S1: Welcome in San Diego. It's Jade Hindman on today's show. From higher education to a community garden , we are profiling two San Diegans who are blazing trails this Black History Month. This is KPBS Midday Edition. Connecting our communities through conversation. Welcome back. This is Jade Hindman , and you're listening to KPBS Midday Edition. So this Black History Month , we're celebrating local black leaders across every field , from art to community organizing , even haircare and wellness. I mean , you can find trailblazers in every space. My next guest is making waves in the education space as president of San Diego Mesa College. Before that , she served as vice president and dean of Mesa College and UC San Diego. Doctor Asante Hans joins me now. Welcome back to Midday Edition.
S2: Thanks so much. I'm so excited to be here.
S1: I'm so excited to have you on again. Um , you know , let me let me ask you this because I understand that your passion for social justice and education actually started back in fourth grade. Tell me a bit about that story.
S2: Oh my goodness. So , um , I think as a fourth grader , um , I grew up in a predominantly black neighborhood , and , uh , we were bused , uh , to a predominantly white , upper middle class neighborhood. And I'm not sure if our listeners are familiar with what it means to be bused , but it means that our entire fourth grade class was taken out of our school. We caught the bus very early in the morning , and we attended another school. Um , and there were just things that I had observed there , and people were very much interested in what we thought about that experience. But then as a fourth grader , I asked the question , you know , what did their students think about being at our school ? And when I learned that they didn't send any students to our school , I think that was where that that seed of unrest was planted in my soul that just had this question about what was it that they felt we needed to see in this other environment that maybe other students didn't need to see or learn about our environment ? And ever since then , I didn't know that it was called equity. I didn't know that it was called social justice , but my heart had a leaning towards those types of questions and ways of seeing and experiencing education.
S1: It's great that you were aware of that back in the fourth grade. I mean , that passion that you that was garnered back then continued through high school where you you advocated actually for education , access and opportunity.
S2: I'm born and raised in Inglewood , California. And so when I went to all of these school systems. Predominantly black middle class neighborhood is where I went to school and then went to these other places. And then our family experienced some misfortune. And so I ended up going to Inglewood High School , and I actually did not want to go. At the time , it was not an environment that was known to be nurturing of of minds. Um , but our principal at the time would not allow me to leave. He said , we need students like you here at Inglewood. And so he said , you don't have to stay for one year , and maybe we can consider. Um , I ended up staying for four years , but , uh , even despite the fact that there was that feeling , again , about inequity , um , there was something different about the environment that I was learning in that didn't live up to those spaces that I had gone to in the fourth grade or the sixth grade or in middle school. And so there were a lot of opportunities for me to kind of challenge and push back on the system to ask questions About the state of how we were being educated , the facilities , and in that pushback. I always chuckle because I say I got into trouble in high school , but I think it was the good trouble , um , that we are familiar with and just trying to say , like , I feel like there's so much more that we are deserving of , but that we weren't getting. And so there were things like our I was called out to talk about college , but I always felt like I would get to college one way or the other , and was curious about other students. When I would ask my peers like , you know , were you called out of class ? And when I found out they weren't , I asked if I could use my free period to call people out of class and share information with them that was shared with me so that we could expand capacity and opportunities. Um , and , you know , there were a variety of other things that that we did. I was I was one of those students who would sneak away from my friends and show up at school board meetings to provide the student voice. Um , I was not very tactful in doing so , but my principal helped me learn how to do it with with greater skill to match the conviction. So there were many opportunities. I stayed because I felt like , um , that was the kind of space that was calling me to develop and to grow and to live into my purpose. So I have all respect for for Inglewood High School. I feel really feel like it helped ground and make me who I am today.
S1: It's great when those seeds are planted early and and you water them and grow them. Um , on that note , though , about good trouble , I mean , you've said you're really guided by John Lewis's advocacy there for that that principal.
