The Southern California College Attainment Network (SoCal CAN), in partnership with Cities and People, is conducting the Represent ALL study to better understand the composition of student government in California. Not only will we look into demographic information, but we will also analyze representation from different student groups. Our goal is to identify systemic barriers that stand in the way of historically marginalized students accessing student government positions and elevate promising practices that are fostering a more diverse representation. Now more than ever, it is important for us to understand how we can support underrepresented students in fully activating the power of the student government to address their needs.

The research activities will include a survey, 1-on-1 interviews, and focus groups to better understand the experiences of historically marginalized students in these positions. A report summarizing the findings will be completed in Summer 2023 and used to engage student government leaders, student affairs professionals, and other segment and institutional leaders. We hope to inform interested stakeholders on what we can do collectively to make student government more representative of California’s diverse student body.

If you are interested in receiving occasional updates about the progress of this study and would like a copy of the report sent to your inbox as soon as it is published, please complete this form.