UC Berkeley adds more AAPI professors despite federal funding cut

UC Berkeley has brought six new Asian American and Pacific Islander studies scholars to campus, a major expansion even as federal officials slash $1.19 million in support for the university’s designation as an AAPI-Serving Institution.

Driving the news: Assistant Professor Long Le-Khac pointed to the staffing gap. “Forty percent of the undergraduate student body at Berkeley is Asian American,” he told UC Berkeley News. “We [had] maybe 10 scholars across campus who are specifically trained in Asian American studies.”

Following pandemic-era spikes in anti-Asian discrimination, state lawmakers moved to allocate $15 million to bolster the field. That funding created the Asian American Transpacific Futures cluster, which places faculty across disciplines from ethnic studies to environmental sciences. Included in the cohort is Kourtney Christen Kawano, a Native Hawaiian scholar of education and among the campus’ first Pacific Islander professors.

The big picture: The expansion underscores the university’s priorities at a precarious moment for diversity programs. Dean Raka Ray called the investment essential, noting that “even amid real budget pressures, Berkeley continues to invest where it matters most.”

Still, the university’s approach to faculty representation appears inconsistent. Campus administrators recently suspended Peyrin Kao, a computer science lecturer, for six months over pro-Palestinian remarks. Critics have described the move as the “Palestine exception” that disproportionately targets faculty of color who speak out on Gaza. The contrast raises questions about which voices receive institutional backing and which are disciplined.