S2: In particular , for me , as my journey a young black woman , um , to be able to thrive and succeed. And so I feel like a part of what I did from fourth grade. We had the same opportunity in sixth grade to go back into this neighborhood. So I went there on my own choice at that point , and as sixth graders with my two best friends , we thought we got to get involved with leadership , right ? Which is interesting for young people to think because we thought , we've got to get a seat at the table , whatever that means , in sixth grade for Associated Students. But we did that. Um , and so that to me is is really challenging systems , realizing that there are spaces and places that are not often created for us , but that that we , um , have the ability and the capacity to go into those spaces and to make change from the inside. Um , and that is where I feel like I've done as a , as an elementary student , as a , you know , middle school student , as a high school student at Inglewood , who really tried to challenge those systems and really called for our professors and those administrators to to treat us with the dignity that we were worth , or at least to articulate those things for us and the now serving in this capacity and working in higher education. Um , actually having a seat at the table where you can impact policies and procedures , right , where you can show up in places and spaces to make sure that people understand that we see them their worth despite , uh , where they are coming from. Um , and oftentimes not in spite of that , but because of who they are. And we take all of these things and we see it , we nurture it , we love it , we challenge it. Um , and we encourage our students to grow. And so there's so many ways to do that. It could be through policy and procedure. It could be through making comments , um , in meetings , right , to stand up and kind of push back on those things that are not quite equitable or demonstrate , um , an ethic of care. So there's so many ways to do it. I feel like , um , me showing up , um , provides great space for me to be able to push back and to get in good trouble. It's the type of trouble that leads to access to equity that leads to students understanding their worth , stepping boldly into who they were born to be. Um , and so my , my personal wise to create the conditions that matter. And so that's how I get into good trouble disrupting systems so that we can create the conditions that matter for our students to succeed. Right.
S1: Right. And it really lays out the blueprint for others , for students to be able to follow and continue that that work. Um , you you've held several leadership titles in higher education across several San Diego institutions. Now , of course , you're president of Mesa College.
S2: And so , um , what I learned that as a student that there were things that I could do with protest , with asking questions , with showing up. And then when I got , you know , a deployment at UCSD , which is where I did my undergraduate to be able to come back , um , and say , whoa , you know , now I'm sitting in meetings where we are looking at policies , programs , activities , how we promote them , what we promote. Um , and so it is speaking up. Um , and , and understanding that my , that my perspective has value. Right. Um , and so there were many times where I sat in many rooms , and I didn't always feel like I was thinking the same as other people. But then when I realized like , oh , that's a blessing to be in a space where everybody is not thinking the same. And who in this room is speaking up for historically minoritized student groups and populations ? And sometimes I would see like there's no one who has that perspective or that voice. And so me realizing that in every seat that I occupied that I had the opportunity to bring that perspective to the table , and then to be able to act on it , to be empowered to act on it and to create space for others to learn , grow and act themselves. And so whether I was doing that as a student at UCSD , um , as , uh , I served as a coordinator , student activities and assistant dean or dean at UCSD. And then now being able to do that at San Diego Mesa College. And I am in love with the community college system and the students that we serve , and realize that my voice has value and meaning for this time , this moment , for the things that we are experiencing on a national level , locally and here within our community. This perspective that I have , and the diverse perspectives that many in our administration have , are making a difference for this time for these students moving forward.
S1: And speaking of the work that you've done at Mesa College , Mesa College was recently named a black serving institution under a new California law.
S2: We are one of 33 in the state of California who has received this designation. And what that means is that you have to have either a certain percentage of students who are black or a certain number of students , and so it's either 10% or 1500 students. So Mesa College has about 2040 students that have identified as black. But it's not just that number. Those designations are given to schools who have already demonstrated successful outcomes , who have already demonstrated a commitment to seeing and serving our black students with intention. And so , to me , this is an acknowledgement of the work that we're doing. And it is also a promise of the intentionality that we will now take to serve our black students , again , with intention , with care. Um , and so I'm so excited about continuing the work that we are doing. But now we're going to be elevating our progress , our our , our outcomes , our success , and much more intentional ways , because this is a contract with our students in the States , and we want in the state of California , and we want to be able to tell the story of how we are removing barriers for our black students who are the most disproportionately one of the most disproportionately impacted student groups. And we're saying that in spaces where many black students have felt invisible , we are saying , we see you , we see your experience , we see what you bring to the table , and we are going to serve you in a way that removes barriers so that you can transfer , so that you can upskill so that you can have economic mobility. Like we're so excited about what this designation means. So it's more than a seal. It is a commitment. It's a promise to our students.
S1: That's excellent. You know , going back to to what you were saying about intention. I do want to take a moment to talk about politics and education , specifically how the current administration has attacked and targeted institutions of higher education.
