History Of ACES - UC Berkeley Engaged Scholars Initiative (BESI)

Professor Na'ilah Suad Nasir of the UC Berkeley School of Education addresses the importance of honoring the expertise of community members as integral figures in any approach to civic engagement.

Professor Ingrid Seyer-Ochi, School of Education, on the role of service learning in her classroom, and how community engagement strengthens a student's education and builds on Berkeley's public mission.

Dr. Ruth Tringham finds ways to make archaeological research more accessible to the public through digital technology.

Dr. Khatayra Um, Professor of Asian American Studies at UC Berkeley advocates for underrepresented students within public universities and stresses the importance of giving back to the communities you come from in order to correct social injustice.

Dr. James Corburn from the City and Regional Planning Department of UC Berkeley encourages students to develop trusting relationships with members of the local community in order to best generate solutions within service learning projects.

Ashok Gadgil, Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, discusses the importance of multi-disciplinary approaches to research, and how linking fields of study can help solve complex social problems.

UC Berkeley Integrative Biology Professor Tyrone Hayes discusses the role diversity can play in participatory research, and how developing relationships within community's can make research outcomes more tangible.

Dr. Malo Hutson, City and Regional Planning, discusses the role a university has in community development and how academic experiences are enriched by combining higher education with service learning.

Dr. Meredith Minkler from the School of Public Health at UC Berkeley emphasizes the importance of relating policy making to the social contexts of a community.