The CHSSP is excited to welcome Sareena Crawford as the 2026-27 Marchand Public Engagement Intern. Sareena Crawford is a fourth-year PhD student in History with a Designated Emphasis in Feminist Theory and Research at the University of California, Davis. She is currently working on a dissertation that is a social history of Black kingroups and formerly enslaved people in northern California with a focus on Black women as facilitators of racial uplift in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
The California History–Social Science Project (CHSSP) has been awarded a prestigious American History and Civics Education—National Activities Grant from the U.S. Department of Education for our new initiative, Foundations of Freedom: Strengthening Civic Learning in Schools.
Betsy Marchand, the first woman elected to the Yolo County Board of Supervisors and a longtime supporter of the California History-Social Science Project, passed away on October 22 at the age of 89. Marchand was first elected to the Yolo County Supervisors Board in 1972 and went on to serve six terms before retiring in 1996. She was later appointed to the State Board of Reclamation, of which she was president until 2005.
Fellows act as a crucial bridge between the university and K-12 communities. They enable the seamless translation of academic scholarship into dynamic educational resources. Their dedicated work directly empowers teachers and fosters historical understanding and civic engagement for students.
Did you know that the California Education Code stipulates that all students should have access to standards-based arts education in dance, music, theatre, visual, and media arts, and yet only eleven percent of California schools meet this requirement? In fact, twenty-one percent of California schools do not offer any form of formal arts instruction.
The CHSSP has welcomed a new executive director. Dawniell Black assumed the statewide leadership role at UC Davis in early August. Dawniell is no stranger to history-social science leadership in California. Prior to her CHSSP appointment, Dawniell worked at the Elk Grove Unified School District for 20 years, first as a History-Social Science (HSS) teacher and then as a Program Specialist in HSS and Physical Education.
Over the past two years, the California Subject Matter Project (CSMP) has been helping design professional development for the rollout of UTK, or Universal Transitional Kindergarten.
UC Davis is currently accepting applications for the position of Executive Director of the California History-Social Science Project (CHSSP). This full-time administrative position is classified as Academic Coordinator III.