S2: My politics is my college is Mesa College , right ? And so when I think about what's happening in the outside world , my lens and the work that I do is the impact that it has on our community , our faculty , our students , our classified professionals. And so what our vision at Mesa College is to be the leading college of equity and excellence , right ? That is a bold , audacious , you know , goal. But it is it is it is not random like so. You will see this represented in the faculty that we hire , the programs that we enact , the spaces that we create on our campus. And so when the world is , can sometimes feel chaotic. And when we are constantly each day receiving information about things that are rendering our students invisible. Are there histories invisible that are creating and invoking fear and a variety of other emotions we think about ? That's what's happening outside , and we know that we're a microcosm of the larger world. But when when you come into these spaces on this campus , what you can expect is a space of equity and excellence , a space where you are seeing a space where your history , where you come from , matters. And we feel like we can nurture that. And that will help you be the the best version of who you were born to be. And so one of the things that I'm so proud about , about our campus and our district , is that in times like this , we are not shrinking in terms of our commitment to diversity , social justice , equity , access , belonging. We are screaming even louder that these things matter and that they will always matter for us and will be woven into our programs , processes and everything that we do. And so we are creating policies to protect what we can and hands.
S1: We're going to have to leave it there. This is one of those conversations. Continue. Yes. Thank you so much. I've been speaking with Doctor Ashanti and she's president of San Diego Mesa College. Again , doctor Hans , thank you.
S2: Thank you so much.
S1: Still to come , Dianne Moss has dedicated her life to making the community more self-sufficient. A profile of her work and activism when KPBS Midday Edition returns. Welcome back to KPBS midday Edition. I'm Jade Hindman. You know , head down Market Street in southeastern San Diego , and you might just find a neighborhood garden covered in sunflowers. Mount Hope Community Garden brings fresh produce to neighbors , promoting food equity through mutual aid. The idea is to help make the community more self-reliant in an area with high food insecurity. Diane Moss is founder and managing director of the garden's parent organization , Project New Village. She draws on decades of experience as a community organizer and food activist. She joins me now as part of our series highlighting local black trailblazers. Diane , welcome back to Midday Edition.
S3: Thank you. Thank you. Yeah. Glad to be here.
S1: So glad to have you here. Like , take me back to the early days.
S3: I had the privilege of sitting at the table with. The person now is who is in charge of food. It's a local co-op here , but that is the person who told me food justice was just as important as any other struggle for justice , and that I needed to get on board. That was 2008. Subsequent to that conference , I went to City Heights and there were folks down here from Sacramento. And the interesting thing is that everything they said was compelling. I didn't see anyone in that room from my neighborhood , nor did I see too many people of color. So I left there thinking I needed to change. I needed to do something in where I live. About access to good food. Right.
S1: Right.
S3: We , we , uh , my background is as an activist and doing social justice kind of activities. So we needed to find a place that we could grow food. My office at that time was next door to our city Council representative , and he could see the energy that was building with the people who were coming to meetings and were looking for a location. He called me one day and said , would $50,000 help us find a garden ? I said , I think so , it needed to be in a redevelopment area. And so we went to Mount Hope and we dealt with the neighborhood council. Oh , there was a gentleman then named Rinaldo Pisano. He was in the neighborhood council , and he would rule over anything that came into his neighborhood. But they agreed that a garden would be an okay activity and they helped us find the space there on Market Street. Wow.
S1: Wow. Well , I mean , you know , let's talk more about , you know , the food ecosystem in San Diego County , because in 2023 , 1 in 4 San Diegans were considered food insecure.
S3: The area I live in is southeastern San Diego , and we don't have , um , access that we want to have at this time. Currently , we do not have a lot of chain grocery stores , and we do not have we have more mom and pop type stores. Um , those that believe in food deserts would talk to you about mileage to a supermarket , but instead we like to look at where's the source of food. And with that thought , we start building gardens. So today we have four garden spaces , you know , in a network of about 20 people who are growing things in their backyard and helping us bring that food and make it available to people in the neighborhood. You know , it's different. It's different. Poverty has something to do with it. The will of those in charge that bring a business to communities , invest in communities. It all has an impact on whether there's access to good food.
S1: And I know that we always hear about food deserts , but you prefer a different term.
S3: Right now we use the term food apartheid. I didn't invent the word. It was invented with someone over on the East Coast. But it's looking more at the intentionality of these neighborhoods that don't have food. If we all are paying taxes and we all are needing food , then why is it that some neighborhoods have more access than others , and those that don't have access are usually those same neighborhoods where they're poor people and people of color ? Uh , by and large. Yeah. Hmm.
S1: Hmm. You know , education is such a key component of this , too. We're talking about resident led , hands on learning , where people literally get their hands dirty and teach others about this critical skill.
S3: You have to move forward and make things happen. So in our neighborhoods , we have vacant lots , we have church lots , we have backyards , and we're saying these are spaces that we can use to grow food. Um , and what we're doing is saying , uh , next time there's a Covid , we don't want ourselves to be empty as long as they were. Seemed like they were empty longer. And we can do something about that. We have spaces where we can grow and contribute.
