Today we’d like to introduce you to Karen Leader.
Karen, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
In the months following the deadly massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas (MSD) High School, in Parkland Florida, the world witnessed the emergence of a new generation of youth activists, using their immediate fame, born in a relentless media spotlight, to grab the reins of the debate around gun violence and reform.
Joining Black Lives Matter, the Dreamers, and the Women’s March, this phenomenon gives hope for the empowerment of marginalized voices to shape public policy and strengthen communities. Florida Atlantic University (FAU), by its proximity to Parkland, is perfectly situated to foster the growth of this generation of leaders, activists, and changemakers. Knowing that students proximate to MSD would see, and want to emulate the inspiring work of the Parkland students and parents, provided the impetus to develop the program described below.
Beginning with an open call to interested faculty, spearheaded by Dean Michael Horswell and a team from the non-profit Peaceful Mind Peaceful Life, the Barb Schmidt Fellowship: Cultivating Community Involvement, Activism and Social Change was launched in Spring 2018. An application was developed and disseminated via school principals and guidance counselors resulting, in a remarkably short period of time, in 65 completed applications, from 19 Broward and Palm Beach County private and public high schools, for a year-long, 6-credit, dual-enrollment high school program. An initial 30 students, representing multiple categories of diversity, were admitted. For additional information about the fellowship visit: https://www.fau.edu/artsandletters/college-initiatives/barb-schmidt-fellowship/
A team of four faculty, Karen Leader (Visual Arts and Art History), Angela Nichols (Political Science), William Trapani (School of Communications and Multimedia Studies), and Joseph Velasquez (Visual Arts and Art History), partnering with Peaceful Mind Peaceful Life, Barb Schmidt’s non-profit, built a curriculum based on a theory/practice model, to be delivered by FAU and visiting faculty, community partners, and expert trainers. Each session is a combination of historical or theoretical models of organizing and activism, combined with practical workshops on relevant skills. The capstone group projects, tiered assignments addressing social issues chosen by the students, produce concrete outcomes including community partnerships, public presentations, and, we hope, continued organizing facilitated by individual $1,000 stipends.
All of this is underpinned by a strong ethos of mindfulness, the necessity for activism to practice self-care and sustainable expenditures of physical and emotional energy, in order to have maximum impacts. I write this as the Director of the program, looking to expand the model and increase the impacts. I am always looking for partners in this.
Has it been a smooth road?
Because we felt the urgency of the moment, we built this program from scratch in a miraculously short amount of time. I described the first year as “laying down the tracks as the train was bearing down.” We are enormously proud of our first cohort of fellows (a group of whom, The Safe Sex Project, was recently featured in these pages.) They were all courageous and dedicated and willing to step out of comfort zones.
We were very aware of the many stresses of our fellows, taking on this challenge on top of their full high school lives. In addition, our origins as a response to MSD Strong gave us all a deep sense of responsibility. Thus, the importance of Barb and Michelle’s teaching, the mindfulness and meditation sessions, and lessons in coping, empathy and thriving can’t be overstated.
Please tell us more about your work.
Our program addresses a multitude of social issues, including mental health, climate change, racial justice, LGBTQIA equality, gun violence, educational inequities, poverty and hunger. Fellows also learn skills like video editing, printmaking, political advocacy, public speaking, time management, non-violent protest, and again empathy and mindfulness.
How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
Our program is a public/private partnership, with FAU, which is a public university, providing faculty, staff, and facilities; while philanthropy underwrites the cost of tuition and fees (Barb Schmidt Fellows are fully funded), the practitioners we bring to teach, lunch, field trips, and the completion stipend. We fundraise year-round and are filled with gratitude for those who have supported us.
Higher education, in general, is changing, and while we receive accolades for this innovative program, we hear regularly about belt-tightening, budget cuts, and “practical” degrees. If I’d like those reading this to take one thing away, it is that taxpayers should support public education not because it is job-training, but life-creating.
Contact Info:
- Address: Florida Atlantic University
777 Glades Road
Boca Raton, FL 33432 - Website: http://www.fau.edu/artsandletters/college-initiatives/barb-schmidt-fellowship/
- Email: kleader@fau.edu
- Instagram: @barbschmidtfellowship
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/706778643035182/
- Twitter: @barbfellowship
- Other: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8831663/
Barb Schmidt Fellows plan an action in Beautiful Trouble workshop
Be visible, document everything.
Intention words keep fellows on track.
Year Two cohort with Barb Schmidt and Michelle Maros, founders of Peaceful Mind Peaceful Life.
Fellows get a private reception with Jane Goodall.
Parkland father Manuel Oliver offers a powerful monologue, carrying forward the activist work of his slain son, Joaquin 
Former Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum and Activist and Educator Brittany Packnett-Cunningham, dropping knowledge.
Challenge Course—team building.
Rep. Ted Deutch takes tough questions.
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