The committee serves the Senate’s and the College’s commitment to continual reflection by giving deep consideration to the structures, policies, and culture of the institution. By working toward a decolonized academy, the committee will review and respond to campus-wide matters and give recommendations that aim to alleviate the cycle of colonization.
The Decolonizing the Academy Committee is motivated by a deeply-felt and shared belief that in order to shape a more interdependent, collaborative, and sustainable world we need to recognize and redress the colonial structures that currently shape and define our inequitable and unsustainable reality.
The principle guiding the Decolonizing Committee is the desire for more imaginative
control over our shared reality - this includes our relationship to the land.
In 2021, Tongva elder Julia Bogany visited with us to discuss the process of renewing
our connection to the land. Shortly after her visit, Julia died of a stroke (read
the L.A. Times article on Julia Bogany here), but her work continues.
Watch the recording of Julia Bogany's visit and read her website, To Be Visible, for more information about the enduring relation between Native peoples and the land.
Emergent Strategy: Shaping Change, Changing Worlds
If you missed the visit, check out the adrienne maree brown zoom recording
Hispanic-Serving Institutions in Practice: Defining Servingness at HSIs.
It's one thing to be an HSI; it's another to serve our Latinx students. Watch a recording of Professor Garcia's 2021 discussion at SMC.
Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants
