Ai Grace Acton is an undergraduate student studying International Relations and Sociology at Tufts University. This past summer, Acton was awarded a grant from the Tufts Summer Scholars program to conduct research on multiracial Asian American identity. She is currently extending this research into a senior honors thesis on how multiracial Asian-white individuals understand and negotiate their racial identities within both their communities and the broader U.S. racial hierarchy, drawing on qualitative methods and critical approaches from sociology, Asian American studies, and mixed-race studies.
Beyond her independent research, Acton is analyzing qualitative data from more than forty interviews examining equity and climate in public exam schools following admissions reform as a research assistant to Professor Warikoo in the Department of Sociology. This collaborative project aims to offer insight into the efficacy of the new policy and ultimately improve its implementation.
Grace’s academic and activist work intersect deeply. As a project lead with the Tufts Asian Student Coalition (TASC), she has designed and facilitated workshops that encourage students to think critically about their Asian American identity as a political category. She co-led a successful campaign to strengthen the university’s ethnic studies program, resulting in expanded resources, funding, and course offerings. She also edits and publishes creative and critical works in Voices, Tufts’ Asian American literary and arts magazine, which uplifts Asian American narratives and cultural expression. Her organizing emphasizes solidarity and collective liberation, particularly through mobilizing students for actions and rallies supporting Palestinian liberation and other social justice movements.
In addition to her research and community engagement, Grace works as a Writing Fellow at Tufts, mentoring peers on advanced academic writing. She is also the founder of Light It Up English, an educational initiative that provides personalized English instruction for children across cultures. Through this work, she deepens her commitment to inclusive education and cross-cultural dialogue, values that also shape her scholarship and activism. She is dedicated to bridging academic inquiry and community engagement through work that amplifies Asian American and multiracial narratives, challenges racial hierarchies, and envisions more inclusive futures.