Jane Hirshberg Awarded for Contributions to BSU-UMD Social Justice Alliance
June 13, 2022
The artistic planning program director at The Clarice made sure the arts were present in the SJA’s recent symposium.
By Jessica Weiss ’05
Artistic Planning Program Director at The Clarice Jane Hirshberg has been awarded for her contributions to the Bowie State University (BSU) and University of Maryland Social Justice Alliance (SJA).
The unprecedented alliance—a collaboration between Maryland’s oldest historically Black university and its flagship university—was launched in 2020 to promote social justice and to honor the legacy of BSU alumnus 1st Lt. Richard W. Collins III, who was killed on the UMD campus by a white UMD student on May 20, 2017. SJA hosts public programming to direct action for change and provides learning opportunities for UMD and BSU students through curriculum and experiential activities.
As co-chair of SJA’s programming committee, Hirshberg helped design SJA’s first in-person annual symposium on the UMD campus, held this past April, entitled “Healing from Hate: Advancing Racially Equitable Policies.” She was awarded the SJA “member of the year” at the event.
Social Justice Alliance UMD Team Lead Rashawn Ray, professor of sociology, called Hirshberg “one of the key SJA members who operates as the heart of what we do.”
“She always centers how we should feel about what we are doing, and potentially more so, how we want others to feel about the work we do. She is a critical member of the university committee and a vital member of the Social Justice Alliance,” Ray said.
The symposium featured remarks from BSU President Aminta Breaux, UMD President Darryll J. Pines and Collins’ parents Richard and Dawn, as well as a panel of university, community and policy leaders discussing issues centered on individual and community healing, anti-racism and racially-equitable social and public policy.
Thanks in large part to Hirshberg, it also featured engagement with the arts. In the lobby, attendees had the opportunity to write—and send—postcards based on a prompt. The day opened with BSU student Kira Peek singing the Black National Anthem, “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” and concluded with Sadia Alao ’20, who graduated from UMD with a marketing and theater double major, reading her poem “American Idol.”
“I always try to remind people of the beauty of what we can create,” said Hirshberg. “That’s the lens that I come in with whenever I am doing any sort of committee work: don’t forget about the art, especially the power it has to heal.”
Social Justice Alliance BSU Team Lead Steve Stevens II, Bowie State’s coordinator of Greek life and community service, said Hirshberg “goes past being a colleague.”
“She is a friend in the fight. Jane continues to grow with the SJA, and our work is a true reflection of that,” he said.
Photo by Ryan Pelham.