Critical Mission Studies at California's Crossroads

The CSRC-based research project “Critical Mission Studies at California’s Crossroads”  is funded by a $1.03 million grant from the University of California Multicampus Research Programs and Initiatives (MRPI).  Charlene Villaseñor Black, CSRC associate director and professor of art history and Chicana/o studies, is the lead principal investigator on the project, which reconsiders California’s twenty-one Spanish-Indian missions. The  leadership structure reflects collaboration and partnership with diverse California Indian tribal nations and peoples who have been impacted by the history of the missions. The CMS Coordinating Committee is composed of the four UC faculty principal investigators and four California Indian Research Partners.  Research labs will be established at CSRC, UC Riverside, UC Santa Cruz, and UC San Diego, where faculty, graduate students, undergraduates, national and international experts, and community partners will draw on the academic disciplines of Native American, Chicana/o, California, and Mexican studies to create an inclusive narrative of California history. Research sites will include state archives, the missions, and surrounding communities. K-12 educator workshops and public programming will be held in conjunction with the project.

One of sixteen projects selected from a pool of 179 submissions for 2019 awards, “Critical Mission Studies at California’s Crossroads” is the only one that will be led at UCLA. In addition to Villaseñor Black, the principal investigators on the project are Jennifer Hughes, associate professor of history, UC Riverside; Amy Lonetree, associate professor of history, UC Santa Cruz; and Ross H. Frank, associate professor of ethnic studies, UC San Diego. This project will run from Janury 1, 2019 through June 30, 2021.