Ethnic Studies Pioneer to Retire

He's not quite what you'd expect. For a professor who is a giant in his field and an internationally renowned historian, Ronald Takaki is down-to-earth.

He pioneered multicultural education by establishing the first ethnic studies doctorate program in the country and instituting the campus American Cultures requirement.

But he is also a grandfather who boogie boards, tells funny stories in class and laughs at them, even when no one else does.

"He's got an infectious laugh and a pretty laid-back style," says Michael Omi, Takaki's former student and ethnic studies department chair. "But he can also be intense in that he thinks very seriously about the political landscape in our country."

Students say it is Takaki's combination of larger-than-life accomplishments and genuine concern for others that will be remembered when he retires this semester after 32 years of teaching at UC Berkeley.

Takaki decided to retire after multiple sclerosis forced him to take a medical leave last semester.

"I really didn't want to retire but I have to, because that's the way life turned out," Takaki says.

Takaki's style of interactive teaching stresses the link between biography and history.

"Through people's voices and narratives, he'll make a point about how the rest of the world is affected," says Victor Rios, one of his graduate students.

His knack for storytelling also plays into his scholarly work, where he lends a voice to ethnic groups sometimes overlooked by Anglo-centric accounts of U.S. history.

"As a scholar, I have been seeking to write a more inclusive and hence more accurate history," says Takaki, an author of 11 books. "The story of the little people-the invisible, the silenced-is also a part of history."

The grandson of immigrant plantation laborers in Hawaii, Takaki grew up with hopes of becoming a surfer. But in high school, he was inspired by a teacher who later arranged for him to attend the College of Wooster in Ohio.

Takaki went on to pursue a Ph.D. in American history at UC Berkeley six years later, when he was inspired by Martin Luther King Jr.'s vision and the Civil Rights Movement. That led him to teach the first black history course at UCLA. While there, he helped establish its centers for ethnic studies.

But UCLA denied him tenure in 1972.

"I was at the cutting edge of activism at UCLA and because of this, they fired me," Takaki says, calling it the most difficult time in his career.

Takaki returned to his alma mater, teaching in the newly-formed Ethnic Studies Department. His landmark course, now called, "The Making of Multicultural America: A Comparative Historical Perspective," provided the framework for the ethnic studies doctorate program he established in 1984.

"He laid out a road map for redesigning American history to tell the whole story and you could feel that being in the classroom. You were, in some small way, a part of changing the way America thought," says Rickey Vincent, a student of Takaki's in the 1970s.

In 1987, Takaki met with ASUC leaders to discuss racism on campus and out of those talks grew the American Cultures requirement, meant to increase understanding of diversity. Today, more than 20 departments teach 225 American Cultures courses.

Since then, Takaki has advised former President Bill Clinton and appeared on major TV networks.

But his heart remains with teaching.

Takaki will return this fall to lead a single graduate seminar.

"I still have a lot to offer students in terms of research and skills," Takaki says. "I'd like to continue to teach and help students grow into scholars and writers."

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