Tongva artist who explores themes of political and social justice to convey the challenges of living in a place that once belonged to her ancestors. Dorame has served as a cultural resources consultant on Tongva sites in the Los Angeles Basin during the past 20 years , working with her community to rebury her ancestors in a respectful way under NAGPRA guidelines.
Christine Simmons (Class of 1998) The chief operating officer of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences since January 2019. Former president and COO of the Los Angeles Sparks.
Captured the first clear images of the Milky Way, leading to the discovery of a supermassive black hole at its center and redefining our understanding of how galaxies form.
Recruited as the founding director of health programs for Esperanza Community Housing Corporation in 1995. Developed the model community health leadership program for local residents, Promotores de Salud, which has graduated over 500 bilingual women and men since 1996.
A professor of history, African-American studies, and urban planning at UCLA. She is also the director of the Ralph J. Bunche Center for African American Studies at UCLA; one of the nation’s leading experts on race, immigration, and mass incarceration; and a 2019 MacArthur Fellow.
Launched the Dancing Disability Lab, which promotes the role of dance and performance as a change agent for the continued progress of disability justice.
The first player selected to the U.S. national basketball team while still in high school. The first female to be awarded a full athletic scholarship at UCLA. The first UCLA female basketball player to be a four-time All-American, the first woman inducted into the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame, and the first player in NCAA Division I history—male or female—to record a quadruple-double. Also the first woman to be drafted to the Women’s Professional Basketball League and the first to sign a free agent contract with an NBA team.
First openly gay or lesbian person elected to the California Legislature.
A local organizer, artist, author, and professor who has advocated for people of color in Los Angeles. Cullors and Alicia Garza, a UC San Diego alumna, are recognized as two of the three founding members of Black Lives Matter.
As a community leader, organizer and a president of the Pakistani Student Association, she has been a catalyst for positive change and cross-cultural understanding. With the UCLA Undergraduate Student Association Council (USAC), she worked with the University Religious Council to explore faith-based aspects of the international community and host events that foster interfaith dialogues.
The first African-American woman to win the Best Director Prize at the Sundance Film Festival. The first female black director to have a film nominated at the Academy Awards for Best Picture (Selma) and Best Documentary Feature (13th). The first woman of color to direct a big-budget feature (A Wrinkle in Time).
A comedy sensation who campaigns for social justice. An eight-time recipient of the Artist-in-Residence Award from the city of Los Angeles, who created a theater with the Bus Riders Union, led comedy workshops on Skid Row, and inspired young workers at the UCLA Labor Center.
Created a vaccine to treat the rare but deadly brain tumor called glioblastoma. Liau is only the second woman in the nation—and the first Asian-American woman—to lead an academic department of neurosurgery.
A social activist for 28 years, an advocate, urban planner, and a community leader, dedicated to Thai, immigrant and local communities. The founder and current executive director of the Thai Community Development Center. The co-founder of the Coalition to Abolish Slavery and Trafficking, and a pioneer of the anti-trafficking movement in the U.S.
From the UCLA campus to her tribal homelands in South Dakota, Natalie Stites Means has turned her passion for indigenous people’s rights into social action. After earning her law degree at UCLA, Stites Means served her tribal communities, focusing on juvenile justice and violence against women.
First mom in space
The first female dean of the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering, committed to expanding access to UCLA engineering education. Led the effort to establish WE@UCLA, a program that supports the full participation of women in engineering.
A law professor whose work focuses on racial theory, civil rights practice, politics, and human rights. Involved in establishing collaboration between U.S. legal scholars and South African lawyers during the development of South Africa’s first democratic constitution.
The first woman to receive the Nobel Prize in Economics.
The first Latinx woman to receive a Sundance Audience Award and a Student Academy Award . The first Latina director to be included in the National Film Registry at the Library of Congress.
A professor, musician, and artivista (artist-activist). As a member of the Grammy Award–winning band Quetzal, Gonzalez has made a considerable impact in the Los Angeles Chicanx music scene. Gonzalez’s work is an ongoing commitment to bringing people together through the fabric of music and culture in order to deepen understanding and communal bonds.
An attorney, activist and philanthropy advocate who has battled for decades to improve the quality of life for Latinx communities. Her landmark legal work on education, employment, and redistricting litigation and legislation changed state school financing formulas, provided greater job opportunities for minorities, and widened voting rights for Latinx and others throughout the U.S.
The first Chinese-American woman elected to Congress.
A lawyer, an author and a serial entrepreneur. One of the richest female CEOs in the U.S. and one of Forbes ' America's Richest Self-Made Women (2019). She came out as transgender in the early 1990s and is a powerful champion of gender freedom.
A biologist and an educator. Developed the program to reinvigorate undergraduate science education, especially for transfer students and underrepresented minority groups.
