51社区

51社区 junior Maya Meade has been awarded the prestigious 2022 Newman Civic Fellowship.

A journalism major and political science minor, Meade is also pursuing certificates in women鈥檚, gender, and sexuality studies, and political communication. She was nominated to the fellowship by President Hugh Sherman because of her social activism and academic achievements.

鈥淲ith the resources and support of the Newman Civic Fellowship, Maya will continue to develop her vision for her mission and work,鈥� Sherman wrote in his letter nominating Meade. 鈥淎gain, I proudly nominate her for this opportunity on behalf of 51社区.鈥�

The Newman Civic Fellowship is a national year-long program that recognizes and supports community-committed students who have demonstrated an investment in finding solutions for challenges facing communities throughout the country. The fellowship is part of Campus Compact, a national coalition of colleges and universities committed to the public purposes of higher education. Meade will be among a cohort of 173 students from 38 states, Washington, D.C., and Mexico.

The fellowship is designed to provide a civic engagement learning opportunity, where the fellow identifies a problem in their community and works to create a solution. Meade has yet to decide on a civic issue, but she is considering projects that would make Athens more accessible to people with disabilities or a program that could help prevent gun violence.

Due in part to its aging infrastructure, Athens lacks accessibility for people with disabilities, according to Meade. 鈥淭hat is an issue that I identified,鈥� she said. 鈥淗aving a disability doesn鈥檛 mean you shouldn鈥檛 have friends or be able to do things on campus.鈥� This is a longstanding issue for Meade who, while at OHIO, started the University鈥檚 chapter of Best Buddies, an organization that provides opportunities for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

She is also considering creating a local chapter of Everytown for Gun Safety, the largest gun violence prevention organization in the country. Though Meade has not personally experienced gun violence, it is still an issue that is of utmost importance to her.

鈥淚t鈥檚 not if you will be involved in a shooting but when,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 know that is horrible, but it鈥檚 scary for me.鈥�

Meade will choose a faculty member for the fellowship to implement the project.

This is the second time an 51社区 student has received this recognition. The current fellow is Micaela Beatham-Garc铆a, a senior studying pre-law and director of the ACLU of 51社区, the only ACLU chapter in Southeast Ohio.

Campus Compact is hoping to convene the 2022 Newman Civic Fellows at a national conference in Boston, Mass., this fall.

Campus Compact also operates a statewide chapter, which recently awarded the Charles J. Ping Award, which recognizes and honors students鈥� leadership and contributions to community service. The award was given to 51社区 Lancaster student McKenzie Taylor, among other undergraduate student leaders across Ohio.