Stonehill Senior Honored by Faculty of Color Association

Stonehill College’s Faculty of Color Association (FOCA) recently named Black Studies major Sadé Ratliff ’23 of Randolph, Massachusetts, as the recipient of the 2022 FOCA Student Leadership Award. This honor is given annually to a student of color who has helped make Stonehill College a more diverse and inclusive institution.  

“Sadé is exceptional in that her leadership engagements as a young Haitian Black American woman serving as a voice for BIPOC communities and young people began well before her joining Stonehill College. She has continued these community engagements while also being an outstanding leader on campus. Looking at her long list of community services and activisms, you can feel she grew up with love for her communities and passion for racial and social justice,” said Professor of Sociology Jungyun Gill, chair of the FOCA Student Leadership Award committee. 

Ratliff is a founding member of Students in Action, a group dedicated to enacting social change. As part of this work, Ratliff co-organized a sit-in to advocate for greater racial diversity, equity and inclusion at Stonehill.  

Ratliff has also volunteered with affinity groups like the Afro-Caribbean Club; the Black Student Union; and Radiant, Inspirational, Sisters Empowered. Last spring, she was named Student Government Association Executive Diversity Chair. This summer, she completed a project on building interracial solidarity as part of the Stonehill Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE). 

In addition, Ratliff has completed impactful internships with the Urban League of Eastern Massachusetts, Justice4Housing and Pay our Interns. She served as a field organizer and youth advisory councilmember for Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley. She was also a campaign fellow for Senator Edward Markey. 

Throughout her academic and professional experiences, Ratliff has leveraged her knowledge and empathy for others to lobby for housing and incarceration legislation, education policy for Black students, job training for Black communities, domestic violence and sexual assault prevention, intern rights, and pandemic relief efforts. For her service, she received Stonehill’s Community Engagement Award in spring 2022. She was also named the recipient of Campus Compact’s Newman Civic Fellowship in 2021.