30 Years of RAC: Reconvening with Past and Current Critical Race Theorists in Education

FRIDAY JUNE 7, 2024

8:00 AM - 7:00 PM

Art Title: Pillars and Dreams of Our Generational Knowledge by Luis-Genaro Garcia, PhD.

30 YEARS OF RAC: RECONVENING WITH PAST AND CURRENT CRITICAL RACE THEORISTS IN EDUCATION

PROGRAM

DAY 1 Friday, June 7, 2024

(8:00am - 8:50am) Check-In & Light Breakfast

(9:00am - 9:15am) Welcome Words & Land Acknowledgement

Christine Vega

Christina (Tina) Christie

Daniel Solórzano

(9:15am - 10:45am) Keynote by Dolores Delgado Bernal

In conversation with: Lindsay Pérez-Huber (Moderator), Rebeca Burciaga, Alma Flores, Tanya Gaxiola Serrano, Maria Malagón, and Verónica Vélez

(10:45am - 11:00am) Short Break

(11:00am - 12:30pm) The Crits: Going Beyond the Binary

Anita Revilla (Moderator)

Edward Curammeng

Tracy Lachica Buenavista

Mary Senyonga

Dolores Calderón

John Pak

Sergio Gonzalez

Tony Dunbar

(12:30pm - 2:00pm) Lunch

Luncheon Presentation-Preserving Stories of the RAC

Throughout the Years: A Mixed-Method Analysis

Yadira Valencia

Feliz Quiñones

Magali Campos

(2:00pm - 2:10pm) Short Break

30 YEARS OF RAC: RECONVENING WITH PAST AND CURRENT CRITICAL RACE THEORISTS IN EDUCATION

PROGRAM

DAY 1 Friday, June 7, 2024

(2:10pm - 3:30pm) CRT Pedagogy & Praxis

Cindy Escobedo (Moderator)

Marvin Lynn

José Aguilar-Harnández

Sharim Hannegan Martinez

Socorro Morales

Bryant Partida

(3:30pm - 3:40pm) Short Break

(3:40pm - 5:30pm) RAC Through the Years

Lorena Camargo Gonzalez (Moderator)

Octavio Villalpando

Tara Yosso

Allyson Tintiangco-Cubales

Rita Kohli

Dimpal Jain

Kenjus Watson

Christine Vega

Johnny Ramirez

(5:30pm - 7:00pm) Reception

30 YEARS OF RAC: RECONVENING WITH PAST AND CURRENT CRITICAL RACE THEORISTS IN EDUCATION

DANIEL SOLÓRZANO

Daniel Solorzano is a Professor in the University of California Los Angeles' Departments of Education and Chicana/o and Central American Studies He is also the Director of the Center for Critical Race Studies in Education at UCLA.He is an interdisciplinary scholar with research and teaching interests in critical race theory, racial microaggressions and microaffirmations, and critical race spatial analysis. He is the co-author (with Lindsay Perez Huber) of Racial Microaggressions: Using Critical Race Theory to Respond to Everyday Racism (2020), which examines how People of Color are impacted by and respond to everyday racism in the form of racial microaggressions He is also co-editor (with Michaela Mares-Tamayo) of the award-winning anthology The Chicana/o Education Pipeline: History, Institutional Critique, and Resistance (2018), which traces 45 years of education scholarship in the oldest Chicana/o Studies journal in the U.S. Aztlán: A Journal of Chicano Studies. For the last 50 years, Solorzano has served in all three segments of California's public postsecondary education. In 2007, Professor Solorzano received the UCLA Distinguished Teaching Award. In 2012, Solorzano was presented with the American Education Research Association (AERA) Social Justice in Education Award. In 2012, Solorzano was also awarded the Critical Race Studies in Education Association Derrick A Bell Legacy Award In 2013, Solorzano was given the Mildred Garcia Exemplary Scholarship Award from the Association for Studies in Higher Education (ASHE). In 2014, Solorzano was elected a Fellow of the American Education Research Association. In 2017, Solorzano received the inaugural Revolutionary Mentor Award from the Critical Educators for Social Justice (CESJ) within the American Educational Research Association. In 2019, Professor Solorzano delivered the AERA Distinguished Lecture on Racial Microaggressions.In 2020, Solorzano was elected to the National Academy of Education. In 2022, Professor Solorzano received the Spencer Foundation Mentorship Award

30 YEARS OF RAC: RECONVENING WITH PAST AND CURRENT CRITICAL RACE THEORISTS IN EDUCATION

CHRISTINA (TINA) CHRISTIE

Christina Christie, Ph.D., is the Wasserman Dean of the School of Education and Information Studies at UCLA and also a professor of education in the Division of Social Research Methodology She is an internationally recognized scholar whose work focuses on understanding evaluation as a method for facilitating social betterment. As part of this work, she has developed studies to advance the theories and methods used to measure educational, social, and behavioral changes that result from program innovation and reform efforts. She has been recognized with distinguished career awards by two leading associations, as the recipient of the 2018 American Educational Research Association, Research on Evaluation Special Interest Group, Distinguished Scholar Award, and the 2019 American Evaluation Association, Research on Evaluation Distinguished Scholar Before being appointed Wasserman Dean, Christie served for five years as Chair of the Department of Education and prior to that six years as Division Head of Social Research Methodology.

