STATEMENTS BY PAST FELLOWS
Shayna McDonough

My name is Shayna McDonough, and I am 23 years old. In December of 2001, I received my B.A. in liberal arts with a major concentration in cultural anthropology at Rhode Island College. I have lived in Rhode Island my whole life, with the exception of six months that I lived in Boston, MS to participate in AmeriCorps City Year, and for the full school year that I spent in County Kildare, Ireland studying abroad while in college.

Believe it or not, I initially became interested in social justice through music. Through listening to certain bands and going to concerts/benefits, I was introduced to an array of social injustices within our country and abroad. My passion and intrigue towards these aspects of society drew me to seek out more music and literature that explored such issues. Also, in college I began taking classes that dealt with culture, racism, and inequality to continue to further my interest in attaining social justice. Soon enough, I joined City Year, a national youth community service organization. Through participating in this group, I learned a great deal about serving the community mainly through the urban elementary school that I worked in daily. In addition, City Year assisted me in leadership training and community organization.