Kenneth-Alan M. Callahan is a 3rd-year first-generation, low-income Psychology major on track to attending a 4-year institution. His home college, and home community in the LACCD, is Los Angeles City College (LACC), though he attends classes throughout the district. Kenneth is a LA native whose family moved to Bakerfield, CA when he was a preteen. Kenneth returned to LA to pursue his childhood dream of higher education, and to find his identity in the socioeconomic context of LA, or, as a wise student minister would say, “the land of masqueraders”.
Kenneth has a strong background in community advocacy through the values instilled upon him from his parents, community organizers and leaders, and from doing work within his local community. He started volunteer work at his local martial arts dojo, Goju Ryu Karate-Do of Bakersfield, where he served as an assistant teacher for a few years before moving to LA. Here, he developed an appreciation and understanding of different learning styles and environments.
Upon moving to LA, Kenneth joined the Associated Student Government (ASG) of LACC as a Senator of Clubs. However, seeing the potential in him, his advisor encouraged him to run for the Executive of Clubs, where he inevitably stayed for the next academic year. During his time in ASG, Kenneth was a strong advocate for student engagement and communication. He exemplifies this through the numerous events he helped organize, such as Club Rush, Earth Day, Juneteenth, the LACCD Black Graduation, and many more.
Kenneth was also selected to be the 2021-2022 student representative for the Race, Equity, and Social Justice Center (RESJC) at LACC, where he served as an advocate for racial representation and equity. He is also a student ambassador for the African American Outreach Initiative (AAOI), a program design to connect with an empower African American students within the LACCD. Kenneth is also a student leader within the Umoja program and is an advocate for black students, staff and faculty alike.
Outside of the LACCD, Kenneth is also involved in the black community of south LA. Through the UCLA CARE at Work center and the Los Angeles Black Worker Center (LABWC), Kenneth has been working to help address the black jobs crisis of LA; a historical and national black issue where black people have little social, political, and economic power. Leading to issues of poverty, homelessness, incarceration, and more. Kenneth sees that conditions of the local community affect the conditions of the college community, so he looks to build bridges between the 9 LACCD colleges and the communities that serve them.
As a Student Trustee, Kenneth strives, above all else, to give students a platform to use their voices and exemplify the value of the Student Trustee position. He believes in the power of trusteeship, and hopes to inspire the next generation of students, particularly students of color, to follow in his wake.
“Broad access to opportunity is the key to a truly equitable America. No matter who you are or where you grew up, black faces in white places provides a blueprint to seizing opportunities at hand – and expanding opportunity for your entire community” – Angela Glover Blackwell
