UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center (CSRC) was founded in 1969 to foster
multidisciplinary Interdisciplinarity or interdisciplinary studies involves the combination of multiple academic disciplines into one activity (e.g., a research project). It draws knowledge from several other fields like sociology, anthropology, psychology, ec ...
research efforts at the
University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...
(UCLA). It is one of four
ethnic studies Ethnic studies, in the United States, is the interdisciplinary study of difference—chiefly race, ethnicity, and nation, but also sexuality, gender, and other such markings—and power, as expressed by the state, by civil society, and by indivi ...
centers established at UCLA that year, all of which were the first in the nation and have advanced our understanding of the essential contributions of
people of color The term "person of color" ( : people of color or persons of color; abbreviated POC) is primarily used to describe any person who is not considered "white". In its current meaning, the term originated in, and is primarily associated with, the U ...
to U.S. history, thought, and
culture Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these groups.Tyl ...
. The centers remain the major organized research units in the University of California system that focus on ethnic and racial communities and contribute to the system's research mission.


Organization

The CSRC serves the entire campus and supports faculty and students in the
social science Social science is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the field of sociology, the original "science of soc ...
s,
life science Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for growth, reaction to stimuli, metabolism, energy t ...
s,
humanities Humanities are academic disciplines that study aspects of human society and culture. In the Renaissance, the term contrasted with divinity and referred to what is now called classics, the main area of secular study in universities at the t ...
, and the professional schools. Its research addresses the past and also growing
Chicano Chicano or Chicana is a chosen identity for many Mexican Americans in the United States. The label ''Chicano'' is sometimes used interchangeably with ''Mexican American'', although the terms have different meanings. While Mexican-American ident ...
and
Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...
population, which now constitutes nearly one-third of
California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
and one-half of
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
, but continues to have disproportionately low access to
higher education Higher education is tertiary education leading to award of an academic degree. Higher education, also called post-secondary education, third-level or tertiary education, is an optional final stage of formal learning that occurs after completi ...
. The CSRC is one of four ethnic studies centers established at UCLA in 1969 that are now part of the Institute of American Cultures (IAC), which reports to the Office of the Chancellor at UCLA. The CSRC is also a founding member of the national Inter-University Program for Latino Research (IUPLR, est. 1983), a consortium of Latino research centers that now includes twenty-five institutions in the United States.


Facilities

The CSRC houses a library, special collections archive, an academic press, research programs, community-based partnerships, and two competitive grant/fellowship programs organized through the IAC. Each year the CSRC is able to augment grants and fellowships through funds created specifically for research at the CSRC. These include Los Tigres del Norte Fund, the Tamar Diana Wilson Fund, and the Carlos M. Haro Scholarship Fund. Since the 1970s, the CSRC holds six "institutional FTE" or faculty positions that are placed on loan to departments. These positions were originally designed to increase the center's research capacity, but they also allow the center to serve as a vital force across campus for diversifying the curriculum and the faculty.