KEYNOTE

DOLORES DELGADO BERNAL

Dolores Delgado Bernal is a Professor of Educational Leadership & Administration at Layola Marymount University and, in 2023 was elected a fellow of the American Educational Research Association. Previously at Cal State LA, she served as chair for the Department of Chicana(o) and Latina(o) Studies and then as Associate Dean for the College of Ethnic Studies. She’s a scholar-activist whose scholarship bridges the fields of education and ethnic studies and whose passion is in femtoring students. Her scholarship draws from Chicana feminist studies, critical race studies, and decolonial methodologies to investigate educational (in)equity, Latinx educational pathways, feminista pedagogies, and different forms of student resistance Her scholarship and femtoring have been recognized with numerous awards including, the American Educational Research Association Distinguished Scholar Award, Mujeres Activas en Letras y Cambio Social Tortuga Award, and Critical Race Studies in Education Association Derrick Bell Legacy Award. Her biggest award is being mamá to three wonderful sons.

30 YEARS OF RAC: RECONVENING WITH PAST AND CURRENT CRITICAL RACE THEORISTS IN EDUCATION

CONVERSATION WITH

LINDSAY PÉREZ-HUBER

Dr Lindsay Pérez Huber is Professor of Equity, Education & Social Justice in the College of Education at California State University, Long Beach Her research specializations include race, immigration and higher education, racial microaggressions, and critical race feminista methodologies and epistemologies. Her work on disrupting systems of oppression for Communities of Color spans across all levels of the educational pipeline. Dr. Pérez Huber is a Ford Foundation Fellow and recipient of the 2019 Derrick Bell Legacy Award by the Critical Race Studies in Education Association (CRSEA). In 2020, Dr. Pérez Huber published the co-authored book, “Racial Microaggressions: Using Critical Race Theory to Respond to Everyday Racism ” In 2021, she co-edited, “Why They Hate Us: How Racist Rhetoric Impacts Education.” Dr. Pérez Huber is a first-generation college student and mother of two amazing daughters, Layla and Luna. She continues the legacy of Danny’s mentorship through her support of graduate students. To date, Dr. Pérez Huber has supported over 80 thesis and dissertation Students of Color as chair and/or committee member.

REBECA BURCIAGA

Dr. Rebeca Burciaga is the founding Faculty Executive Director of the Institute for Emancipatory Education and a Professor of Educational Leadership & Chicana and Chicano Studies Her research is nested in the nepantla (borderlands) of Education and Chicana/o Studies, focusing on the schooling experiences of students, families, communities, educators, and leaders. Dr. Burciaga’s areas of expertise include qualitative methodologies (testimonio & ethnography), critical theories (critical race theory & Chicana feminist theory), and critical pedagogies. Dr. Burciaga earned her B.A. from UCSC, an Ed.M. from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, and a Ph.D. from UCLA. Her research has been supported by highly competitive funding including the Spencer Foundation, the Ford Foundation, and the National Institutes of Health A self-proclaimed artist in scholar residence, her true passion is art (textile and ceramics) and earned Certificado Avanzado de Tejido y Teñido de Textiles from the Instituto Allende in México.

30 YEARS OF RAC: RECONVENING WITH PAST AND CURRENT CRITICAL RACE THEORISTS IN EDUCATION

ALMA FLORES

Alma Itzé Flores (she/her(s)/ella) is an Associate Professor in the Undergraduate Studies in Education Department at California State University, Sacramento (Sac State). Dr. Flores was born in Jalisco, Mexico and raised in Santa Barbara, CA. She is an immigrant, first-generation college student, and mother to Xoaquín and Luna. She earned her B.A. in Sociology with a minor in Education Studies at UCLA, her M.A. in Bilingual and Bicultural Studies at the University of Texas, Austin, and her Ph D in Race and Ethnic Studies in Education at UCLA As a Chicana feminist teacher-scholar, her research examines the educational pathways of Chicana/o/x/Latina/o/x first-generation college students, Chicana/Latina mothers, and the development and analysis of Chicana/Latina feminist pedagogies and research methodologies.

TANYA GAXIOLA SERRANO

Tanya J. Gaxiola Serrano, Ph.D. (she/her/ella) is an Assistant Professor in the College of Education at San Diego State University. As a queer first-generation Latina immigrant from the Tijuana-San Diego borderlands, her research explores the racialized and gendered experiences of Communities of Color when navigating education to expose the functions of oppression Currently, a large part of her research agenda focuses on the inequities found in community colleges as well as the role of spatiality along the US-Mexico border region. In 2019, Dr. Gaxiola Serrano earned her Ph.D. from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Graduate School of Education and Information Studies with a specialization in Race and Ethnic Studies.

