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The UC Berkeley High School Ethnic Studies Initiative

About

In 2021, several academic partners at UC Berkeley recognized the need to support California high schools. They developed the High School Ethnic Initiative, also known as HSESI. HSESI is a collaborative effort among the American Cultures Center, the Department of Ethnic Studies, and the History Social Sciences Project to leverage UC Berkeley's extensive academic resources and pedagogical expertise. The initiative focuses on building a curriculum infrastructure for California educators, addressing immediate and long-term needs.

Key resources for UC Berkeley's partnership with high school Ethnic Studies educators include robust research-centered materials for curriculum content, faculty expertise in Ethnic Studies and critical race studies pedagogy, access to the Ethnic Studies Library’s extensive collections, and a longstanding commitment to supporting Ethnic Studies as a field rooted in community-based studies, knowledge, and action.

Instructive Nexus

A collage of HSESI event promotional images

Scholar Series

The Scholar Series facilitates conversations between university faculty and high school educators, exploring how cutting-edge research can be seamlessly integrated into classroom teaching materials. Through this series, California high school educators gain access to a wealth of racial justice scholarship forged by Berkeley and its community partners. The series covers a wide range of topics, and we’ve created event resource pages that include recordings, recommended resources, key takeaways, and more.

A screenshot of the high school ethnic studies resource hub

Ethnic Studies Educator Resource Hub

The Ethnic Studies Educator Resource Hub is a curated collection of materials from faculty experts, librarians, archivists, and campus members. Our hub offers a variety of content related to the history and practice of teaching Ethnic Studies, including Ethnic Studies curriculum essentials lesson plans recommended readings digital data tools archival materials, and more! The hub is still being developed and will continue to evolve. We welcome your ongoing feedback!

Photograph of Sine Hwang-Jensen in the Ethnic Studies Library.

Ethnic Studies Library and Guide

The UC Berkeley Ethnic Studies Library serves as a valuable resource for high school educators, particularly those interested in Ethnic Studies. Its origins trace back to the Third World Liberation Front strike during the 1960s. Student activists, passionate about social justice, collected and preserved historical materials related to the movements of that time. Over the years, these materials have evolved into specialized collections within the library, including books, serials, archives, posters, and audio recordings.

Creating and supporting knowledge that informs social movements is a unique field of work for educators to learn from and be in conversation with today. To assist them, Ethnic Studies librarians have created a dedicated HSESI Library Guide, providing valuable insights into past and present social movements.

Link to https://twlf.berkeley.edu

Third World Liberation Front Website

Ethnic Studies as a community-based movement, a chapter in educational history and a field, finds its ancestry and inspirations from the Third World Liberation Front or TWLF.

This legacy has been captured for the HSESI in a new TWLF website. Launched in June 2024, the site serves as a platform offering an in-depth look into the Third World Liberation Front's activism at UC Berkeley and its related organizing at SF State. While the site is valuable for a wide audience, it’s especially relevant for high school ethnic studies educators and students coming into conversation with the new Ethnic Studies graduation requirement.

Background

Shot of books on shelf, book titles blurred

Exploratory Research Report

The UC Berkeley High School Ethnic Studies Exploratory Report examines the potential of a UC Berkeley curriculum development effort in supporting Bay Area high school teachers and school districts, and therefore future generations of California students. Although the report is exploratory and not exhaustive, it does offer strategic reasons for UC Berkeley's involvement in the California High School Ethnic Studies graduation requirement and recommendations for how, where, and when to interact.

Protestors in silouhette advocating for a High School Ethnic Studies at the California State Capitol

Background

After years of grassroots efforts and advocacy, in 2021 the California Board of Education approved a high school Ethnic Studies model curriculum, designed to include the significant contributions of Asian, Black, Latino, and Native Americans in national and state history and life. On October 8, 2021, Governor Newsom signed into law Assembly Bill (AB) 101, which requires all local educational agencies (LEAs), including charter schools, serving high school students, to provide a full-year course in ethnic studies by the 2025-26 school year, for students graduating in the 2029-30 school year and beyond. Learn more

Press

HSESI in the News

Explore the latest news and stories about the HSESI Program on our dedicated news page. Stay updated on our journey! For news inquiries, please email hsesi@berkeley.edu(link sends e-mail).