From the Guest Editors

Journal of College Access Volume 10 Issue 1 Artivism for Access: Disrupting the Educational Status Quo Article 2 3-2025 From the Guest Editors Mercedes Albarran San Diego State University, Rocio Zamora San Diego State University, Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/jca Part of the Higher Education Commons Recommended Citation Albarran, Mercedes and Zamora, Rocio (2025) "From the Guest Editors," Journal of College Access: Vol. 10: Iss. 1, Article 2. Available at: https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/jca/vol10/iss1/2 This Introduction is brought to you for free and open access by the Western Michigan University at ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in Journal of College Access by an authorized editor of ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact . From the Guest Editors Mercedes Albarran Rocio Zamora A community, stopped the building of the rt has been a powerful platform highway patrol station, and built a for historically silenced community park surrounded with murals populations to voice their depicting pride in Chicano/a culture. continuous fight for access to Currently, the park now has a museum higher education. In the late 1960s Poet which offers educational programming for Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzalez wrote his poem the youth and “I am Joaquin,” where he surrounding community. contextualized the History has proven that Mexican-American as marginalized experience into one “By merging art and shaped by legacies of activism, artivism serves as populations fought for access to education, they colonialism and unified a vital tool for inspiring also changed the culture Mexican Americans across change and challenging of higher education and the United States by inequities in creative and dismantled many reclaiming a onceinstitutional barriers. The derogatory term into a powerful ways, giving new political identity: communities a voice and a combination of art and activism, Artivism, uses Chicano/a. His poem’s way to shape their own creative expression to influence was evident in narratives.” bring awareness to student movements such complex social and as the “East LA walkouts” political issues in a way where students from Los that humanizes and connects with people on Angeles, unified under a Chicano/a identity, an emotional level, fostering understanding walked out of their high schools to demand and solidarity. Art transcends language and access to educational equity. The Chicano cultural barriers, making activism more movement achieved the creation of bilingual accessible and thus becoming a powerful tool and bicultural programs in the Southwest as to catalyze social change. By merging art and well as the hiring of more Chicano/a teachers activism, artivism serves as a vital tool for and Chicano/a elected representatives. In San inspiring change and challenging inequities in Diego, Chicano students from San Diego City creative and powerful ways, giving College walked out of their classrooms to communities a voice and a way to shape their protest the building of a highway patrol own narratives. station in Barrio Logan (Omeka S, SDSU). The students mobilized the surrounding Volume 10 | March 2025 | Issue 1 10 From the Guest Editors their neighborhood through grassroots organizing, local activism, and engagement with local leaders. There are numerous nonprofits and community-based organizations in City Heights that provide services such as health care, housing assistance, language classes, and support for the community. These organizations help foster a sense of solidarity and community empowerment. The Journal of College Access celebrated its 10 year anniversary this month. To mark this milestone, both current students and alumni from Hoover High School were invited to submit poetry or visual art that aligns with the theme of Artivism for Access: Disrupting the Educational Status Quo. Students were invited to share their thoughts, experiences, and visions related to overcoming obstacles in the pursuit of education through creative expression. We were especially interested in uplifting the voices that have been historically silenced such as but not limited to BIPOC, first generation, low-income, LGBTQIA+, etc. The editorial board received submissions whose themes ranged from highlighting mental health, to the awareness of class differences and the ways in which economic hardships challenge postsecondary aspirations, to first generation students’ motivation to use education to help one’s family, and to the ways in which students sustain hope despite all obstacles. Hoover High School is located in the City Heights community of San Diego, California. City Heights stands as a powerful example of resilience and community engagement. City Heights is one of the most diverse neighborhoods in San Diego, home to a large immigrant and refugee population. At Hoover High, 98.6% of students are underrepresented minorities, and more than 70% qualify for free and reduced lunch, highlighting the significant economic challenges many students face. Despite the challenges, City Heights has a strong sense of community actively involved in improving Volume 10 | March 2025 | Issue 1 The artistic expression included in this journal shows that the students and alumni of Hoover High School represent a new generation of leaders and activists who are not afraid to challenge the status quo. Through their work, these students are using their voices to challenge the educational and social barriers they face, demonstrating that even in the face of adversity, they are powerful agents of change. Six artists were selected for publishing in this special edition, Artivism for Access: Disrupting the Educational Status Quo. Additionally, the review board also submitted art pieces in response to the students’ pieces exemplifying that when youth speak out, adults should listen and respond accordingly. Together, these artists demonstrate how poetry and visual art serve as a powerful tool for addressing the emotional and social barriers that students face in the pursuit of education. Their words and illustrations challenge societal expectations, foster empathy, and inspire others to overcome their own obstacles while navigating the 11 From the Guest Editors complexities of academic life. First generation college students have been disruptors and artists in their own way. They disrupt the educational status quo by overcoming numerous barriers in their pursuit of a college degree. When they become the first in their families to go to college, they expand their communities’ collective imagination on the postsecondary possibilities for historically marginalized people, they refute stereotypes, and they change the landscape of higher education at large. The changes that higher education has undergone have been a direct result of student voices and student movements. Even within this publication the art review board was inspired to create their own pie (...truncated)