MARIA MALAGÓN

María C. Malagón is the daughter of Mexican migrants and a first-generation college student. She is an Associate Professor and vice chair of the Department of Sociology at California State University, Fullerton Maria holds a doctorate in Social Sciences and Comparative Education from UCLA As an oral historian and through archival research, she takes an anticolonial sociohistorical approach to examine carcerality of Chicanx youth in school settings. Through Chicana feminist analysis, Dr. Malagon’s work locates the experiences of Chicanx youth within education that distorts, erases, and pathologizes this population in discourse, policy, and practice. She is currently completing work on a book manuscript documenting the experiences of Mexican-origin women who attended California reformatory schools during the World War 2 era Her next project includes the oral histories of a Chicanx family living in Orange County, CA for five generations, specifically documenting their schooling and experiences with carcerality. Dr. Malagon has a professional background in gender education and youth programs.

30 YEARS OF RAC: RECONVENING WITH PAST AND CURRENT CRITICAL RACE THEORISTS IN EDUCATION

VERÓNICA VÉLEZ

VERÓNICA (VERO) VÉLEZ (she/her/ella) is Professor of Secondary Education and Education and Social Justice, as well as Associate Dean for Academic Affairs in Woodring College of Education at Western Washington University Anchored in Critical Race Theory, Chicana Feminisms, and Radical and Tactical Cartography, Vero’s most recent work aims to advance conceptual and methodological approaches that deepen a spatial consciousness and expand the use of geographic information systems (GIS). Verónica was featured in ESRI’s Women in GIS as one of 30 women internationally recognized for leading innovations in the field of geo-spatial science. She also recently co-edited a special issue in Race, Ethnicity, and Education that introduced “QuantCrit,” a methodological subfield of CRT that troubles the decontextualized and race-evasive nature of quantitative research in education In addition, Vero serves as a consultant and professional development facilitator for several grassroots, non-profit, and educational organizations, building upon her 15-year tenure as a community organizer with migrant families in California on campaigns for school reform. She is currently collaborating with youth, teachers, administrators, and community members to develop and teach Ethnic Studies in Bellingham Public Schools. Vero is the proud daughter of Latinx immigrant parents, whose journey to provide her with a quality education fundamentally inspires her work for social and racial justice

The Crits: Going Beyond the Binary

ANITA REVILLA

Dr. Anita Tijerina Revilla is a Muxerista and Jotería activist-scholar, Professor, and Chair of CSULA’s Department of Chicana(o) and Latina(o) Studies. Her research focuses on student movements and social justice education, specifically in the areas of Chicana/Latina, immigrant, feminist, and queer rights activism. Her expertise is in the areas of Jotería (Queer Latinx) Studies, Chicana/Latina and Black Feminisms, and Critical Race Theory She is a Harlandale High School graduate from the Southside of San Antonio and the first in her family to attend college. After receiving her bachelor’s degree from Princeton University and master’s degree from Teachers College, Columbia University, she earned her doctorate from UCLA Graduate School of Education. She is also a visual artist and loves to paint her community.

PANEL 1

30 YEARS OF RAC: RECONVENING WITH PAST AND CURRENT CRITICAL RACE THEORISTS IN EDUCATION

EDWARD CURAMMENG

Edward R. Curammeng is an Associate Professor and Graduate Program Director in the College of Education at California State University, Dominguez Hills. His teaching and research interests include Ethnic Studies Education and critical race theory in education to examine the experiences of students and teachers of color. His latest research can be found in Review of Educational Research, Teacher Education Quarterly and Journal of Asian American Studies. Upon transferring from Ohlone College, he earned his BA and MA in Asian American Studies from San Francisco State University where he taught middle and high school Filipino American and Ethnic Studies with Pin@y Educational Partnerships. Curammeng is the Project Director and Principal Investigator for the U.S. Department of Education funded Multilingual/Minoritized Educators NetworkedLearning and Development (MEND) project He was recently named the recipient of the 2023-2024 Excellence in Research, Scholarship, and Creative Activity award at CSUDH.

TRACY LACHICA BUENAVISTA

Tracy Lachica Buenavista (she/her) is a Professor of Asian American Studies and core faculty member of the Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership at California State University, Northridge (CSUN). At CSUN, Dr. Buenavista was the co-principal investigator and co-founder of the CSUN DREAM Center, Asian American Studies Pathways Project, Ethnic Studies Education Pathways Project, and the Faculty of Color Wellness Collective; and serves as a member of the Project Rebound Community Advisory Committee. In her research she utilizes critical race theory to examine how race, (im)migration, militarism, and carcerality shape the educational access, retention, and experiences of People of Color She is co-editor of “White” Washing American Education: The New Culture Wars in Ethnic Studies (Praeger, 2016), Education at War: The Fight for Students of Color in America’s Public Schools (Fordham, 2018), and First-Generation Faculty of Color Narratives: Reflections on Research, Teaching, and Service (Rutgers, 2022).

