Amy Marie Argenal

Amy Argenal completed her doctorate in International and Multicultural Education at the University of San Francisco, where she also received her Master’s in the same area of study. She received her second Masters in Human Rights from Mahidol University in Thailand, where she continued to partner with human rights activists in South East Asia, through her doctorate research focusing on human rights activism in Myanmar. Amy served as the Director of Service Learning at Urban High School in San Francisco for eight years. She has published on critical service learning and presented at various conferences on teaching race, power and privilege. In addition to her work, she engages in immigrant and refugee rights work and partners with local communities in Central America in their struggle to defend land and water.

• Migration Studies
• Ethnic Studies
• Human Rights Education

• Human Rights Education
• Central American Migration
• Root Causes of Migration
• Transnational Solidarity
• Service Learning and Community Engagement

• University of San Francisco, EdD in International and Multicultural Education, 2016
• Mahidol University, MA in Human Rights, 2009
• University of San Francisco, MA in International and Multicultural Education, 2007
• UC Berkeley, BA in History with an emphasis on Latin America, 2001

• Lecturer in Human Rights Studies, UC Davis
• Adjunct Professor, CAS and School of Education, University of San Francisco
• Director of Service Learning, Urban School of San Francisco

• University of San Francisco Distinguished Adjunct Teaching Award, 2020
• University of San Francisco Francisco Gerardo Marin Faculty Member of the Year, 2018

• Argenal, A. (2021). Centering relationships in the dissertation: Conducting PAR as a way to build relationships outside of the academy. In S. Atalay & A. McCleary (Eds.), The community-based PhD: Complexities, triumphs, missteps and joys of conducting community-based & Participatory Action Research as graduate students. University of Arizona Press.
• Argenal, A. & Baja, M. (2021). Reclaiming Spaces, Reshaping Practices: Yoga for Building Community and Nurturing Families of Color. In Hagan, C. (Ed), Practicing yoga as resistance. Routledge.
• Koirala-Azad, S, Zanoni, K. & Argenal, A. (2018). Critical reflections on the positionality of human rights educators working in diverse contexts. In S.M. Akpovo, M.J. Moran & R. Brookshire (Eds.), Collaborative cross-cultural research methodologies in early care and education contexts (pp. 81-98). Routledge.
• Argenal, A. (2018). Teaching privilege that is mindful of identity development. Connections Quarterly: Privilege, 37(4), 11-15.
• Bajaj, M., Argenal, A. & Canlas, M. (2017). Socio-politically relevant pedagogy for immigrant and refugee youth. Equity & Excellence in Education 50(3), 258-274.