2014-2015 | Leo T. McCarthy Center for Public Service and the Common Good

Defending the Sacred in a Militarized Police State at Standing Rock

Alexis Stanley Alumna, Former Advocate for Community Engagement ’15 On the evening of Sunday, November 20th I was returning home after a week up in Standing Rock, North Dakota. This was the same night unarmed water protectors, just north of the main Oceti Sakowin camp attempted to remove the cement barricades and burned cars blocking the…

Women Organizing! Inspiration at Mujeres Unidas y Activas and The Women’s Building

Amanda Smith Master of Arts in Urban Affairs candidate (’16) This past week I had the opportunity to attend one of Mujeres Unidas y Activas’ (MUA) regular meetings at The Women’s Building in the Mission District. Through research that the Urban Affairs graduate team is conducting this semester, I have been able to connect with and…

Reflections of a Graduate student

As the first year of my journey to earn my Master of Public Affairs (MoPA) from the University of San Francisco (USF) draws to a close, I take this unique opportunity of guest blogging to reflect on this adventure.

Service-Learning Directors from West Coast Catholic Universities come together for 3rd Annual Examen Gathering

Star Moore Director of Community-Engaged Learning On February 8, 2015, I boarded a flight with Associate Dean (soon to be Vice Provost) Shirley McGuire to the Pacific Northwest for a two-day Examen retreat at Seattle University. The Examen group was created as an attempt to strengthen informal but vital relationships between colleagues doing community-engaged work at similar institutions. This…

Spending a semester studying in D.C.

Caleb Banks I am so grateful that I have the privilege and opportunity to live in the United States Capitol—Washington D.C. This area is an amazing place to be a 22-year old with energy and big ideas. Despite learning from and immersing myself into the seemingly endless opportunities that are ever present here in DC, my singular source…

Championing New Deal Public Art

Urban Affairs faculty member Rachel Brahinsky contributed to this lovely mini-documentary on the life of Masha Zakheim, daughter of a New Deal artist and protector of many of San Francisco’s New Deal murals. Zakheim, who passed away in 2014, wrote the key text on the history of the Coit Tower murals, and was a champion…