Announcing new EJCE Directors

Please join us in welcoming Melisa Bautista (she/her) and antmen pimentel mendoza (they/he/she) to their new roles. We are excited for the leadership and energy they will bring to campus!

March 25, 2024

Melisa Bautista joined campus in mid-March as the new Director of Asian Pacific American Student Development (APASD) and antmen pimentel mendoza will transition into the permanent role of the Director of the Multicultural Community Center (MCC) in early April, after serving as the Interim Director since July 2023.

"I am beyond excited for the two new Directors to complete the Centers for Educational Justice & Community Engagement (EJCE) leadership team. We thank and appreciate Andrea Preza, Doaa Dorgham, Miya Sommers, and Angel Halafihi for holding interim responsibilities during the transition time. I’m deeply grateful to everyone who participated in all aspects of the search processes, including serving on the search committees and interview sessions,” shared Associate Vice Chancellor Dr. Elisa Diana Huerta. 

As the Director of the Asian Pacific American Student Development (APASD) office, Melisa Bautista will oversee programs and initiatives aimed at supporting and empowering current and future Asian American, Pacific Islander, and South, South Asian, and North African (AA/PI/SSWANA) communities at UC Berkeley. Drawing from her extensive experience in educational institutions and non-profit organizations, Melisa will collaboratively work to transform the conditions and experiences to honor and uplift the diverse and evolving needs of our AA/PI/SSWANA communities. 

In their role as the Director of the Multicultural Community Center (MCC), antmen pimentel mendoza will lead efforts to create an inclusive and welcoming space centering students of color and stewarding community building across communities and cultures on campus. With a degree in Gender and Women’s Studies, and years spent as a student intern at both the MCC and the Gender Equity Resource Center working in community programming and curriculum development, antmen will develop programs and initiatives to promote cross-cultural understanding and social justice advocacy from an intersectional and nuanced lens within community on campus and beyond.

“With these appointments, we will continue to cultivate a campus culture that values diversity, promotes social justice, and empowers every member of our community to thrive," says Vice Chancellor of Equity & Inclusion Dania Matos.

More about Melisa and antmen:

Headshot of Melisa Bautista wearing a blue shirt.

Melisa Bautista, Director of Asian Pacific American Student Development (APASD)

Melisa Anne Bagasao Bautista, M.Ed (She/Her) is a 1.5 generation Pinay and Ilokana born and raised in Long Beach and La Palma, California with ancestral and familial roots in the Ilocos and Nueva Vizcaya regions of the Philippines. 

Melisa is a former Ethnic Studies middle and high school teacher, youth organizer, and adjunct faculty with CSU Long Beach’s Department of Asian and Asian American Studies and the Long Beach Ethnic Studies Initiative. During her time at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) she served as the Assistant Director of the Multicultural Resource Center, Office of Diversity and Outreach (ODO). Her work was centered in building and nurturing relationships and holding interprofessional spaces for UCSF Learners across the four Professional Health Schools and Graduate Division to strengthen their critical consciousness as emerging healthcare practitioners, researchers and leaders through cultural, justice, and healing centered programming. 

In addition, Melisa was the Co-Program Manager for UCSF ODO’s Diversity and Inclusion Certificate Program (DICP) offered to staff across the enterprise  to cultivate awareness and practice of foundational equity and inclusion knowledge domains. Lastly, Melisa served as the Co-Chair for the United Filipinx Association (UFA), steering committee member for the Asian Pacific American Systemwide Alliance (APASA), and member of the Chancellor’s Committee on Campus Climate, Culture, and Inclusion.

Melisa received her Masters in Education and CA Single Subject History teaching credential from the University of California, Los Angeles and Bachelors of Arts in Political Science with an Asian American Studies minor from San Francisco State University.

She grounds herself by hiking trails in the Oakland Redwoods, cooking up new recipes, and storytelling!

Connect with Melisa.

Headshot of antmen pimentel mendoza wearing a green and red button up.

antmen pimentel mendoza, Director of the Multicultural Community Center (MCC)

antmen pimentel mendoza (they, he, she) is a Scorpio. Prior to entering the role of Director, antmen served as the Assistant Director of Cross Cultural Student Development at the MCC since December 2018. In their work at the MCC, antmen has worked closely with student interns through planning community programming and developing and facilitating curriculum for the weekly MCC intern seminar. antmen has also worked on projects and initiatives to develop spaces of study and development for the campus’s staff such as the Staff as Students of Social Justice, Advising Strategy + Training’s Advancing Practice series, and the Building Belonging at Berkeley and Beyond (B4) series.

antmen grew up in National City and Chula Vista, California. While attending Cal as an undergraduate, antmen was an intern at the Multicultural Community Center and the Gender Equity Resource Center and studied Gender and Women’s Studies with minors in Rhetoric and Ethnic Studies. Outside of work, antmen is completing their MFA in Creative Writing at the Rainier Writing Workshop at the Pacific Lutheran University. His favorite donut is a maple old-fashioned and favorite Degrassi character is Manny Santos.

Connect with antmen

Headshots of Melisa Bautista and antmen pimentel mendoza.

Melisa Bautista (left) and antmen pimentel mendoza (right), new Educational Justice & Community Engagement directors.