S1:
S3: Uh , so the intersection is there. The the people of color need to eat , and the food is not getting where it needs to. So we need to do something about that. Mhm.
S1: Mhm. Well you know you've been in the at this for a minute and the community garden is wonderful. I've been out there. How has your work evolved over the years to address the growing needs of community members.
S3: Well we started off with one garden and one farmer's market. We currently have five gardens that we grow food. We have a mobile farmers market that makes eight stops every week , and some pop up kinds of events on the weekends , and there's more demand. We're also seeing that people are starting to partner with us. In April coming up , we will have something called a food pharmacy. And that came about because Redis Hospital has children that live in our zip codes that want to access food. So food , said one of our partners again said , hey , could your mobile farmer's market be used as a site where we can have this food pharmacy ? So that will start , um , in April ? And so these , these young people , their parents can come and shop once a week and they would have a card where their pediatrician is watching the impact and the availability of food for these young people. We also our office is located in a what we call this mixed use , where there's housing on top and it's low income housing , and they decided recently that they would take out coupons for the people who live here on a weekly basis. We bring our truck here to the apartment complex on Fridays , and they can come out 20 at a time to buy fresh fruit and vegetables. Wow. So it's gaining some momentum , I want to say. Yeah.
S1: That's excellent. You know , I imagine this work and just working in a garden , it can be very therapeutic , right ? Um , you know , but the work can , can also be a little taxing , both mentally and physically , too.
S3: We say that we look at the garden as a place of happiness , and we measure happiness by the number of smiles and people who linger. I mean , we'll have a workday. It's two hours , but people are staying longer for four hours just talking and meeting with people that they don't know. Uh , it is a place of healing. There's some that because we're we're getting ready to do some new things over at that garden space , and it won't operate the same way. And some people are trying to get it ready for the change , because once a month , it's where they come to feel like they belong and that they are with people that they they get along with. There's a lot of like a lot of pressure , particularly in our neighborhoods and what we're looking at our at the federal level in terms of , um , uh , just the pressure on people's lives. You need safe places where you can get away. And the garden is one of such space.
S1: Well , you mentioned healing.
S3: I have to remind. I have to make myself leave the garden once I'm there. Your hands in the dirt. I think it's really , uh , a healing kind of thing. And to be able to do that with your neighbors and talk about things in a space and grow things , it's just , uh , it feels real good. Hmm. I now have a garden in my backyard. I'm one of these backyard growers. I have , you know , upwards of 20 some odd trees , and I harvest so that I can give to the mobile farmer's market as well.
S1: That's great. You know , it seems that , you know , you're always looking to grow and expand your reach through the garden. You mentioned the food farmacy coming in April.
S3: It's been about 4 or 5 years in the making. This is community , people coming together and saying what they would want to see , um , in a village or in a food hub. And what we're coming up with is our own neighborhood grocery store , healthier eateries , right ? We don't have a lot of healthy eateries that you can just walk to. There will be a smaller footprint for a garden and on the second floor because , you know , space costs a lot in San Diego , but we want to build our own indoor. Um , urban AG Resource center , where we're teaching people how to grow not only in soil , but other methods of growing that you can do on your balcony or in your home. So hydroponics , aquaponics. We hope to teach and share those skills on the second floor of this hub. Uh , we're working with some wonderful people to make this happen in terms of management of construction and then design folks. But if we have our way next year , we'll have our own grocery store , and we will pick the brands of food and the type of food that we want to sell and share with others. We will have a kitchen there so that people can learn how to cook , and a demonstration and a commercial kitchen for those who cook and cater and want to share with others. So it's a big deal to us. We call it a trail of minor mineral , minor miracles. They're not major miracles because maybe it doesn't affect everybody. But in our neighborhood , this is this is big news.
S1: What a great concept.
S3: All of our information is there. Or you can show up at any of our farmers market days. Uh , it's what , Wednesday , Thursday and Fridays and some Saturdays.
S1: All right. I've been speaking with Diane Moss. She's founder and managing director of the nonprofit Project New Village , and she runs the Mount Hope Community Garden in southeastern San Diego. Diane , Thank you so much.
S3: Thank you. Appreciate the time.
S1: Thanks for joining us today. If you missed anything , you can download KPBS Midday Edition on all podcast apps. Don't forget to watch Evening Edition tonight at five for in-depth reporting on San Diego issues. Also , you can always share your feedback or segment ideas at midday at KPBS or call us. The number is (619) 452-0228. I'm Jade Hindman. Join me again tomorrow. Until then , make it a great day on purpose , everyone.
