American Cultures Engaged Scholarship

Promotional Video for American Cultures Engaged Scholarship Program

"ACES is critical in bridging classroom and community."

"This is the most supportive teaching environment I've ever been in"

"This past year [ACES] courses...worked with community organizations building student and faculty research into the developing fights for Environmental Justice, Prison Abolition, Indigenous movements, the fight for K-12 Education, and the Arts and Social Justice."

The ACES Program

Today, ACES courses continue to be developed, providing opportunities for students to participate in collaborative projects with community partners, engage in experiential learning, create meaningful collaborative research environments with partners outside of the university, support reflective engagement on broad social issues and interests, and explore the possibilities and challenges of collaborative scholarship for both community partners and academic communities. 

Developing an ACES Course

The ACES Program provides support for faculty to incorporate community-based learning into new or revised AC courses.  If you are a faculty member interested in developing or continuing an ACES course, please visit our grants page

ACES Student Community Projects

To see examples of projects that students have developed in ACES courses with community partners, please visit our Student Community Projects page.

2021-22 ACES Courses

Spring 2022 ACES Courses:

  • CHICANO 180AC 001, "Art & Social Justice: Politics, Methods, and Practice for Community Based Work," Instructor: Jesus Barraza
  • CYPLAN 117AC, "Urban & Community Health," Instructor: Jason Corburn
  • EDUC W190A LEC 001, "Berkeley Changemaker: Critical Studies in Education," Instructor: Christyna M. Serrano
  • EDUC W190A LEC 002, "Berkeley Changemaker: Critical Studies in Education," Instructor: Christyna M. Serrano
  • ENGIN 157AC / IAS 157AC, "Engineering, The Environment, and Society," Instructor: Khalid Kadir
  • ESPM 50AC, "Introduction to Culture and Natural Resource Management," Instructor: Kurt Spreyer
  • ETHSTD 21AC, "A Comparative Survey of Racial and Ethnic Groups in the U.S," Instructor: Victoria Robinson
  • ETHSTD 122AC, "Ethnicity and Race in Contemporary American Films," Instructor: Raymond Telles
  • GEOG 72AC, "The Bay Area," Instructor: Seth Lunine
  • GEOG 167AC, "Border Geographies, Migration and Decolonial Movements of Latin America," Instructor: Diana Negrín
  • LEGALST 133AC, "Law and Social Change: The Immigrant Rights Movement," Instructor: Kathryn R. Abrams
  • MELC 158AC, "Middle East: Post-Colonialism, Migration, and Diaspora," Instructor: Hatem Bazian

Fall 2021 ACES Courses

  • ANTHRO C12AC (cross-listed as ESPM C22AC), "Fire: Past, Present and Future Interactions with the People and Ecosystems of California," Instructors: Scott L Stephens, Kent G Lightfoot
  • ART W23AC, "Digital Media: Foundations," Instructor: Greg Niemeyer
  • ASAMST W20AC, "Asian American Communities and Race Relations," Instructor: Harvey C Dong
  • ASAMST 128AC, "Muslims in America," Instructor: Hatem Ahmad Bazian
  • ASAMST 143AC, "Asian American Health," Instructor: Winston Tseng
  • CYPLAN 118AC, "The Urban Community," Instructors: Ricardo Huerta, Renee Roy Elias
  • EDUC W190A 001 - LEC 001, "Berkeley Changemaker: Critical Studies in Education," Instructor: Christyna Serrano
  • EDUC W190A UC01 - LEC UC01, "Berkeley Changemaker: Critical Studies in Education," Instructor: Christyna Serrano
  • EDUC 190AC 001 - LEC 001, "Critical Studies in Education," Instructor: Glynda Hull
  • EDUC 190AC 001 - LEC 002, "Critical Studies in Education," Instructor: Glynda Hull
  • ESPM 50AC, "Introduction to Culture and Natural Resource Management," Instructor: Kurt Spreyer
  • ETHSTD 190AC, "Inside and Beyond Walls: Migra, Masses and the Carceral State," Instructor: Victoria Robinson
  • LEGALST 162AC, "Restorative Justice," Instructor: Julie Shackford-Bradley
  • PUBPOL 192AC, "Social Movements, Organizing & Policy Change," Instructor: Sarumathi Jayaraman
  • SOCIOL 116AC, "Work, Justice and the Labor Movement," Instructor: Anibel F Ferus-Comelo
  • SOCWEL 150AC, "Race, Ethnic Relations, and Social Welfare in the United States," Instructor: Kurt C Organista