Timeline & Progress

Year 1 (2021-2022)
  • Build the infrastructure to create positive change on social justice within the curriculum. 
    • Build infrastructure, partnerships, vision, best practices.
    • Complete curricular needs assessments 
    • Establish and Act on Curricular Harm Reduction Priorities 
  • Build workstreams focusing on: Content/process; Assessment; Communication; Faculty Development and Consultation; Technology; Student Support; Evaluation/Continuous Quality Improvement
  • Eight new Curricular Component Liaisons (CCLs) will build relationships and structures to partner effectively with curricular leaders across the curriculum to: 
    • Review/adapt current curricular components with an anti-oppressive lens
    • Begin integrating new content and approaches longitudinally into the curriculum
  • Launch AOC Task Forces on Race/Ethnicity in clinical cases, and Sex, Gender, and Sexuality in clinical cases 
  • Form AOC Initiative-Student Collaborative and develop processes for student voices and input into the AOC Initiative’s efforts 
  • Develop blueprint for patient- and community-centered narratives
  • Read more about the AOC Initiative’s first year of progress
Year 2 (2022-2023)
  • Continue to review and adapt curricular content with an anti-oppressive lens
  • Begin to integrate new anti-oppressive content and teaching approaches into the curriculum
  • Begin to develop novel assessment approaches to anti-oppression content
  • Continue to build and work with a coalition to redesign Health and the Individual (H&I) / Health and Society (H&S) courses
  • Launch AOC Task Forces on other key topic areas (e.g., disability/strategies to work against ableism)
  • Obtain feedback on core AOC-linked faculty competencies 
  • Expand faculty development and faculty consultation strategies
  • Pilot para-curricular support mechanisms for students
  • Establish blueprint for community involvement in the curriculum and pilot approaches
  • Read more about the AOC Initiative's second year of progress.
Year 3 (2023-2024)
  • Continue to review and adapt curricular content with an anti-oppressive lens
  • Continue to integrate new anti-oppressive content and teaching approaches into the curriculum
  • Pilot novel assessment approaches to anti-oppression content
  • Support continued transformation of approach to Health and the Individual (H&I) / Health and Society (H&S) Blocks
  • Continue to expand faculty consultation and coaching strategies
  • Collaborate with CFE on campaign for faculty development tied to core AOC-linked faculty competencies
  • Integrate para-curricular support mechanisms for students
  • Continue to plan for infrastructure for community involvement in the curriculum
Graphic with green grass and blue sky titled, Timeline of Anti-Oppression Curriculum Initiative. Four text boxes reading Reviewing, Adapting, and Enhancing Curricular Content; Student Support and Group Mentoring; Faculty Development; Communications. Subheader reading Foundational Elements with three boxes: Ongoing Student Involvement, Invited Experts, Building Partnerships; Subheader reading Key Collaborators showing four groups connected with arrows: AOCI Leads, AOCI-Student Collaborative, Curricular Component Liaisons and School of Medicine, Campus, and Health Systems
Please see the AOCI timeline for a visual chronology of milestones and accomplishments. Click on the image to view the timeline graphic (PDF).

Progress to Date 

In addition to assembling and launching a team with diverse perspectives and backgrounds, visioning, in consultation with internal and external experts, gathering input, reviewing and evaluating available instructional resources, reviewing and adapting curricular content with an anti-oppressive lens are all underway.

While the initial phase of the AOC initiative is three years, like all social justice work, developing and sustaining movement towards an anti-oppressive curriculum, as well as towards anti-oppressive processes and policies will require a commitment to ongoing, continuous effort across the School of Medicine. At the end of the initiative’s three years, the AOC Initiative team expects to deliver a roadmap for the next steps necessary to help UCSF continue to move toward more fully embodying the anti-racism, anti-oppressive values it aspires to.

