University of California, Davis Gets Grants To Explore Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Communities

Five University of California campuses, including UC Davis, have received $1.1 million in grants to support social science research — part of an investment by the California Legislature to improve data available on Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities in California.

Kevin Gee, associate professor, UC Davis School of Education, is among those receiving grants. His team project will examine how school climate influences the bullying experiences of California’s Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander youth. Gee is also a faculty research affiliate with the UC Davis Center for Poverty and Inequality Research.

UC Riverside is allocating the $1.1 million to eight teams throughout the UC system. The grants are funded out of a $10 million allocation to AAPI Data provided by the Legislature in 2021. These funds were part of the $166.5 million Asian and Pacific Islander Equity Budget approved by Gov. Gavin Newsom.

The research teams will probe the needs of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders in California and provide a set of policy recommendations to address those needs. Other UC research will address issues such as equity gaps, mental health and well-being, racism and labor in California communities.

“These grants build on AAPI Data’s initial work to expand the data and research capacity on Asian American and NHPI (Native Hawaiian Pacific Islander) needs and our collaboration with the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research and the California Health Interview Survey,” said Karthick Ramakrishnan, the founder and director of the AAPI Data program and a professor in UC Riverside’s School of Public Policy.