Professor Gilberto Conchas Appointed Faculty Director of UCI Engage

UCI News Release: August 8, 2017
Judy Stepan-Norris, Ph.D.
Vice Provost for Academic Planning & Professor of Sociology

​Professor Gilberto Conchas has been appointed as Faculty Director of UCI Engage, effective immediately. Conchas will provide academic leadership to the campus' new "UCI Engage" institutional hub, which will: provide services, information, and coordination for UCI's community engagement activities; expand and showcase our existing strengths in engaged teaching and learning, community-based research, and co-curricular programs; broaden and increase the impact of our work; develop a comprehensive and valuable website; and grow regional relationships. In his new role of Director, Conchas will provide leadership and direction, collaborate with the Division of Teaching and Learning to develop and offer workshops and mentoring on engaged teaching, offer workshops on engaged research, coordinate faculty engaged scholars, and lead the faculty advisory board.
 
Conchas, Professor of Educational Policy and Social Context, brings a wealth of leadership experience in the university, including in engagement, policy and community work. In addition, he has extensive experience in the realms of grants and philanthropy. He formerly served as senior program officer at the Gates Foundation, as Director of UC Berkeley/UCI College & Career Academy Support Network, as UCI Equity Advisor, and in various other university leadership positions.
 
A distinguished specialist in the field of social inequality, urban education, educational policy and social context, and comparative race and ethnicity, Conchas' practice-based research focuses on developing solutions that address the roots of social problems facing marginalized communities. His well-funded research examines how systematic coalitions address the challenges of low-income communities. More broadly, his research in the sociology of education focuses on how the successful organization of urban educational systems -- in partnership with communities -- shapes the engagement and achievement of diverse student populations.