Setting the Vision

To be successful, the AOC Initiative must set a clear vision and identify concrete objectives. To identify meaningful goals, the AOC Initiative team is leveraging the experience of well-known health and health care equity experts and will continue to seek input from a broad range of interested parties including students, alumni, faculty, staff, patients, and community members. In the first year of the AOC Initiative, team was fortunate to consult with UCSF Presidential Chair Award Recipient Dr. Camara Jones, helping us to outline the vision and goals for the AOC Initiative.  

Gathering Input

In December 2021, an AOCI-Student Collaborative was launched with 19 students. By 2024, the Collaborative had grown to include 50 students recruited from among all current medical students. The members of the Student Collaborative provide feedback on both high-level strategy and detailed aspects of the workstreams. A representative from the Student Collaborative also serves as a standing member of the Student Supergroup to share updates and gather feedback from leaders of medical student groups on campus. The Student Collaborative is facilitated by Alli Gomez, Class of ‘25 and Jessica Ma, Class of '25, in their roles as AOC Initiative’s Fellows during their year-long roles, with support from Denise Connor, MD.

Reviewing and Adapting Curricular Content

  1. Curriculum Needs Assessments

Working in partnership with curricular leaders, each of the CCLs has completed an initial needs assessment with the curricular elements they are partnered with. The CCLs are engaged in a ‘harm reduction’ review of curricular content, in partnership with curricular leaders, and are working on adaptations to curricular sessions as well as setting priorities for future curricular transformation. 

  1. Topic-Based Task Forces 

The AOC Initiative team has charged four topic-based task forces, focused on Race & Ethnicity, Sex/ Gender/ Sexuality (SGS), Disability and Working Against Ableism, and Weight Bias. The task forces review how these identities are presented in clinical cases. Task forces include faculty, staff, and student members, as well as community consultants. 

The Race and Ethnicity & Sex, Gender & Sexuality (SGS) Task Force 1.0 Draft Recommendations were shared with internal faculty, staff, and students in May 2023. The Executive Summary was made publicly available in June 2023. The Disability and Working Against Ableism Task Force launched in May 2023, and the Weight Bias Task Force is in the planning stage, with an anticipated launch of summer 2024. 

  1. Assessing Image and Video Assets 
    1. Reviewing Video Content

      The Technology Enhanced Education (TEE) and AOC Initiative teams have initiated a process for reviewing all video content used throughout the Bridges Curriculum with an anti-oppressive lens. The video review process involves:   

      1. Reviewing each video and relevant materials.    

      2. Coordinating with anti-oppression curricular experts, such as Curricular Component Liaisons (CCLs), to remove and re-create video content to avoid harmful bias, stereotypes, and exclusionary language. 

      3. Working as necessary with curricular leaders to develop new or revised curricular content that reflects an anti-oppressive approach.

        As of September 2023, the majority of courses in Foundations 1 of the Bridges Curriculum have completed the longitudinal review of all UCSF-created video content with an anti-oppressive lens.  Flagged videos are being re-created to incorporate anti-oppressive approaches. 

        Every video lecture in F1 includes a notification that informs students about the AOC video review process, describes where each video stands in that process, and invites student feedback. All Foundations 1 UCSF-created video content is expected to be fully reviewed and updated by July 2025. 

    2. The Inclusive Skin Color Project
      The Inclusive Skin Color Project is a collaborative effort between the School of Medicine's Anti-Oppression Curriculum (AOC) Initiative, the UCSF Library, and the Department of Dermatology to improve the discoverability of resources that represent the full spectrum of skin color. Providing plentiful examples of conditions in a range of skin tones improves medical students', trainees', and physicians' abilities to accurately identify clinical signs and, consequently, provide excellent patient care.
       
