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Social Sciences Division
Sociology Department
PhD Candidate
Graduate
Critical Race and Ethnic Studies
Education Department
Rachel Carson College Academic Building
Rm. 124
Rachel Carson College Faculty Services
Alycia Ellington (they/she) [pronounced: ah-lee-sha] — is an interdisciplinary qualitative researcher trained in environmental studies, geography, sociology, ethnic studies, and education. As a queer, mixed-race scholar raised in the Bay Area, she approaches research as a practice rooted in accountability, collective care, and transformative possibility. Grounded in Black geographic and abolitionist frameworks, they examine how racial capitalism, surveillance, displacement, and carceral logics shape the spatial politics of belonging and safety for Black and marginalized youth. Their current project, Cartographies of Reclamation, centers Oakland youth as producers of spatial knowledge, exploring how young people navigate, resist, and reimagine educational and community spaces shaped by state-sanctioned violence. Using relational and non-extractive qualitative methods, she studies how youth cultivate geographies of care, refusal, and collective world-making. Rather than framing schools through deficit narratives, they highlight young people as theorists of safety, belonging, and abolitionist futures. Ultimately, her work is guided by a belief that young people deserve spaces where they can show up fully, safely, and unapologetically as themselves.
EDUCATION
Ph.D. Sociology, University of California, Santa Cruz (Expected June 2027)
Designated Emphasis, (1) Critical Race & Ethnic Studies; (2) Education
Dissertation Title: “Cartographies of Reclamation: Youth Place-Making, Collective Futures & the Spatial Politics of Belonging in Oakland, CA”
Committee: Dr. Lindsey Dillon (Chair), Dr. Camilla Hawthorne & Dr. Amy Argenal
M.S. Environmental Studies, San José State University
Thesis Title: “Through the Eyes of Community Educators: Place-based Learning, Equitable Access, and COVID-19 Impacts on Outdoor Environmental Education in the San Francisco Bay Area”
Thesis Committee: Carolina Prado, Ph.D. (Chair), William Russell, Ph.D., and Rebeca Burciaga, Ph.D.
B.S. Environmental Studies, San Francisco State University
Concentration: Natural Resources Management and Conservation
Major Advisor: Barbara Holzman, Ph.D.
RESEARCH EXPERIENCE
Graduate Student Researcher (with Dr. Jibrin) UC Santa Cruz
(Jan. 2024 – Oct. 2025)
Project: School Safety in Oakland Unified School District (OUSD)
Graduate Student Researcher (with Dr. Pedroza), UC Santa Cruz
(July 2024 – Sept. 2024; July 2023 – Sept. 2023)
Project: Coastal Communities & Coastal Inequality
Graduate Student Researcher, UC Santa Cruz (with Dr. London)
(Jan. 2022 – May 2022)
Project: COVID-19 Youth Experiences Through YPAR
Black Geographies; Education; YPAR; Abolition; Youth Belonging and Place-Making; School Discipline; School-to-Prison-Pipeline; Community-Engagement; Environmental Justice; Outdoor Environmental Education
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
UC Santa Cruz, Department of Sociology
(Spring 2023) Teaching Assistant/Co-Instructor, SOCY 141: Social Welfare (Dr. London)
(Winter 2023) Teaching Assistant, SOCY 10: Issues & Problems in American Society (Dr. Jones)
(Fall 2022) Teaching Assistant, SOCY 3A: The Evaluation of Evidence (Dr. London)
San José State University, Department of Environmental Studies
(Fall 2020) Teaching Assistant, ENVS 198: Senior Seminar (Dr. Prado)
(Spring 2020) Teaching Assistant, ENVS 01: Introduction to Environmental Issues (Dr. Prado)
(Fall 2019– Spring 2020) Teaching Assistant, ENVS 158: Environmental Education (Robert Foran)
FELLOWSHIPS & AWARDS
(Nov. 2025) UCSC CRES Department Travel Award, UC Santa Cruz
(March 2025) UCSC CRES Department Travel Award, UC Santa Cruz
(June 2024) UCSC Sociology Summer Writing Fellowship, UC Santa Cruz
(Aug. 2023) Ecological Society of America Conference Travel Grant, ESA Environmental Justice Section
(Sept. 2021) UC Regents Fellowship, UC Santa Cruz
(Aug. 2021) Environmental Fellowship, Environmental Fellows Program – Yale School of the Environment
(March 2021) Graduate Research Fellowship (Predoctoral), National Science Foundation
(Dec. 2020) Environmental Justice Crowdfunding Grant, San José State
(July 2020) Dierks-Morgan Scholarship, San José State
(July 2020) Richard G. Bufton Memorial Award, San José State
(April 2020) Les Francis Scholarship for Civic Education, San José State
(July 2019) Segal AmeriCorps Education Award, AmeriCorps
(Oct. 2017) Segal AmeriCorps Education Award, AmeriCorps
(June 2019 & June 2017) AmeriCorps Certificate of National Service, AmeriCorps
(May 2014 & Jan. 2013) Dean’s List, San Francisco State University
CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS & POSTERS
Ellington, A. (April 2025). “Reimagining Educational Spaces: Traditional School Safety, Anti-Blackness & an Abolitionist Future in Education.” Presenter. American Education Research Association Annual Meeting. Part of the AERA Research-in-Progress Roundtable Session titled, ‘Safety, Discipline & Violence in Education Context. Denver, CO.
