Arcus Center for Social Justice Leadership

The Arcus Center for Social Justice Leadership (ACSJL) is an initiative of Kalamazoo College whose mission is to develop and sustain leaders in human rights and social justice through education and capacity-building. We envision a campus and world where, every person's life is equally valued, the inherent dignity of all people is recognized, the opportunity to develop one’s full potential is available to every person, and systematic discrimination and structural inequities have been eradicated. We seek to increase the capacity of K students, faculty and staff, as well as local and global partners to exercise effective leadership for human rights and social justice, model social justice in our workplace values, our relationships with partners, and in the development of innovative initiatives, foster widespread considerations of social justice by engaging transformative theories and practices in collaboration with the College and local community, and develop frameworks for integrating social justice leadership into liberal arts education. Social Justice recognizes the inherent dignity of all people and values every life equally. It calls for both personal reflection and social change to ensure that each of us has the right and the opportunity to thrive in our communities, regardless of our identities. When we acknowledge that oppression exists and work together to end systemic discrimination and structural inequities, we increase the promise of a more just world. The ACSJL is non-partisan and non-sectarian. It seeks to engage a rich diversity of individuals, groups, and perspectives in its activities.