University of Redlands Champions Civic Engagement and Educational Justice

Since 1907, the University of Redlands has prepared students for lives of meaning, impact, and joy through immersive, personalized, and career-focused education. The University serves about 3,800 undergraduate and graduate students, nearly half of whom are the first in their families to attend college.

As a designated Hispanic-Serving Institution, Redlands blends a strong liberal arts foundation with practical professional programs. The University’s roots lie in its scenic 160-acre main campus in Redlands, California, but its footprint stretches across the state, from a 13-acre Marin campus near San Francisco to a growing presence in Los Angeles through its integration with Woodbury University in Burbank.

Designing for Good: The Agency for Civic Engagement (ACE)

At Redlands, community involvement is built right into the curriculum. Within the School of Architecture, the Agency for Civic Engagement (ACE) connects students and faculty directly with local nonprofits and underserved communities to design and build projects that meet real community needs.

By partnering with schools, community theaters, housing organizations, and public agencies, students gain valuable, hands-on experience while making a tangible difference in their community. A few recent highlights of their work include:

• The Conundrum Theater (2025): Students designed and built the sets and costumes for a production of Ragtime.
• The Alexandria House (2024): Partnered with a non-profit dedicated to providing transitional housing and support for women and children.
• Mapping Burbank Portable Museums (2023): Created mobile museum exhibits to highlight local culture.
• Thomas Jefferson High School Farm Stands (2017): Created mobile units that bring fresh produce to high school students and promote healthy eating and lifestyle habits.

Championing Educational Justice

“When faculty tell me about their research and programs, I ask them what their freedom dream is and from that question, we’re able to think about some of the uninhibited ways we can have social impact and grow something extraordinary.”

Vajra M. Watson

Dean, School of Education*

This dedication to equity continues in the School of Education. The Center for Educational Justice works to promote equity, strengthen community ties, and foster civic engagement across local classrooms, school districts, and partner organizations.

Key highlights include:
• The community-shaping leadership of the Center for Educational Justice Director, Professor Dreana Holloway (pictured below)
• An ongoing, insightful community speaker series

Redlands also collaborates with the National People’s Think Tank for Educational Justice, co-founded by Vajra Watson, Dean of the School of Education (pictured above). This coalition brings together more than 40 community, parent, youth, and national advocacy groups, all united in the fight for racial equity and educational justice.

Through its current research project on intersectional organizing, the People’s Think Tank is helping different advocacy groups collaborate, build shared knowledge, and create lasting social change.

_{^{* Quote from the article Forward, toward bolder horizons: https://www.redlands.edu/bulldog-bites/2025/forward-towards-bolder-horizons}}