About the Center

The Center for Education, Identity and Social Justice at the USC Rossier School of Education was launched on February 1st, 2017 by Professor Shafiqa Ahmadi and Professor Darnell Cole who serve as the co-directors. Our Center has a compelling interest in eradicating all forms of discrimination based on the intersection of an individual’s identities that include religion, gender, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity and disability. Using rigorous research and legal analysis, we empower educators to utilize laws and policies in order to identify and extricate bias and unequal distributions of power within educational institutions.

Educational institutions are faced with complex laws and policies, such as academic freedom, free speech and expression, and sexual assault and harassment. These laws and policies are fundamental to upholding individual and institutional rights to ensure a just educational environment free from discrimination. When educators know, understand and are able to apply laws and policies, they are better able to serve students’ educational needs as well as limit legal and professional consequences. Our Center was created to help educators move beyond numerical diversity to using laws and policies as an equalizing force towards social justice.