It has been a while since our last newsletter, so we write you to get reacquainted and provide some updates on our work. One of the authors we have been spending time with, whose words inform both our work and the work of the McCarthy Center, is Audre Lorde (1984). She writes, “Difference must be not merely tolerated, but seen as a fund of necessary polarities between which our creativity can spark like a dialectic. Only then does the necessity for interdependency become unthreatening. Only within that interdependency of different strengths, acknowledged and equal, can the power to seek new ways of being in the world generate, as well as the courage and sustenance to act where there are no charters” (Sister Outsider). Below are some of the ways our work continues to foster connection and illuminate the manner in which USF and the Fillmore are interdependent and working toward new ways of being in the world.

In community, 

Karin Cotterman
Director of Engage San Francisco

Photos from Engage San Francisco’s Black and White Ball 2023 by Don Bowden

The Community Research Collaborative, which offers research training and anti-racist education for Black San Franciscans and is hosted by Collective Impact and Rise for Racial Justice, celebrated its second year in 2022-23. Designed to help prepare, support, and empower Black San Francisco to conduct community activist research, students learn about endemic racism and pathways to improve social and economic outcomes. 

Learn more about the work of Rise for Racial Justice and the collaborative » 

Join us for a community walk in the Fillmore. These walks allow us to highlight the work of our community partners and the ways that USF and the Fillmore are connected, and provide an overview of the history of the Fillmore. To join our walk this spring or summer, please reach out to Karin Cotterman.

If you haven’t heard about how ESF Literacy continued to support youth, families, and educators in the Fillmore over the past three years, visit our blog with highlights from our 2021-22 report. 

Read ESF Literacy program highlights » 

Karin Cotterman is a seasoned community engagement and higher education professional with 25+ years of experience leading and building teams with a focus on social justice. She further engaged her interests in the intersections of identity and community engagement, the strategic and ethical considerations in service, and anti-racism work by earning an EdD in racial justice education at USF in May 2023.

Dresden Frazier-Smith organizes undergraduate participation in K-5 literacy tutoring at various sites in San Francisco's Western Addition as the program manager of ESF Literacy. Currently pursuing a PhD in higher education administration and policy at UC Riverside, Dresden is passionate about Black prosperity and creating a more equitable education system. 

Camille Batiste is the program assistant for ESF and helps to bridge community-campus partnerships with the Western Addition. A graduate of USF with a BA in international studies, she is passionate about building community equity through collective learning and action.

Carla Trujillo is a graduate assistant for the ESF Literacy program and assists coordination of literacy tutoring for the SFUSD and Western Addition after-school programs. Carla completed a master’s degree in higher education and student affairs at USF this May, and is passionate about supporting first-generation students to achieve their educational goals.

Cassidy Steele is a graduate assistant for the ESF Literacy program and supports undergraduate tutors working in the Western Addition. A USF graduate student pursuing a master’s in counseling psychology, Cassidy is passionate about working with youth, especially LGBTQ+ children and adolescents.

Welcome, Kiah Combs, the newest member of our team! Joining us as our graduate assistant, Kiah is earning a master's in higher education and student affairs at USF. She is passionate about equal access and improving support systems for underserved communities. 

Learn more about the Leo T. McCarthy Center team »

Learn more about Engage San Francisco and the work of our team, community partners, and students on the Leo T. McCarthy Center blog » 

The McCarthy Center staff continues its commitment to building and uplifting an anti-racist organization. This work is an outgrowth of our 2018-23 strategic plan.