In its annual celebration of Dynamic Womxn of UCI, the Womxn’s Hub has named five Anteaters from social sciences among its 2022 awardees. Learn more about our social sciences recipients below, and congrats to all honorees celebrated.

ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

This award honors members of the UCI community who have contributed academic research/theory that advances knowledge, narratives and/or pedagogy that elevate womxn's and BIWOC issues in their field.

Chloe Shin, Political Science Undergraduate Student

"Chloe embodies a dynamic community member through her activities. Those activities have shown her fervent passion to give back to older members of the Asian community as well as engaging younger community members to participate in political action, advancing the cause of all people of color, and especially Asian American females in their pursuit of positions in municipal, state and federal government."

Vibhuti Ramachandran, Global and International Studies Faculty

"Professor Vibhuti Ramachandran is a leading anthropologist of law, gender and sexuality, and South Asia. Her scholarship, mentorship, and teaching advance knowledge and pedagogy that elevate womxn's and BIWOC issues in society and higher education."

OUTSTANDING SOCIAL JUSTICE ACTIVIST AWARD

The award honors individuals who have demonstrated a commitment to working on anti-sexist endeavors and who have drawn connections between various communities to end multiple forms of oppression including but not limited to ableism, heterosexism, racism, classism, xenophobia, and ageism.

Melissa Molina, Education Sciences, Chicano/Latino Studies, and Political Science Undergraduate Student

"Melissa has poured immeasurable heart and labor into making UCI a more humanizing institution for people of color as a researcher, organizer, and scholar-activist. She has leveraged their lived experiences as a queer, working class, first-gen Latina woman to humanize institutions that were not created with marginalized people like herself in mind. Melissa plans to continue using her community cultural wealth to build and sustain safe spaces for all."

Alana LeBrón, Chicano/Latino Studies, Health, Society, and Behavior Faculty

"Professor LeBrón is a public health scholar and activist who has forged important community partnerships to catalyze action to confront environmental injustice and toxic contamination impacting minoritized communities in Orange County. She epitomizes a dynamic womxn leader devoted to the community, and community-led partnerships with the university to reimagine public health equity and elevate community knowledge to inform action."

DYNAMIC WOMXN OF THE YEAR

This award honors individuals who have demonstrated a commitment to the personal growth and success of womxn, through education, research, public or volunteer service, above and beyond their expected responsibilities. This award recognizes an individual's significant contribution to the UCI community that may often go unnoticed.

Andrea Morales, International Studies Undergraduate Student

"Andrea has fought to create spaces celebrating the Indigenous community. She is a constant advocate for the Indigenous community - always supporting and making space for them to exist. Andrea inspires other Indigenous student to empower themselves through their identity and fights against racism and xenophobia against Indigenous students through her programming."