30 YEARS OF RAC: RECONVENING WITH PAST AND CURRENT CRITICAL RACE THEORISTS IN EDUCATION

MARY SENYONGA

Mary Senyonga (she/her(s)) is an Assistant Professor of Black Feminisms in Women’s and Gender Studies at Sacramento State University. Her research investigates racial violences in the university, Black student organizing, and the Black fat figure in society. Privileging Black Feminisms and Critical Race Theory, she illuminates the methods that sustain systemic inequity while at the same time centering and celebrating Black people’s disruptions to this condition. Her scholarship was awarded Dissertation of the Year by the American Educational Research Association Division G in 2024 She earned a PhD and MA in Social Sciences and Comparative Education - Race and Ethnic Studies from University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and a BA in Psychology from Occidental College. She is currently at work on an extensive project focusing on 1) the impact of the University of California (UC) system on the state of California through archival research and 2) Black women students who attended UCLA during Angela Davis’s dismissal and engaged in varied organizing tactics for change.

DOLORES CALDERÓN

Dolores Calderon is Associate Professor of Youth, Society, and Justice at Western Washington University's Fairhaven College of Interdisciplinary Studies. She is from the El Paso/Juarez border region where her family (Mexican & Tigua) have lived since the 1680s. Her research interests include coloniality/settler colonialisms, land education, and border issues as they manifest themselves in educational contexts Some of her research projects include examining how settler colonial ideologies manifest themselves social studies curriculum, in teacher education, and teacher professional development. As a firm believer that theory is best illuminated by engagement, she values the work educators do to concretize critical perspectives.

JOHN PAK

John Pak is currently a doctoral candidate at UCLA’s Graduate School of Education and Information Studies, specializing in Race, Ethnic, and Cultural Studies. His research focuses on reimagining Deaf Critical Race Theory, examining the narrative of racialized audism, and investigating the methods of pedagogical and epistemological resistance employed by Deaf Students of Color. As a Deaf Person of Color, John draws on his community experiences to explore the dynamics of microaggressions and microaffirmations within both academic and social contexts He is particularly interested in how Deaf Students of Color cultivate resilience and enact everyday resistance through communal healing practices. In addition to his studies, John is also a lecturer in the Department of Deaf Studies at California State University, Northridge (CSUN).

30 YEARS OF RAC: RECONVENING WITH PAST AND CURRENT CRITICAL RACE THEORISTS IN EDUCATION

SERGIO GONZALEZ

Sergio A. Gonzalez, Ph.D. (él/he/him), is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Educational Foundations and Leadership in the School of Education at Duquesne University. He teaches undergraduate and graduate-level coursework in higher education, emphasizing social justice discourse. His interdisciplinary research is informed by Women of Color Feminisms, Chicana/Latina Feminisms, and Jotería Studies within higher education scholarship As a first-generation academic, being the first in his family to graduate from high school, undergraduate, and graduate school has shaped how he shows up in community and navigates academia. He is an hijo to his Madre y Padre, a brother, a Tio, Madrina, Nino, and Nieto to his chosen family and family.

TONY DUNBAR

Tony Dunbar is an Associate Professor in the School of Information Studies (SOIS) at Dominican University (DU), where he also serves as the iSchool’s Equity, Inclusion, and Justice Coordinator He is also an Adjunct Sociology Professor at Lewis University, teaching both the introductory sociology course and the Diversity and Social Justice offering. Just as importantly, he’s also an equity and justice thought leader. Tony’s current efforts focus on developing curriculum, scholarship, and activism to expand the CRT framework into a platform specific for Information Studies, namely Critical Race information Theory (CRiT). He is the founder and Global Lead for the Critical Race Theory collective (CRTc), a community of international, interdisciplinary, and intersectional scholar-activists who are committed to cultivating knowledge and information across borders Part of the CRTc’s vision is to develop knowledge and justice tools for dismantling oppressive hierarchies as they manifest in spaces of work, education and society.

30 YEARS OF RAC: RECONVENING WITH PAST AND CURRENT CRITICAL RACE THEORISTS IN EDUCATION

LUNCHEON PRESENTATION

Preserving Stories of the RAC Throughout the Years: A Mixed-Method Analysis

YADIRA VALENCIA

Yadira Valencia is a doctoral candidate in the Social Science and Comparative Education division (Race and Ethnic Studies specialization at UCLA SE&IS) She is a Graduate Student Researcher for the Research, Assessment, and Evaluation (RAE) division at the Academic Advancement Program (AAP). AAP serves firstgeneration, low-income, underrepresented students in UCLA by providing research, counseling, academic, and other services. Through RAE she works alongside undergraduate students as they develop their research interests that centers the needs and experiences of AAP students. As a research associate for CCRSE, she is part of a research project that aims to document the narratives and experiences of previous and current RAC members Her research centers the academic experiences of citizen daughters in Latinx mixed-status families as they navigate their familial obligations along with their educational responsibilities.

