Earlier this month we had the privilege of hosting Advocacy 101: ​A Deep Dive into Rise Up’s Training Approach​ featuring our Director of Learning Josie Ramos and Rise Up Leader Tasha Henneman from our 2023 California cohort. Josie guided participants through Rise Up’s comprehensive advocacy planning process – a framework that has successfully supported our global network of over 800 Rise Up Leaders since 2009 – and took a closer look at Tasha’s advocacy journey with Rise Up.  

“What often happens when leaders engage their communities in advocacy is that they become mobilized. As a result, we have governments that are more responsive, engaged, and aware of the impact of policies and laws on the people they’re intended to protect. Most of the time, Rise Up Leaders work to improve the implementation of existing laws and policies because nine times out of ten, a solid law or policy already exists, but it might lack a clear definition, execution guidelines, or sufficient budget to enable effective implementation.” – Josie Ramos, Director of Learning

In the session, we focused on three core steps from Tasha’s journey: identifying the problem, conducting an audience analysis, and developing an Expected Advocacy Result (EAR).

Tasha’s advocacy centers on strengthening gender diversity and inclusion policies for trans and gender-nonconforming students and staff at the City College of San Francisco (CCSF). In 2020, CCSF adopted a formal gender diversity and inclusion policy with a complaint process for those facing discrimination based on gender identity. Building on this foundation, Tasha and her organization PCR (formerly Positive Resource Center), are working to enhance the effectiveness of this policy through targeted advocacy efforts.

With Rise Up’s support, made possible through the generous funding of Tides’ Advancing Girls Fund, Tasha set out to:

• Protect the dignity and academic success of trans and gender-nonconforming students of color by producing a guidebook that explains students’ rights and how to prevent and report grievances
• Create an inclusive and supportive campus climate for 65,000 students by raising awareness about the code of conduct, especially related to gender identity bias and discrimination
• Foster lasting systemic change for all students by securing the adoption of recommendations into the college’s gender diversity and inclusion policy

That policy is close to being adopted – and Tasha and her organization are now exploring ways to scale this work across City Colleges throughout California. Tasha also shared a final product of her work: the Trans & Genderqueer CCSF Student Guidebook, a powerful resource for reporting harassment, understanding rights, and fostering inclusive spaces. 

We’re inspired by the ripple effect of Tasha’s advocacy – not only in strengthening CCSF’s policies, but with the potential for widespread impact across California’s greater college system. Read more about Tasha’s advocacy project with Rise Up here.