USD Magazine Fall 2021

Williams. “As a Changemaker Campus, we need to walk that talk and it’s important because it’s showing students that we believe their educational experi- ence is directly aligned with our mission — our liberal arts mis- sion, our Catholic mission and our changemaking mission.” “One of the reasons I wanted to work at USD was I’ve always enjoyed seeing these aha mo- ments in the journey of growth students experience,” says Rivas. “For me, getting to watch that from the first year to when they become seniors, seeing them evolve and learn and dive into whatever their passions might be, that’s what I love about the changemaking journey — that every student goes through it and no journey is ever the same.” Each year, the university is greeted with a new cohort of incoming students, motivated by the Changemaker mission to pursue their educational path here at USD. This mission is so intricately connected to a stu- dent’s experience that prospective applicants are asked to provide their own views on changemak- ing, already beginning to contem- plate their own aha moments.

tem reforms and immigration. “What we’ve accomplished over the past 10 years has been pretty remarkable,” admits Williams. That said, it’s clear that there are no plans to slow down on any of these initiatives. “In my opin- ion, every student going to any university should not just learn and not just think about issues. They also need to be active,” says

The nationwide event, My Story — which was founded on the USD campus in 2014 — continues to bring the university community together for nights of empathy and storytelling. The 2020 Changemaker Challenge encouraged students to use their imagination to generate ideas to address homelessness in the San Diego/Tijuana region. The year-long Changemaker Faculty Fellows Development Program establishes interdisciplinary faculty groups to address team building, changemaking and social innovation in the classroom. The past decade has also shown how changemaking has continued beyond USD’s bor- ders. Immersion trips to Uganda, South Africa and Jamaica have broadened student awareness of global issues related to clean water, education and develop- ment, and the impact the colo- nial system has had on commu- nities around the world. USD has also been involved in cross- border collaborations that ad- dress peacebuilding, justice sys-

food insecurity has led to the establishment of the Urgent Challenges Collective. Collabo- rations with community partners have helped bring COVID-19 vaccinations to underrepresented communities. In the past 10 years, programs have also been established to address changemaking in USD’s curriculum. In Fall 2016, USD’s Joan B. Kroc School of Peace Studies launched the Master of Arts in Social Innovation (MASI) program, aimed at providing students with a deeper under- standing of societal challenges and equipping them with the tools to develop innovative solu- tions. In Fall 2017, the College of Arts and Science launched a minor in changemaking, geared towards undergraduate students interested in social change through community engagement. Members of USD’s Changemaker Student Committee learn about local social enterprises by visiting Kitchens for Good, an organization which uses food to transform lives.

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