FELIZ QUIÑONES

Feliz Quiñones is the Assistant Director of Research, Assessment, and Evaluation (RAE) at UCLA's Academic Advancement Program (AAP). As part of the RAE team, she coordinates the management, development, and administration of AAP-wide survey efforts and assessment projects to center the voices of first-generation, low-income, underrepresented students at UCLA. She earned her B.A. in Psychology from the University of California, Santa Cruz and her Ph.D. and M.A. in Education, with a concentration in Human Development and Psychology, from UCLA’s School of Education and Information Studies Her main line of research focuses on examining how the neighborhood and school contexts shape middle and high school students' experiences with racial/ethnic discrimination. In her previous work as a Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of California, Berkeley’s Institute of Human Development, she worked with school sites and community organizations to evaluate the effectiveness of a Latinx parenting program. As a current Visiting Scholar for the Center for Critical Race Studies in Education at UCLA, she is part of a research project that aims to document the narratives and experiences of previous and current RAC members Feliz is also very passionate about the work she does alongside her students as an adjunct faculty teaching research methods at California State University, Dominguez Hills.

30 YEARS OF RAC: RECONVENING WITH PAST AND CURRENT CRITICAL RACE THEORISTS IN EDUCATION

PANEL 2

CRT Pedagogy & Praxis

CINDY ESCOBEDO

Dr. Cindy R. Escobedo's research, teaching, and professional passions explore the intersections of educational (in)equities, Student and Women of Color academic pathways, mother-daughter relationships, and the raced and gendered sociology of family. She received her Ph.D. from UCLA's Graduate School of Education and Information Studies. She is a National Academy of Education/Spencer Foundation Dissertation Fellow and UC Office of the President Dissertation Fellow As an adjunct professor teaching across the CSU and UC systems, Cindy designs courses offered through Ethnic Studies and Education Studies programs. Cindy is concurrently a Research Associate for the Center for Critical Race Studies in Education at UCLA and serves as a Senior Research Consultant for the Peer Learning Unit within the UCLA Academic Advancement Program (AAP). A three-time UCLA Bruin, Cindy holds a M.A. degree in Education, and a B.A. degree in Political Science with double minors in Education and Public Affairs.

MARVIN LYNN

Dr. Marvin Lynn, Dean and Professor in the School of Education & Human Development at the University of Colorado Denver, is an internationally recognized educational equity scholar, public university administrator, and artist One of the most highly cited researchers in the nation, Dean Lynn’s research focuses on race, education, the work and lives of Black male educators, and best practices for advancing teacher diversity in the United States. His scholarship has appeared in Teachers College Record, The Journal of Teacher Education, Urban Education, and many other outlets. Dean Lynn has been quoted or featured in several national and international news outlets, including The New York Times, Fox News, The Christian Science Monitor, The BBC, WNIT (South Bend local PBS station), and many others A proud graduate of the Race & Ethnic Studies concentration at UCLA under the tutelage of Dr Danny Solórzano, he coined the phrase “Critical Race Pedagogy” in 1999 with an article published in the journal, Urban Education. In 2008, in collaboration with Tara Yosso, David Stovall, and Theodorea Berry, he founded the Critical Race Studies in Education Association which produced an annual conference since that time. He currently serves as a board member for the Carnegie Project for the Education Doctorate (CPED), and the National Association of Community College Teacher Education Programs (NACCTEP). In addition to his Ph.D. from UCLA, he holds a B.S. from DePaul University in Chicago and an M A from Teachers College-Columbia University A professionally trained singer, he is the founder of the South Shore Opera Company of Chicago, where he has performed regularly.

30 YEARS OF RAC: RECONVENING WITH PAST AND CURRENT CRITICAL RACE THEORISTS IN EDUCATION

JOSÉ AGUILAR-HARNÁNDEZ

José M. Aguilar-Hernández is the son of immigrant farmworkers from Zacatecas, México He was born and raised in the Ventura County Currently, he is an Associate Professor of Educational Leadership and the Director of the Office for Interdisciplinary Ethnic Studies Teaching and Scholarship at Cal Poly Pomona. Aguilar-Hernández is a first-generation academic, whose trajectory in higher education began at Moorpark Community College. He transferred to UCLA, where he received his B.A., M.A., and Ph.D. He was trained by Dr. Daniel G. Solórzano, whose teaching and mentorship informed his career as an interdisciplinary scholar. Using critical race theory in education & historical methods, Aguilar-Hernández’s research and publications include: 1) charting 1990s Student of Color activism in higher education in Southern California, and 2) engaging critical pedagogy in higher education through a critical race and queer of color framework.

