Dr. Lisa Hirai Tsuchitani (she/her) is a lecturer in the Asian American & Asian Diaspora Studies Program of the Department of Ethnic Studies. Upon graduating from the Asian American Studies and East Asian Studies Programs at UC Berkeley, Dr. Tsuchitani continued her interests in critical pedagogy and educational equity in the Social and Cultural Studies Program of the School of Education on campus. Her academic service has included work with the UC Office of the President, the Institute for the Study of Societal Issues, and the Student Learning Center. She also serves as founder and chair of the Japanese American Studies Advisory Committee (JASAC). More recently, she was appointed co-chair of the Asian American & Pacific Islander Standing Committee (AAPISC), an inaugural advisory body to the Chancellor under the executive sponsorship of the Vice Chancellor of Equity & Inclusion dedicated to increasing awareness about and developing strategies to address campus climate issues for AAPI students, staff, and faculty.
Dr. Tsuchitani also has worked with a number of Bay Area nonprofit organizations, foundations, and schools. Her recent publications include Mountain Movers: Student Activism and the Emergence of Asian American Studies (2019) and Japanese American Millennials: Rethinking Generation, Community, and Diversity (2019). She is honored to be teaching the courses that initially inspired her as an undergraduate to pursue a teaching career in Asian American Studies: AAADS 122, “Japanese American Historical and Contemporary Issues” and AAADS 146, “Asian Americans and Education.”
