When first asked about how he originally got involved with the Maya people, he routinely explained that he was trained as a Latin American historian, and his dissertation was on U.S. relations with Guatemala. This goes to show that the endeavors and topics graduate students engross themselves in during graduate school can very well shape the paths and communities that are part of their future careers. LeBaron received his PhD in Latin American History from the University of Florida in 1988 and started working at KSU in 1991. The MHCP program stemmed from a class assignment LeBaron created for one of his History of Mexico classes. It “started as a small one day meeting with some local Maya to learn from them about their culture” stated LeBaron. As interest grew about the project, more students and faculty volunteered for the program. By 2004, it became a national engagement program hosting national Maya conferences, and in 2007 the MHCP became an approved project connected to the United States Peace Corps, Paul D. Coverdell Fellows Program. Over the years, graduate students increasingly work with LeBaron and the MHCP. He assesses their skills and academic goals to assign them to appropriate projects, always striving to ensure graduate students are having a “living experience- meaning, personal interactions with the Maya people to one degree or another.” An example of a past assignment involved a student that assisted a Maya family with issues their child was experiencing in the public school system. A report was written about policy obstacles and recommendations for real world issues the Maya are facing in today’s society.
McGrew
Another example is the work done by LeBaron’s most recent Graduate Research Assistant (GRA), Mandy McGrew (MAST’11). McGrew worked with LeBaron and the MHCP as a GRA for two and a half years while she worked on her Masters in American Studies. She had been out of school for six years raising her two kids when she decided she wanted to pursue her master’s degree. According to McGrew, she was “randomly assigned” to be LeBaron’s GRA because of her interest and background
Mandy McGrew (above) was a GRA for serval semsters with the MHCP. Part of her assignment was devoted to developing a Maya Health Toolkit.
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