SHARIM HANNEGAN MARTINEZ

Sharim Hannegan-Martinez is an Assistant Professor of critical studies in education at the University of Michigan. Informed by her experiences growing up on the San Diego-Tijuana frontera and her time as a high school English teacher in East Oakland, her scholarly agenda seeks to expand justice-centered pedagogies to consider the role of healing and overall wellbeing as a part of liberatory practice and commitment. To that end, she draws on critical race and Chicana feminist methodologies to examine the relationship between trauma, loving pedagogies, literacy, grief, healing, and wellness, particularly as it relates to Students and Teachers of Color. Her work has been published in several journals including Teachers College Record, Urban Education, and Urban Review. Sharim is a founding member of the People’s Education Movement, Bay Area, and earned her Ph.D. from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) where her dissertation was recognized by the Ford Foundation’s predoctoral and dissertation year fellowships. This scholarship was awarded ‘dissertation of the year ’ by American Educational Research Associations’ Division G: Social Contexts in Education in 2022 Most recently, she completed her Cultivating New Voices among Scholars of Color fellowship with the National Council for Teachers of English and was awarded the 2024 Spencer Postdoctoral fellowship by the National Academy of Education.

30 YEARS OF RAC: RECONVENING WITH PAST AND CURRENT CRITICAL RACE THEORISTS IN EDUCATION

SOCORRO MORALES

Socorro Morales (she/her) is a queer Chicana raised in Fontana, CA. She earned her Ph D from the University of Utah in Education, Culture, and Society Her research agenda focuses on understanding and promoting educational equity for historically marginalized populations, specifically through the lenses of Critical Race Theory, Chicana feminisms, and critical youth studies. In particular, she examines the educational experiences of Chicanx and Latinx youth, focusing on subjectivity, youth agency, and pedagogical practice. She is currently an Assistant Professor in the Educational Leadership Department at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. Her publications span across areas such as Chicanx youth agency and resistance in K12 as well as Chicana feminist pláticas methodology

BRYANT PARTIDA

Bryant Partida was born in East Los Angeles, raised in South Phoenix, and is currently rooted in Pacoima, California He earned his Ph D from UCLA in Social Science and Comparative Education with an emphasis on Race and Ethnic Studies. Currently, he is serving as a Visiting Assistant Professor of Chicana/o and Latina/o Studies at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. Bryant’s research agenda focuses on documenting the 20th-century educational histories of Mexican, Mexican American, and Chicana/o communities in Phoenix, Arizona, through a Critical Race Educational History and relational lens. He is currently expanding his work focusing on the 1970 Chicana/o boycott of Phoenix Union High School into diverse research strands that include a wider district relational analysis of race and racism in the Phoenix Union High School District between 1895 and 1982, further documenting the history of segregated Mexican schools in the Valley, and early 1900’s historical Mexican and Mexican American educational social movements in Phoenix and Arizona. Bryant has also translated his interdisciplinary research skills and teaching experience to provide professional development-based history-based workshops for Ethnic Studies teachers as well as serving as a public history consultant and co-curator of Chicana/o/x educational and community history exhibits.

30 YEARS OF RAC: RECONVENING WITH PAST AND CURRENT CRITICAL RACE THEORISTS IN EDUCATION

RAC Through the Years

LORENA CAMARGO GONZALEZ

Lorena Camargo Gonzalez [she/her/ella] is an Assistant Professor of Undergraduate Studies in Education and Gender Equity at Sacramento State University. Dr. Camargo Gonzalez earned her Ph.D. from UCLA’s School of Education and Information Studies with a specialization in Race and Ethnic Studies. She also holds a master’s degree in education from Long Beach State University and a bachelor’s degree in Ethnic Studies with a concentration on Chicana/o Studies from Sacramento State University. Her educational experiences as an immigrant and first-generation college student inform her interdisciplinary approach in drawing from Critical Race theories, Chicana/Latina Feminist theories, and historical methods such as oral histories and archival research to address the following areas: 1) the activism of Latina/o/x librarians; 2) racial justice within library services, and 3) the history of Latina/o/x children’s literature

OCTAVIO VILLALPANDO

Octavio Villalpando is currently Professor of Higher Ed at Cal State LA, after serving over 7 years as Dean, Vice Provost, Vice President for Student Affairs, and founding Vice President for EDI. His career spans over 34 years as a CRT scholar, social justice practitioner, and senior higher ed leader at several institutions. His research has been cited in multiple Supreme Court cases as evidence of the value of diverse campuses He’s been recognized with the Outstanding Research Award and the Outstanding Faculty Teaching Award in Education at the University of Utah, where he also led Ethnic Studies and Gender Studies while shepherding their establishment as a college. At Cal State LA, he led the institution’s attainment of national distinction in several areas, including achieving the most diverse faculty in a public, comprehensive university, and the establishment of the second College of Ethnic Studies in the country. He is a former AERA/Spencer Research Fellow, Ford Foundation Postdoc, and received the AERA-J Exemplary Reviewer Award, the Society for the Advancement of Chicanas/os and Native Americans in Science Presidential Service Award, and the Critical Race Studies in Education Association’s Derrick Bell Legacy Award for Influential Scholarship.

