Summer Class 2025: Writing for Social Justice

Class Description

10:00 – 11:30 AM PST | 1:00 – 2:30 PM EST

Jul 28 – Aug 1 2025

This course teaches students how to use their voice to create impact through writing. Students will explore personal narrative, persuasive writing, op-eds, poetry, and storytelling as tools for advocacy. Through writing exercises, guided discussion, and structured feedback, students will build confidence in their ability to express their values, respond to social issues, and spark change through their words. Open to all writing levels and ages 12–17.

Class Summary

Students will learn, practice, and share writing strategies that help amplify underrepresented voices and bring awareness to the causes they care about. By the end of the course, students will have a completed piece (or pieces) ready to publish, perform, or submit.

Topics covered:

Personal narrative and identity in writing
Persuasive writing and opinion pieces
Poetry for protest and healing
Research and fact-checking techniques
Writing to raise awareness
Storytelling and testimony as advocacy
Writing for different audiences and platforms

Students will participate in instructor-led and supervised lessons with activities during online sessions. They will then have the rest of the day to write at their own pace, applying the skills taught in class to their projects.

Meet Your Instructors

Keiko Rakin

Keiko Rakin is the Founder and CEO of the Young Authors’ Alliance, an international organization dedicated to uplifting youth writers. An incoming senior at Alhambra High School, Keiko has been writing since the first grade and is currently working on publishing her 450-page fantasy novel. She has participated in renowned writing programs such as WriteGirl, Write the World, the UCLA Writing Extension, and Idyllwild Arts. At school, she serves as President of the Creative Writing Club, where she leads workshops and teaches writing techniques to fellow students. She is also a member of the Slam Poetry Club and has competed in several spoken word events. As the Student Board Member for the Alhambra Unified School District, Keiko represents over 14,000 students across Alhambra, Monterey Park, and the San Gabriel Valley. This summer, she will attend the prestigious Telluride Association Summer Seminar, a highly selective program where she will study the intersection of arts, writing, social justice, and Black feminist storytelling in Washington, D.C. Keiko previously taught last year’s Fantasy, Sci-Fi, and Speculative Fiction course and brings extensive experience in English tutoring, creative writing mentorship, and student leadership. She is passionate about nurturing youth voices and can’t wait to read her students’ stories!

Angelina Yip

Angelina Yip is a student leader and passionate public speaker with a strong record of inspiring youth through storytelling and advocacy. She currently serves as President of PLUS (Peer Leaders Uniting Students) and is a representative on the Student Advisory Council (SAC), where she leads initiatives centered on inclusion, student wellness, and peer empowerment. Angelina has earned numerous public speaking awards at both local and state levels, including first-place finishes in FBLA competitions and the Lions Student Speaker Contest. As a co-teacher for Young Authors Alliance Writing for Social Justice class, she brings her experience and energy to help students grow not just as writers—but as confident, clear, and impactful communicators.

Guest Speaker

Andréa A. César is a Haitian-American scholar-artist and multidisciplinary creator currently based in Bergen County, NJ. Her artistic practice explores the intersection of choreography, poetry, and vulnerability as a means of investigating identity, storytelling, and the complexities of the human experience. Her work centers multidimensionality and social activism, most notably through Salon Series 2: Khoreowords, a project that uplifts the narratives of women and 21st-century humanity.

She currently serves as an adjunct lecturer at Hunter College, where she continues to bridge academic inquiry with embodied, creative expression—encouraging students to explore theory through practice and to engage critically with movement, identity, and culture. Her teaching philosophy is grounded in accessibility, imagination, and self-inquiry, fostering spaces where students can reflect, question, and create from their lived experiences.

Rooted in a deep commitment to human connection, César crafts nonfiction-based works that challenge dominant narratives, center marginalized voices, and spark a sense of curiosity and social reflection. Her interdisciplinary work blends storytelling, research, and performance to explore memory, resistance, and the radical possibilities of queer Caribbean feminist expression.