Las Maestras Center Legacy Moving Forward

To: UCSB Students, Faculty, Staff, Alumni, and Community Partners

From: HFA Dean Daina Ramey Berry and Professors Emeriti Cherríe Moraga and
Celia Herrera-Rodríguez

June 2, 2026

In conversation with Las Maestras Center co-founders/directors, Celia Herrera Rodríguez and Cherríe Moraga, we wanted to take a moment to thank those who have written, organized, petitioned and shared your perspectives regarding Las Maestras Center (LMC) and its present home in 1415 South Hall. Know that I, as Dean, have heard loud and clear how meaningful this place and its work have beento our campus and broader communities, and I, as well as the co-founders deeply appreciate the care and intent reflected in the messages of support for LMC sent our way and into the campus and community at large.

Las Maestras Center was founded with a powerful vision: to create space for Xicana/x Indigenous thought, art, social praxis, mentorship, cultural work, and community-engaged scholarship. That vision has had a profound impact on campus and community over the last eight years. We want to acknowledge that legacy and affirm the importance of the work associated with the center’s founding mission.

In recent days, discussions have occurred with the co-founders, campus leadership, department chairs, the core LMC “colectiva” and other campus partners about how best to honor and carry this work forward. These discussions have reinforced our shared commitment to preserving the spirit, intent and practice of LMC’s vision through future programming and student support; and to do everything possible to secure the current location (1415 South Hall) as designated space for an evolving Las Maestras Center of shared and common use.

Professors Emeriti Herrera Rodríguez and Moraga, share the following: “We recognize that LMC as we know it – its world view and the bodies that have inhabited the space—have changed with the times and ideally will continue to do so moving forward. This Center for “Xicana[x] Indigenous Thought Art and Social Praxis” was our research project, which we were privileged to share with our students and community. Be assured, that we will continue with that research as “maestra” writers and artists in our public and private lives. We are deeply grateful to our students, colegas and administrators for their part in this opportunity. To have had such support toward the realization of the vision of Las Maestras Center on a university campus is phenomenal in its own right.”

In our conversations Celia and Cherríe, affirmed that the most urgent affirmation needed at this juncture is to ensure Las Maestra Center will continue to remain in 1415 South Hall. To the extent allowed, my own position as HFA Dean, I can ensure that LMC doors will remain open. From today forward we will continue to work collaboratively to imagine what a future LMC looks like. This collaboration may include future partnerships.

Having said that, in the weeks and months ahead, we look forward to an intentional cross-divisional transitional period working with former center leadership and relevant campus partners to identify meaningful ways to support future programming and preserve the legacy of LMC in a manner that is responsible and aligned with current campus needs.

We are grateful to everyone who has taken the time to write, organize, and speak on behalf of Center and its work that has meant so much to so many. Your voices have been heard, and they are helping shape a thoughtful path forward.

With appreciation and great optimism,

Daina Ramey Berry, Cherríe Moraga and Celia Herrera-Rodríguez