  2. Health and Society Course Revision 

In March 2022, the Health and Society block was adapted with a goal of minimizing the risk of curricular harm and preserving key learning. The AOC Initiative team reviewed each session and made recommendations about the content and pedagogy. Internal and external consultants with expertise in anti-racism, along with student partners from the AOCI-Student collaborative, developed recommendations for session adaptations and shared these with session developers who worked to implement those recommendations. Given the short timeline, some sessions were placed on hold to allow more time for adaptation. Consultants also developed and led new lectures and panels during the H&S block and offered office hours for student debriefs along with members of the AOC Initiative. The Student Support Team also offered space for students to reflect and debrief in affinity groups. Learn more in the Approach to Health & Society Course Revision update from the deans.

  1. The Social, Structural and Behavioral Course Visioning Working Group

Co-chaired by Dr. Monica Hahn and Dr. Kate Lupton, the Social, Structural and Behavioral (SSB) Course Visioning Working Group first convened in October 2022 with the charge of reimagining the Health & Society/Health & the Individual course. The initiative coincided with the search for new leadership for the course and aligned with broader efforts to integrate an anti-oppression lens into the overall School of Medicine (SOM) curriculum. The Visioning Working Group delivered its recommendations to the SOM leadership in fall, 2023.

    6.  Longitudinal Advisory Group for JAM (Justice and Advocacy in Medicine)

Following the work of the Visioning Working Group above, a Longitudinal Advisory Group for JAM (Justice and Advocacy in Medicine) was launched in January 2024. Comprising AOCI representatives, students, faculty, and staff, this Advisory Group will provide ongoing feedback and input to the course leadership team on the evolving curriculum, including assessment strategies and pedagogy approaches. 

   7.  AOC Initiative Curricular Review Tool and Consultations

The AOC Initiative team has developed a Curricular Review Tool to guide UCSF faculty teaching medical students in the Bridges Curriculum in how to begin to integrate anti-oppressive practices in curricular content and approaches. The AOC Initiative Curricular Review Tool is designed to raise questions that warrant in-depth review and discussion during the session adaptation and development phase; it aims to provide guidance on anti-oppressive (AO) considerations and to create an opportunity for faculty to share recommendations and identify decisions that need to be made collaboratively. The AOCI team reviews and updates this tool regularly. 

After using the AOC Initiative Curricular Review Tool to begin evaluating course materials, faculty members are encouraged to partner with the CCL affiliated with their curricular content or to reach out to the AOCI at aoci@ucsf.edu for consultation. To request curriculum consultation appointments, please email aoci@ucsf.edu.

Faculty Development

The AOC Initiative team is continuously developing and curating resources that inform and support faculty as they strive to create more welcoming learning environments. Review the AOC Initiative Resources and Tools.

A curated resource list was developed to help all clinical faculty members increase their skills in creating equitable, welcoming, and actively anti-oppressive learning environments. The AOC Initiative Resources for the Clinical Learning Environment were shared with clinical faculty in February 2022 in coordination with the start of a new group of students joining Foundations 2. A set of faculty competencies is currently being developed to provide guidance for different types of educators as they continue to build their skills and knowledge in the areas of inclusion, equity, and anti-oppression. Faculty members interested in exploring the fundamentals of Anti-oppressive and Anti-racist Education are encouraged to visit the Center for Faculty Educators (CFE) for additional resources. 

Student Support

Since January 2023, under the guidance of Dr. Denise Davis, the UCSF School of Medicine has offered ongoing longitudinal mentoring groups tailored to affirm and in support of medical students with a focus on the experiences of those underrepresented in medicine. All students are welcome to participate. For more information, see the Diversity, Equity, Belonging, and Anti-Oppression Programs webpage.

Throughout the AOC Initiative, Denise Davis will continue to offer student support and group mentoring that honors medical students as holistic individuals and developing professionals.

Quarterly Anti-Oppression Updates Newsletter

Each quarter, we send an Anti-Oppression Updates newsletter to current UCSF medical students sharing our collective progress on the efforts of the Anti-Oppression Curriculum Initiative (AOCI) and the School of Medicine's overarching anti-oppression work.

Review archives of our quarterly Anti-Oppression Updates newsletter:

February 2024

September 2023

June 2023

Contact us: AOCI@ucsf.edu