Tracy Buenavista.

For her contributions to the community, CSUN Asian American Studies professor Tracy Lachica Buenavista recently received the Community Engagement and Scholar Activism Award at the 10th annual UC Davis Equity Summit.

The UC Davis Equity Summit annually honors activists who fight for equity and change in their communities.

Buenavista, who previously received one of CSUN’s Outstanding Faculty Awards, is known for making significant contributions to scholarship on undocumented youth and is widely recognized as an expert on issues facing undocumented Asian students.

She also puts her expertise to work in tangible ways, serving as the co-principal investigator for CSUN’s DREAM Center, which provides undocumented students with resources, leadership experiences, professional development and networking opportunities. She has served as a mentor in the California Pre-Doctoral Program, which prepares and supports CSU students to pursue Ph.D. programs.

“I am very humbled by this award,” Buenavista said. “My work is focused on facilitating material opportunities for students and colleagues who, like me, have often been denied access to resources necessary to thrive. Everything I have ever accomplished is due to a community of people who practice a collective approach to the work we do in the classroom, in the community and at home. This recognition affirms them, our work together, and the vision we share for a more equitable future.”

Buenavista was nominated for the Community Engagement and Scholar Activism Award award by Edward R. Curammeng, her colleague and an assistant professor of education at CSU Dominguez Hills.

“I wanted to nominate Dr. Buenavista for her unwavering support and radical mentorship,” Curammeng said. “For her incisive and trenchant research for communities, and the selfless and humble ways she has taught many of us how to embody a deep commitment to radical and collective care.”

Asian American Studies, College of Humanities