30 YEARS OF RAC: RECONVENING WITH PAST AND CURRENT CRITICAL RACE THEORISTS IN EDUCATION

TARA YOSSO

Dr. Tara J. Yosso is a Professor and Associate Dean of Academic Personnel in the School of Education at the University of California Riverside. She is a first generation college student who enrolled as a sophomore in Dr. Daniel G. Solórzano’s “Mexican Americans and the Schools” class the second time he taught it at UCLA. As a Ph.D. student, she enrolled in every graduate course Dr. Solórzano taught, including his first Research Apprenticeship Course. Dr. Solórzano and Dr Yosso have co-authored 19 publications, which are reprinted at least 14 times and have been cited over 22,000 times Dr Yosso’s research seeks to recover counternarratives of race, schooling, inequality, and the law. Her extensively cited publications include, “Whose Culture has Capital? A Critical Race Theory Discussion of Community Cultural Wealth,” which has surpassed 12,500 citations, and has been received as a paradigm shift for the ways we have traditionally thought about schooling structures, practices, and discourse. Her book, Critical Race Counterstories along the Chicana/Chicano Educational Pipeline received a 2008 Critics’ Choice Book Award from the American Educational Studies Association In 2022, the Color of Change organization established an award in her honor, the “Tara J Yosso Award for Excellence in Counterstorytelling in Education.” She was also recognized by the American Educational Research Association Division G with a 2023 “Distinguished Contributions to Transforming Social Contexts of Educational Research - Lifetime Achievement Award.”

ALLYSON TINTIANGCO-CUBALES

Dr. Tintiangco-Cubales was born and raised on Ohlone land with parents who were immigrants from the Philippines--womb (Batangas) and seed (Tarlac). She attended Ohlone College and transferred to UC Berkeley and graduated in 1993, then went on to get her Ph D at UCLA and finished her dissertation in 2000 with Dr. Daniel Solorzano and Dr. Don Nakanishi as her chairs. She is a Distinguished Professor in the College of Ethnic Studies at San Francisco State University. Since 2000, she’s been teaching Ethnic Studies courses focusing on Women of Color Studies, Asian American Studies, Filipina/x/o (American) Studies, critical pedagogy, and ARTivism. She is also an affiliated faculty member in the Educational Leadership. She is currently the director of curriculum for UCLA’s Foundations and Futures: Asian American and Pacific Islander Multimedia Textbook In 2024, she was honored with the Wang Family Award, one of the most prestigious honors faculty can receive in the California State University (CSU) system for her teaching, service, and scholarship. Also, in 2024, she became an American Educational Research Association Fellow. She was also featured in this year ' s Asian Women Are Strong event. She received the announcement that she is being honored with the Association of Asian American Studies Mentorship award.

30 YEARS OF RAC: RECONVENING WITH PAST AND CURRENT CRITICAL RACE THEORISTS IN EDUCATION

RITA KOHLI

Rita Kohli is a Professor of Race, Teaching, and Teacher Education, coordinator of the K-12 Ethnic Studies Pathway program in the School of Education, and cooperating faculty in the Ethnic Studies Department at the University of California, Riverside (UCR). She is also the co-founder and co-director of the Institute for Teachers of Color Committed to Racial Justice (ITOC), which provides professional development to support the racial literacy and racial justice leadership development of teachers and teacher educators. Engaging critical race theory, her research examines structural racism and racial justice initiatives within teaching, teacher education, and professional development, with specific focus on the experiences of educators of Color. She is co-editor of the book, Confronting Racism in Teacher Education: Counternarratives of Critical Practice, and author of the award-winning solo-authored book, Teachers of Color: Resisting Racism and Reclaiming Education, which was published in the Race and Education series of Harvard Education Press.

DIMPAL JAIN

Dimpal Jain is a Professor of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies and core faculty within the Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership at California State University, Northridge She received her B A in History from Western Washington University and her Masters and Ph D in Higher Education and Organizational Change at the University of California, Los Angeles. She is the daughter of South Asian immigrants and the first in her family to earn a Ph.D. She is proud of her family title of “Book Doctor.” Her work centers on the relationship between community colleges and universities through a critical race framework, most notably how universities can develop and maintain a transfer receptive culture for students of color. She has co-authored Power to the Transfer! Critical Race Theory and a Transfer Receptive Culture and co-edited First-Generation Faculty of Color: Reflections on Research, Teaching, and Service She was recently awarded a National Science Foundation Hispanic Serving Institution grant along with her Co-PI’s in relation to her transfer student advocacy work. Dimpal values books, family, friends, cafés, classrooms, and sunshine.

30 YEARS OF RAC: RECONVENING WITH PAST AND CURRENT CRITICAL RACE THEORISTS IN EDUCATION

KENJUS WATSON

Kenjus Watson (he/him) is a father, partner, brother, uncle and son who is passionate about reaching back to grounded wisdom, seeding into present challenges, and bridging towards more loving and sustainable futures Kenjus is also an Assistant Professor of Urban Education at American University where he teaches courses in the EdD Educational Policy and Leadership Program within the School of Education. Additionally, Kenjus works as research lead, educator, and co-founder of the Institute for Regenerative Futures in the College of Education at San Jose State University. His research has focused on the biopsychosocial impact of everyday anti-blackness and colonization (i.e., racial microaggressions) on Black, Indigenous, and other People of Color, as well as the promise of school abolition and apocalyptic education to bring about healing and wellness for people and the planet Kenjus earned his PhD in Education with an emphasis in Race and Ethnic Studies at UCLA.

