Leading the Change: Spartan Women Share Stories of Sustainability in Honor of Women’s History Month

When I think about sustainability, I think about people.

In my role leading the Identity-Based Retention Centers at SJSU, sustainability means building spaces and systems that truly sustain our students, especially those whose identities and lived experiences haven't always been centered in higher education.

For me and my team, sustainability looks like cultivating culturally-sustaining practices that validate and affirm students' intersectional identities and academic brilliance. It's intentionally creating spaces of care where students are seen as their full selves, where they don't have to code-switch, and where they can bridge their cultural identities with their academic identities.

It's offering culturally-relevant programming that students immediately recognize and gravitate toward because it feels familiar, it feels like home. It's acknowledging that family plays a critical role in a student's journey and intentionally engaging families as partners. It's developing asset-based mentorship that builds on students' strengths rather than focusing on deficits. And it's providing holistic support - academic, cultural, emotional, and professional, so students don't have to choose between parts of themselves to succeed.

But sustaining students also means sustaining the faculty and staff who show up for them every day. The work of equity and belonging is meaningful, but it is also demanding. In a fast-paced environment where the needs feel constant and the work can feel never-ending, I see part of my role as creating conditions where my team feels supported and valued. Sustainability requires investing in the people on the ground, centering their wellness and ensuring they have the resources and community they need to show up prepared, ready for the challenges ahead, and able to do this work with energy and heart.

To me, sustainability also means building systems that last beyond any one person. It means embedding belonging into the infrastructure of the university, not treating equity as a temporary initiative. It's about ensuring that the support our students receive today becomes the foundation for the next generation of leaders.

I envision a sustainable future where culturally-sustaining practices are the norm, not the exception. Where students' languages, families, histories, and communities are recognized as assets. Where higher education evolves in ways that honor students' strengths and community cultural wealth and intentionally supports them in activating that community cultural wealth to become agents of positive social change in their communities.

Sustainability, for me, is about legacy. It's about creating a university where every student whether supported by family, chosen family, or navigating their journey on their own is met with a community of care and support. It means recognizing students' unique realities and intentionally building the conditions where they feel seen, valued, and supported in reaching their goals. Belonging is our responsibility as an institution and it should be evident in how we show up, so students feel it from day one at SJSU.