Ellington, A. (March 2025). “Reimagining Educational Spaces: Traditional School Safety, Anti-Blackness & an Abolitionist Future in Education.” Presenter. American Association of Geographers Annual Meeting. Feminist Geographies group session series titled, ‘Abolition in and Beyond Prisons. Detroit, MI.
Ellington, A. (June 2024). "Environmental Justice, Policing & Education." Presenter. Yale’s JEDSI New Horizons in Conservation Annual Convening. Virtual.
Ellington, A. (Feb. 2024). "Active Learning in Social Welfare: Lessons on Community Mutual Aid Resources." Presenter. UCSC Teaching and Learning Teaching Symposium. Santa Cruz, CA.
Ellington, A. (Aug. 2023). "Growing Resistance Through Education: The Inclusion of Youth in The Fight for Environmental Justice." Panelist. Ecological Society of America Annual Meeting. Virtual.
Ellington, A. (March 2022). “Through the Eyes of Community Educators: Place-based Learning, Equitable Access, and COVID-19 Impacts on Outdoor Environmental Education in the SF Bay Area.” Poster Presenter. Yale School of the Environment JEDSI’s New Horizons in Conservation Conference. Virtual.
SYMPOSIUMS
Ellington, A. (Aug. 2021). “Equity and the Inclusion of Youth of Color in the Environmental Justice Movement.” Presenter & Panelist. Environmental Fellows Program 2021 Capstone Symposium. Virtual.
Ellington, A. (April 2021). “Through the Eyes of Community Educators: Place-based Learning, Equitable Access, and COVID-19 Impacts on Outdoor Environmental Education in the SF Bay Area.” Presenter. San José State University Grad Slam, San José, CA.
Ellington, A. (June 2019). “Environmental Literacy: Empowering Schools & Communities.” Poster Presentation. Climate Corps AmeriCorps Symposium, San Francisco, CA.
Ellington, A. (June 2017). “Building a Sustainable Future.” Poster Presentation. Climate Corps AmeriCorps Symposium, San Francisco, CA.
GUEST LECTURES
Ellington, A. (Nov. 2024). "Critical Models of Pedagogy: Teaching Approaches for Black Feminisms & Youth Studies." Guest Lecturer/Presenter. UCSC LALS 294P: Pedagogical.
Ellington, A. (March 2021). “Outdoor Environmental Education: Community-provided and School-based.” Presenter. ENVS 158: San José State University, San José, CA.
Ellington, A. (April 2019). “San Mateo County K-12 Educational Resources.” Presenter. ENVS 158: San José State University, San José, CA.
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Ellington, A. (April 2022). "Black Leaders in Green Spaces: Environmental Education Best Practices & Tools Twitter Discussion." Panelist. #BlackInEnvironment Week. Virtual.
Ellington, A. (April 2022). "Black Leaders in Green Spaces: Black in Green Education" (Panelist) #BlackInEnvironment Week. Virtual.
Ellington, A. (Oct. 2021). Environmental Fellows Program Reflection.” Interview. Environmental Grantmakers Association Fall 2021 Retreat. Virtual.
WORKSHOPS & MENTORING
Ellington, A. (July 2021). “Introduction to Public Speaking.” Workshop Facilitator. We the People of Detroit Summer Youth Program Training. Virtual.
Ellington, A. (July 2021). “Introduction to Geographic Information Systems (GIS).” Presenter/Workshop Facilitator. We the People of Detroit Summer Program Training. Virtual.
Ellington, A. (June 2021). “Graduate School Panel.” Panelist. California Climate Action Corps Training. Virtual.
Ellington, A. (June 2019). “Student Leadership.” Presenter & Workshop Facilitator. San Mateo County Office of Education, Redwood City, CA.
Ellington, A. (Oct. 2017). “Fellowship Experience and Tips for Success.” Presenter. Climate Corps AmeriCorps Fellow Orientation, Oakland, CA.
PEER REVIEWED
Ellington, A. (accepted; anticipated 2026 release). “Principles of Environmental Justice.” Eds. Taylor, D.E. in The Sage Environmental Justice Encyclopedia. (Vol. 3). Sage Publications
Ellington, A., & Prado, C. (2024). Connecting schools and communities: a look at place-based learning and equitable access in SF Bay Area outdoor environmental education. Environmental Education Research, 1–21. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504622.2024.2321260
Moore, A.C., Calhoun, K., Wilkinson, C.E., Alford, E., Ellington, A., Estien, C.O., Fleury, G.S., Garcia, N., Hicks, A., Mosley, C. & Vitale-Penniman, N. (accepted). Queer Black Voices in Conservation. Conservation Biology.
Ellington, A., Hice-Fromille, T., London, R. A., Cariño, T. M. & Otero, L. (2023). Las Voces de Mujercitas Empoderadas: Documenting Support for Youth with Youth Participatory Action Research. Social Sciences, 12(9), 483–483. https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci12090483
OTHER PUBLICATIONS
Ellington, A. (2021). ‘Equity and the Inclusion of Youth of Color in the Environmental Justice Movement’. In Yale School of the Environment and the Environmental Grantmakers Association (Eds). Reflections: 2021 Environmental Fellows Program Journal. pp. 18. https://ega.org/sites/default/files/page/attachment/2021%20EFP%20Fellows%20Journal.pdf
Ellington, A., & Saavedra, D. (2020). "Everyone is Watching": Two California Women on Racism and #BlackLivesMatter. Eleventh Hour Column. https://www.eleventhcolumn.com/2020/06/06/everyone-is-watching-two-california-women-on-racism-and-blacklivesmatter/
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