CHRISTINE VEGA

Dra. Christine Vega is an Assistant Professor for the Chicana and Chicano Studies Department at San José State Univerity. She is a #TransferProud Motherscholar and received her B A s in Chicana/o Studies and Gender & Women Studies at UCLA and her M Ed from the University of Utah She earned her Ph.D. at UCLA, focusing on Motherscholar Activism, counterspaces, and spirituality. Before joining SJSU, she was a postdoctoral fellow at CSU Fort Collins College of Education, working with High School Youth through Los Caminos Program. Lastly, she worked with the Office of Teaching & Learning at the University of Denver as an IRISE postdoctoral fellow. Dra. Vega co-founded Mothers of Color in Academia de UCLA and The Chicana M(other)work Collective and has co-edited and co-authored the The Chicana M(other)work Anthology: Porqué Sin Madres No Hay Revolucion! with the University of Arizona Press

30 YEARS OF RAC: RECONVENING WITH PAST AND CURRENT CRITICAL RACE THEORISTS IN EDUCATION

JOHNNY RAMIREZ

Dr. Johnny Carlos Ramirez, an Assistant Professor in the Department of Chicana and Chicano Studies at San Jose State University (SJSU), brings a wealth of practical experience to his teaching, community-engaged research, and student mentoring. With a focus on social justice youth development programs, he explores how Chicanx/Latinx youth transformational resistance outcomes can be leveraged as a prevention/intervention strategy to address the school-to-prison nexus. His recent work documents the impact of indigenous-centered healing practices on improving youth wellness for At-Promise youth of color populations. With a career spanning nearly 20 years in grassroots youth development organizations, he has served as a Program director, mentor, youth organizer, and community activist His life's mission is to empower Youth of Color, supporting them to realize their power and develop the leadership skills necessary to drive transformative change.

BRENDA LOPEZ

Brenda Yvonne Lopez is the Media Coordinator for the Center for Critical Race Studies in Education at UCLA, and a PhD candidate in Social Sciences and Comparative Education at UCLA. Her research and scholarship focus on Women of Color, film pedagogy, and film-based research methods using a critical race theory framework. Her work aims to explore and amplify the voices and experiences of marginalized communities, utilizing the power of film to challenge and deconstruct dominant narratives Brenda’s approach to pedagogy integrates visual media into academic discourse, providing new perspectives and fostering critical engagement. Through her research, she seeks to highlight the intersections of race, gender, and media, contributing to epistemic reclaiming for communities whose stories have historically been silenced, distorted, or erased. Brenda's dedication to social justice and educational equity drives her commitment to producing impactful scholarship that resonates both within and beyond academia.

MEDIA TEAM

30 YEARS OF RAC: RECONVENING WITH PAST AND CURRENT CRITICAL RACE THEORISTS IN EDUCATION

MOHAMMAD TAVAKOLI

Mohammad Tavakoli is a filmmaker, photographer, and video producer with a strong focus on academic content. With a passion for storytelling, Mohammad has created numerous educational videos and creative works that engage and inspire His work spans a wide range of subjects, from scientific research to social sciences, aiming to make complex concepts accessible and engaging for broader audiences. He has collaborated with educational institutions, including the School of Education and Information Studies at UCLA. One notable project, "From the Margin to the Center: Black Faculty Life Histories at Ed&IS," involved conducting visual life history interviews with Black faculty members. Mohammad's films have been recognized for their clarity, creativity, and educational value. He is dedicated to using the power of visual media to foster a deeper understanding of academic topics, continually pushing the boundaries of what educational videos can achieve

EVENT COORDINATOR

MAGALI CAMPOS

Magali Campos (she/her) is a doctoral candidate in the Social Science and Comparative Education program with a Race and Ethnic Studies specialization at UCLA SE&IS. Magali is the assistant director of the Center for Critical Race Studies in Education at UCLA. As assistant director, she provides administrative support, develops programming, and leads the center’s research brief series and research projects She has held various Teaching Fellow positions in the Department of Chicana/o and Central American Studies, and the Education Department at UCLA. As a first-generation Latina graduate student, her research centers on the experiences of Women of Color in doctoral programs and explores the different forms of silence they encounter. Using a Critical Race Theory, Women of Color Epistemology, and Chicana/Latina Feminist Methodologies, Magali has developed a spectrum of silence that demonstrates the contextual nuances of silence. She co-wrote a methodological piece called Con Respeto y Confianza: a correspondence between sister-scholars that braids Chicana Latina Feminist methodologies in women of color research in the International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education with Yadira Valencia