The Chicano Studies Institute at UC Santa Barbara facilitates interdisciplinary and field-specific research as scholars and students from all disciplines pursue work that helps policy makers, fellow researchers, educators, service providers and the interested public better understand the most pressing issues pertaining to Chicana/o and Latina/o populations.

The Institute's research examines a range of issues, including the production of social and cultural identities as structured by race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality and class, as well as the policy and resource concerns attending poverty studies, social structure analysis, and environmental studies.  Addressing topics such as community formation, academic achievement, health education, cultural literacy, and math/science proficiency from a variety of disciplinary perspectives, the rich collaborations at the Institute cultivate a better understanding regarding the ways that local, state-wide, national and international forces interact, oftentimes with profound impact.  Through this work, the Institute makes significant contributions to cultural studies, border studies, and immigration studies.

Of crucial importance is the Institute's role in training future generations of scholars equipped to tackle these fundamentally important issues.  The Institute is deeply committed to providing research, grant writing and educational support to schools and community based organizations serving Chicana/o and Latina/o populations.  A leader in the field since it was established at UC Santa Barbara in 1969, the Institute serves an internationally renowned group of affiliated UCSB scholars who address many of the most important challenges facing California and the United States.

--Revised May 2007