated more planning and organization in advance. My TA was wonderful and it's too bad I didn't have more time with them because of the strike. Grading by my TA was fine but grading by Professor Hererra was somewhat harsh in my opinion, even though I did well in the class overall. The professor also weirdly will not post slides or be accommodating to recording class at all, so unless you're a detailed and fast note taker in class, this class is not for you.

Professor Herrera is probably the worst professor I have ever had the displeasure of taking a course with. She is rude and condescending towards students, fails to adhere to her own syllabus, and engages in teaching practices that inhibit rather than foster student learning. For example, she refuses to publish slides for the class, which is counterproductive to those who wish to re-engage with lecture materials to understand class concepts better. She made continual and inconsistent changes to the syllabus that she rudely and condescendingly demanded that we read and know like the back of our hands. As such, clarity on course expectations and assignments was nonexistent.

Quite frankly, no self-respecting individual should ever take a class with her, and UCLA as an institution should be ashamed for having her as a tenured faculty member. As an example of her character, she said to us students "I am tenured! Your evaluations don't matter!" or something to that effect—absolutely unprofessional and laughable conduct. She also interrupts students while speaking and shames them for giving responses that she deems inadequate or if they do not project their voices loud enough. Her teaching style is ineffective and unpopular. Never have I been so excited to fill out a course evaluation-- I have looked forward to giving negative feedback from the moment I stepped into her classroom.

On a positive note, Professor Herrera is very knowledgeable about her niche subject area. The course is very interesting, and it would've been excellent had her horrible conduct ruined it for me and many of my classmates. The other Bruinwalk review of this course is consistent with my experiences. I am glad to see that others are engaging in "collective action" (a course theme) to ensure that others are aware of how horrible professor Herrera is. I hope that at least one person sees this review and chooses not to take her course. If that is the case, I will have done my part in helping a fellow student.

I enjoyed the class and the materials but felt scared and uncomfortable approaching the professor as she seemed rude and dismissive at times.
There was one time in class when she told a student that he would get cancer if he stressed out over an assignment and that made me not want to talk to her about class materials at all.
Overall the class material was exciting and although im disappointed in my grade with the class, I know that's my fault as I couldn't reach out to my TA for the course because of the strike. (I really enjoyed my TA section and the teaching assistant was so nice and helpful).
But I would never recommend or take this professor again :(

I really did wish It were different because she seems very knowledgeable but the way she spoke to that student was just unacceptable, It happened right in front of me so I know it wasn't taken out of context as well.