Category: Stories From the Network

“Confidence” is a love letter to Black people, written, composed, and performed by Christina Armstrong (an ‘07 alum and current staff member of our Chicago site), with support from band members: Tyrone Jackson – Bass Journey Burns – Percussion, Sound Engineering Kara Blaylock – Supporting Vocals Enjoy! This piece is part of Public Allies’ campaign Read More

By John Broadway When day comes we step out of the shade, aflame and unafraid The new dawn blooms as we free it For there is always light, if only we’re brave enough to see it If only we’re brave enough to be it. — Amanda Gorman, 2021 Inaugural Poet I hope Amanda Gorman’s loving call for unity inspired you to be the Read More

Over 750,000 first time unemployment claims were filed last week, up to a quarter of all small businesses remain closed, and there is growing concern over the increase in substance abuse overdoses and suicide brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.  Yet for one Public Allies staff alum, there has never been a better time for Read More

Whether it be students struggling with education, Black mothers losing babies, or a community beset by any number of issues, Dr. Meredith Shockley-Smith’s proposed solutions always start the same way: Listen to those most impacted. Let them lead.  Simple but true, this asset-based mindset has guided Meredith, an alum of Public Allies Cincinnati (‘07), through Read More

To Garrison Davis, the nature preserve bordering his childhood home was a sanctuary. “It’s where I went to think, relax, and appreciate life,” he says. Now, his mission is to protect that preserve and the environment we all share. Garrison’s service journey started shortly after high school. Joining the Public Allies Delaware AmeriCorps apprenticeship program Read More

Art and human rights: To Marissa Gutiérrez-Vicario, they have always been intertwined. Once a director with Public Allies New York, Marissa went on to start Art and Resistance Through Education (ARTE), which empowers young people to find their voices and advocate for crucial human rights issues—all through the accessible mediums of visual art and design. Read More

As protests for George Floyd erupted in his Minneapolis neighborhood, Public Allies alum Dan Méndez Moore found familiarity in the unrest.  Almost twenty years earlier, in April 2001, Dan’s hometown of Cincinnati was engulfed by similar protests after the police killing of 19-year-old Timothy Thomas. With 15 young Black men having died in police custody Read More

Public Allies members come from diverse educational and professional backgrounds, yet they all have a calling to serve something greater than themselves and see Public Allies as a pathway towards achieving that. Current Public Allies Arizona Members Channtal Polanco and Iyamidé May are great examples of this. Channtal has her high school degree, and was Read More

Congratulations to Marquisa Wince, Public Allies Milwaukee class of ’17, for being awarded the B.A. Rudolph Scholarship at the University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service. The B.A. Rudolph Foundation awards this $12,000 scholarship annually to a woman who is a rising second year at the school and who best embodies the mission and Read More

Meet Jermal Muhammad, a second year Member at Public Allies Connecticut. Jermal is Lead College Access Advisor at Higher Heights Youth Empowerment Program (HHYEP) where he has been piloting a citywide FAFSA completion drive in New Haven, Connecticut. When we checked in with Jermal, he had already held 8 FAFSA  workshops and assisted over 150 students to complete their Read More