Press

The UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center Press publishes research by and about
Mexican American Mexican Americans ( es, mexicano-estadounidenses, , or ) are Americans of full or partial Mexican heritage. In 2019, Mexican Americans comprised 11.3% of the US population and 61.5% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% of Mexica ...
s. The Press was partly responsible for the founding and flowering of Chicano studies in the 1970s—launching the careers of young academics who could not find mainstream publishers. The press has published the journal of record in the field, ''Aztlán: A Journal of Chicano Studies'', for over thirty-five years. It has also published over 100 scholarly books, research reports, reference guides, policy briefs, newsletters, and DVDs. Four books published by the CSRC in 2012 won 10 awards in eight different categories at Latino Literacy Now's 15th annual International Latino Book Awards. As of 2013, the Press has received a total of 24 book awards. Three CSRC Press series are of special note. The ''A Ver: Revisioning Art History'' book series is a ground-breaking effort to document the work of prominent individual Latino artists. As of 2013, the published volumes are on
Gronk ''grOnk'', or GRoNK, was a Canadian literary magazine begun in 1967 by bpNichol and others (for example, David Aylward, David W. Harris (later David UU; co-editor for the first series (8 issues, 1967), and editor of most of the seventh series ( ...
, Yolanda M. Lopez,
Celia Álvarez Muñoz Celia Álvarez Muñoz (born 1937) is a Chicana mixed-media conceptual artist and photographer based in Arlington, Texas. Early life and education Álvarez Muñoz was born in El Paso, Texas to Enriqueta Limón Alvarez and Francisco Pompa Alvare ...
,
María Brito María Brito (born María Cristina Brito in 1947 in Havana, Cuba) is a Cuban-American artist specializing in painting, sculpture and installations. Early life and education Brito entered the United States by way of the mass exodus Operation Pe ...
,
Carmen Lomas Garza Carmen Lomas Garza (born 1948) is an Chicana artist and illustrator. She is well known for her paintings, ofrendas and for her papel picado work inspired by her Mexican-American heritage. Her work is a part of the permanent collections of the S ...
,
Malaquias Montoya Malaquias is a given name and surname of Hispanic origin. People with the given name * Malaquías Concha (1859–1921), Chilean writer, lawyer and politician * Malaquías Montoya (born 1938), American born Chicano poster artist People with the s ...
, Rafael Ferrer, and Ricardo Valverde. The ''Chicano Archives'' book series includes reference guides to UCLA library special collections on Chicanos, with histories and finding aids. Subjects include the renowned community arts organization
Self Help Graphics & Art Self-Help Graphics & Art, Inc. is a community arts center with a mix Beaux-Arts and vernacular architecture in East Los Angeles, California, United States. The building was built in 1927, and was designed by Postle & Postle. Formed during the cul ...
in East Los Angeles, the Robert Legorreta–Cyclona Collection, the Mexican Museum of San Francisco Papers, the Oscar Castillo Papers and Photograph Collection, the Latino Theatre Initiative/Center Theatre Group Papers, and the Arhoolie Foundation's Strachwitz Frontera Collection of Mexican and Mexican American Recordings. The ''Chicano Cinema & Media Arts''''Chicano Cinema & Media Arts''
/ref> series is an effort to preserve the many important Chicano films and videos that are no longer available. The first DVD is about the two earliest Chicano art documentaries; subsequent DVDs have focused on the video work of individual Chicano artists, including
Laura Aguilar Laura Aguilar (October 26, 1959 – April 25, 2018) was an American photographer. She was born with auditory dyslexia and attributed her start in photography to her brother, who showed her how to develop in dark rooms. She was mostly self-taugh ...
, Harry Gamboa Jr., and
Gronk ''grOnk'', or GRoNK, was a Canadian literary magazine begun in 1967 by bpNichol and others (for example, David Aylward, David W. Harris (later David UU; co-editor for the first series (8 issues, 1967), and editor of most of the seventh series ( ...
. Through its many publications, the press has shaped opinion, policy, and research on the Chicano population, both nationally and internationally.


Library

Established in 1969, the UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center Library was the first library in the United States to focus on the Mexican-descent population. Today, it continues to serve the needs of students and faculty at UCLA and around the world. The CSRC is a non-circulating library, though most materials may be photocopied within the premises. The Library's holdings consist of monographs, subject files, dissertations and theses, films, videotapes, audio recordings, and manuscript collections. The Library has also entered partnerships to provide online digital collections of music, photography, and the visual arts. The Library hosts art exhibitions, film screenings, and meetings, and it works closely with other UCLA libraries, community-based resources, and other Latino archives.


Archive

The CSRC Archive is considered to hold among the most important national and international research collections in existence on the Chicana and Chicano experience. The Archive holds over 120 collections including periodicals, original prints by Chicana/o artists, photographs, slides, papers, and records. Of special is the Archive's collection of monolingual and bilingual English and Spanish newspapers and journals published throughout the southwestern U.S. from the nineteenth century onward. The Archive has recently taken on digital archive projects, and works with UCLA based libraries to provide access.


Former names

*Mexican American Cultural Center, UCLA *Chicano Cultural Center, UCLA *Chicano Studies Center, UCLA *Chicano Studies Research Center, UCLA


References


External links

* * * {{Authority control Chicano Studies Research Center Mexican-American organizations