African American Thriving Initiatives (AATI)

Takiyah Jackson

Director of Thriving, African American Thriving Initiatives (AATI)

Takiyah Jackson (she/her) is the Director of African American Student Development and the Fannie Lou Hamer Black Resource Center at UC Berkeley. She also co-chairs UC Berkeley’s African American Initiative Steering Committee and has been a leader on campus for the African American Initiative since it was actively launched in 2017.

Takiyah works with campus leadership to look at transformative strategies using an equity, inclusion, justice and belonging lens. As the leader of the Black community on campus, Takiyah works...

Director of African American Student Development

June 6, 2021

We are truly delighted and proud to announce Takiyah Jackson as the Director of African American Student Development at UC Berkeley.

African American Initiative Announcement

September 1, 2021

September 2015

Dear Campus Community,

Today we are announcing the UC Berkeley African American Initiative, a comprehensive effort to address the underrepresentation of African American students, faculty, and staff at our university, and improve the climate for those who are here now and all who will join our community in the future.

Berkeley’s reputation as the world’s preeminent public university is well deserved, yet that standing is only part of what makes this such a special place. We believe deeply in...

Ten Initial Demands from the Black Student Union

Hire two Black psychologists who understand “the racially hostile campus climate at this university.” Open an African American Student Development Resource Center with event space to help improve Black students’ relatively low graduation rate of 77 percent. Hire two Black development advisers to mentor and provide academic guidance for Black athletes. Allocate $300,371 to hire two Black admissions staff members who specialize in recruiting Black students. Double the budget for the “Getting into Graduate School” mentorship program. Allocate $113,932 for a program director to help with outreach...

About & Background

In the fall of September 2015, then Vice Chancellor of Equity and Inclusion, Gibor Basri, and Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs, Harry Le Grande partnered to create a task force to specifically address the crisis created by the low number of African American students. The African American Recruitment and Yield Task Force would be a part of a larger effort of the newly-implemented AATI designed to address creating a welcoming, thriving, and sustainable environment for Black students.

The AATI outlines a set of goals and strategies to address the climate for Black students at UC...