As Director of the only organized research unit of its kind within the University of California, I am honored to carry forward the Bunche Center’s 56-year legacy of excellence in academic research and scholarship. Through both longstanding and new collaborations, the Center continues to pioneer innovative academic research and community-based initiatives with broad impact for Black communities across California, the United States, and internationally.
Our community of more than 100 affiliated scholars—spanning law, the medical sciences, dance, the humanities, and beyond—advances groundbreaking research that not only deepens understanding of Black communities and their lived experiences, but also applies a critical lens to pressing policy issues in pursuit of a more equitable state and society for all. Complementing this work, the Bunche Center Library houses one of California’s most significant collections of artifacts, oral histories, and historical texts documenting the Black experience.
The Bunche Center proudly supports a wide range of faculty-led research and programs, including the Bunche Fellows Program, the Black Policy Project, Million Dollar Hoods, and the Hip Hop Initiative. We have also expanded our portfolio through new partnerships such as the Mark Q. Sawyer Summer Institute in Race, Ethnicity, and Politics—a UC–Historically Black College and University (HBCU) collaboration with Howard University in Washington, DC. This six-week summer research program provides undergraduate students with rigorous training in empirical research methods and coding skills, preparing them to be competitive applicants for graduate study. The program also partners with UCLA McNair Research Scholars Program.
Now housed within the Bunche Center, the fifth election cycle of the Collaborative Multiracial Post-Election Survey (CMPS)—a cooperative, multiracial, multiethnic, and multilingual post-presidential election survey—continues to advance understanding of civic health and sociopolitical life in the United States through high-quality survey data collection among historically hard-to-reach populations.
In January 2025, the Bunche Center welcomed the Arthur Ashe Legacy Project, an initiative dedicated to honoring the life and legacy of the tennis and humanitarian icon through substantive action. From student funding and academic development opportunities to an international oral history initiative, the project highlights Arthur Ashe’s enduring impact while drawing lessons for today’s scholars and leaders.
Looking ahead, the Center is preparing to launch the Global Black Studies Research Initiative in fall 2025. This inaugural year will serve as a listening and learning period, allowing us to better understand and support UCLA faculty, students, and staff engaged in research on Black life outside the United States or from comparative perspectives. Through this initiative, we aim to build a collaborative ecosystem of opportunities, resources, and experiences that advance Global Black Studies at UCLA and contribute to Los Angeles, California, and beyond.
The Bunche Center also provides critical support to departments and programs across campus, including the UCLA Institute of American Culture, the Ethnic Studies Summer Certificate Program for K–12 teachers, the UCLA Department of African American Studies, the UCLA Prison Education Program, and a wide array of Center-sponsored research initiatives, events, and public programs led by affiliated faculty and units.
As we approach six decades of impact, the Bunche Center remains steadfast in its commitment to advancing rigorous research, transformative scholarship, and community-engaged programs rooted in Black Studies. Through our research, events, and featured speakers, we continue to embody the spirit of equity and excellence upon which the Center was founded. We invite our supporters and partners to join us as we build upon this legacy and continue to uplift the experiences, needs, and untapped potential of Black communities across the diaspora.
