After 32 years as a professor at Oxy, Dreier will return in 2026 as an adjunct—to teach his first-ever class on poverty and inequality and take one more swing at Campaign Semester
(Editor's note: Our interview with Professor Dreier will be posted in this space in the coming days.)
Sunari Weaver-Anderson ’24: It’s hard to overstate the influence Professor Peter Dreier has had on my academic and professional trajectory. I knew Occidental was the place for me when I discovered Campaign Semester—a program that allows students to work full-time on a swing-state campaign. I was sold on an Oxy education upon learning that hands-on engagement in social justice wasn’t the exception, but the norm in departments like Politics and Urban and Environmental Policy. Little did I know at the time, as an applicant, that this ethos was largely pioneered by Peter Dreier.
I became one of Professor Dreier’s students in my junior year, during Campaign Semester. With his encouragement, I became the first student to spend my semester on a union electoral campaign, canvassing with UNITE HERE members in Philadelphia. It’s this experience that I credit with finding my place in the labor movement, and it continues to drive my work in organizing and research to this day.
In Professor Dreier’s classes, there were no “easy A’s:” He’s known for assigning dense readings, challenging students in discussions, and being a tough grader. But by the end of my Oxy education, I began to recognize the value of being held to a higher standard. When we student workers began to unionize ourselves, his classes weren’t just informative—they were imperative. His Community Organizing course became a training ground for our union campaign and other student-led actions on campus. As students, we took the week’s readings and brought them to our weekend organizing meetings, attempting to replicate what we’d learned in class.
Further Reading
Let's Play Two
In a pair of new books, Oxy politics professor Peter Dreier tips his cap to the mavericks, iconoclasts, and rebels who have shaped baseball history
Perhaps most inspiring is that Peter Dreier walks the walk. Wherever there are community organizations making real change in the city, chances are he’s not too far removed. Whether hopping on a call with a recent graduate to talk about career prospects, or turning a Dodgers game into an educational opportunity, Professor Dreier’s support of his students is unrelenting. While he may have retired from his tenured position, I know that his dedication to public service will continue to reach far beyond the classroom.
Thank you, Professor Dreier. I plan to carry your lessons with me for the rest of my life. I hope that in all of us former students, you see your teachings alive and well.
A political science major and Obama Scholar at Oxy, Sunari Weaver-Anderson ’24 is a strategic researcher and organizer in labor, political, community, and student spaces.
