Staff as Students of Social Justice

About the Program

The 'Staff as Students of Social Justice' (SSSJ) Program(link is external) is an innovative professional development opportunity for UC Berkeley campus staff and faculty. Brought to life through the American Cultures Center, SSSJ is an important expression of the campus’s commitment to staff’s intellectual and professional development, especially around issues of diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, and justice. This program is a keystone effort of the university’s work towards Becoming an Anti-Racist Campus(link is external). This program provides a unique opportunity to learn first-hand from leading scholars and American Cultures instructors about the intersections of race, ethnicity, and gender; dig into subjects of personal interests; and build connections with faculty, students, and campus colleagues. Now continuing its sixth year, this program is 10-weeks long in the Fall and Spring semesters, offering a weekly seminar over Zoom, titled “Material Anti-Racisms,” led by the SSSJ Program Director of Pedagogy, David Maldonado. This seminar provides a deep study of abolitionism and higher education, incorporating content from the previous SSSJ lecture series “Aspirations of Material Anti-Racism: What’s Next.”