Filipinx Faculty & Staff Association

FFSA log: The Berkeley Campanile in the middle with the sun and rays from the flag of the Philippines on the right and two Sampaguita flowers on the left. A circle surrounds it to represent unity between the Filipino community and Cal.

Mission and Purpose

The purpose of the Filipinx Faculty & Staff Association (FFSA) is to build community among and beyond Filipinx and other marginalized groups on campus and advocate for social justice issues through a decolonized framework. We do this through:

  • Fostering relationships between students, staff, faculty, and other organizations

  • Promoting educational opportunities and creating space for Filipinx culture and history

  • Providing professional development opportunities

  • Establishing allyship with other marginalized groups on campus

The Filipinx Faculty & Staff Association Community posing under sun-kissed oak trees.

Filipinx Faculty & Staff Association Community Kick-off Event, October 11, 2022

Sponsor

Fiscal sponsor: Asian Pacific American Student Development (APASD)


Two Year Anniversary of FFSA!

In 2024, the Filipinx Faculty & Staff Association celebrated its 2nd year on the UC Berkeley campus.

FFSA 2 year anniversary


FFSA 2024-25 Inaugural Steering Committee

FFSA Inaugural Steering Committee

In Spring 2024, the FFSA Organizing Committee made the recommendation for an updated FFSA structure. In Summer 2024, Co-Chair positions were introduced and responsibilities of the committees were reorganized. These changes reflect the learnings, highlights, and challenges from the previous year. While more formalized structures were created, there is still room to define these roles and committees and to remain true to our collective decision-making and strong spirit of collaboration. 

Here is the new FFSA organizational structure for 2024-2025:

Steering Committee: Leads FFSA, sets the vision for the year, makes decisions for the FFSA driven by our mission, manages the org constitution, and plans the annual steering committee retreat. The SC includes co-chairs of the subcommittees, working group, CESO representatives, and Advisors.

Finance & Operations Subcommittee: Manages the finance processes, budget and fundraising, connecting with UDAR and People & Culture, historian/archival processes, and logistics.

Partnerships & Communications Subcommittee: Manages internal and external communications, liaisons with other organizations, and coordinates with the Council of Ethnic Staff Organizations (CESO).

Programs Subcommittee: Plans and implements major programs and events (e.g. Filipinx American History Month events, Tagay Time, guest speakers) in order to build community and create diverse spaces for relationship-building. 

Membership Working Group: Dreams, develops, and implements a structure and associated activities to welcome and onboard new FFSA members. 

CESO Representatives: Represent the FFSA on the Council of Ethnic Staff Organization (CESO).

FFSA Advisors: Serve in an advisory capacity to FFSA organizing members.

Bayanihan: Filipina/o/x Representation On Campus
In the spirit of “bayanihan” (“community” in Filipino), our small but impactful Filipinx community at UC Berkeley creates intentional partnerships and has done so for decades. This enables meaningful and empowering collaboration, and it allows us to leverage resources to meet our mission while uplifting all in our community. To learn more about our Filipinx bayanihan on campus, go to https://calpilcommunity.org/.

FFSA Community Mapping


About the FFSA Logo

Thank you to Kenneth Macaraig and Maya Varian (fellow FFSA colleagues and professional graphic designers) for their many volunteer hours, working together to conceptualize and create the logo designs. Special thanks to Kenneth for his generous, expert advice on Berkeley branding.

“I wanted to create a logo that incorporated recognizable iconography from Cal and the Philippines and chose the national flower, the Sampaguita, along with the sun and rays from the flag of the Philippines, and the Berkeley Campanile. A circle has been added to represent unity between the Filipino community and Cal.” 

– Maya Varian

Assistant Director of Development, Greater Good Science Center

Filipinx Faculty & Staff Association Organizing Committee

Kamusta! (“Hello!” in Filipino)

We’re glad you’re here!

Ways to Connect

Email our Organizing Committee at filipinx-fsa@berkeley.edu

Follow our Instagram: @FilipinxFSA_Berkeley

Subscribe to the FFSA Events Calendar: bit.ly/ffsaevents

Steering Committee 2024-2025

FFSA CO-CHAIRS

Emily Enriquez*

Tracy Pascua Dea

FINANCE & OPERATIONS SUBCOMMITTEE

Adiel Dimarucut* (Co-Chair)

Danielle Molina (Co-Chair)

Maya Varian

Pauline Roxas

Tiffany Cruz

PARTNERSHIPS & COMMUNICATIONS SUBCOMMITTEE

Miranda Calacsan (Communications Chair)

Mickael Candelaria (Partnerships Co-Chair)

Jessica Mangaccat (Partnerships Co-Chair)

Alex Brown

Alex Marquez

Catherine McChrystal

Christina Haustle

Dean Caparaz

Louvir Fernando-Oreta

PROGRAMS SUBCOMMITTEE

Lisha Bornilla (Co-Chair)

Arman Liwanag (Co-Chair)

Alex Brown

Caitlin Dabatos

Drina Puzon

Hans Ocampo

Kai Santiago

Louvir Fernando-Oreta

MEMBERSHIP WORKING GROUP

Alex Brown (Co-Chair)

Drina Puzon (Co-Chair)

Hans Ocampo

Jessica Mangaccat

Melissa Urbano

Mickael Candelaria

Miranda Calacsan

REPRESENTATIVES, COALITION OF ETHNIC STAFF ORGANIZATIONS (CESO) 

Christina Hausle 

Catherine McChrystal*

FFSA ADVISORS

Dean Caparaz

Melissa Urbano*

*FFSA Co-Founders, additional co-founders include: Amanda Loo, Fritzie de Mata, Marifel Verlohr