BUILDING TRUST IN THE COMMUNITY

from Innovations Magazine: USF St. Petersburg campus | Volume 4 | 2023

by usfstpetersburgcampus

PRIORITIZING MENTAL HEALTH

MINORITY STUDENTS COME TOGETHER TO DISCUSS RELATIONSHIPS WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT

Sarah Sell

When USF student Aaron Rose joined a group of his peers on the St. Petersburg campus for a panel on race, policing and trust in April 2022, he had no idea how impactful his words would be. He was asked to describe his physical and emotional response to seeing a police officer.

“It’s a sad reality; I feel as though I have to act a certain way and come off as less threatening because I know as a Black man, I can be viewed as a little more threatening than others,” Rose said.

Similar stories followed, with local law enforcement officers expressing their own fears and frustrations about how they want to be perceived and trusted in the community.

“In high school, I met our school resource officer, and he did a lot for the kids in school. He was the person who looked out for us, took care of us, and we had an officer who worked in the community who did the same thing,” said St. Petersburg Chief of Police Anthony Holloway. “So, when you had a problem, you went to those officers. They weren’t there to arrest you but to help you grow and mentor you.”

The panel included Holloway, USF St. Petersburg campus Chief of Police David Hendry and Captain Paul Andrews, as well as students and staff from the St. Petersburg campus.

The Office of Multicultural Affairs (OMA) organized the forum, which was led by Destiny Gomez, a USF student who is part of a racial justice program with fellow panel member Aaron Rose.

“I was super excited and passionate about this topic,” Gomez said. “Right now, there is a lot of mistrust on both sides. My goal was to start bridging the gap between students and university police, especially regarding students of color.”

The Racial Justice Fellows program puts college students in Pinellas County at the center of creating systemic racial change. The program is a joint initiative among the USF St. Petersburg campus, Eckerd College, St. Petersburg College, Stetson University College of Law and the Foundation for a Healthy St. Petersburg.

In September, that consortium called the St. Petersburg/Pinellas Higher Educations for Racial Equity (SPHERE) chose its second cohort of racial justice fellows. It included eight students, two each from four Pinellas County universities and colleges, for the year-long fellowship.

“Working with leaders in the community and the SPHERE consortium, this class of Racial Justice Fellows will build on the work of the first cohort and help to establish real change through projects focused on shaping policy and transforming systems to create more equitable outcomes for all,” said Michelle Madden, campus diversity officer at USF’s St. Petersburg campus.

The fellowship provides college students with opportunities to inform policy and address barriers through a racial justice lens. Students learn about mechanisms that enable racial healing and serve in summer internships to work on projects that support racial healing and transformation in the local community. Each student will receive up to $2,000 during the 2022-2023 academic year.

“We hope that SPHERE’s one-year fellowship and summer community internships will introduce our students to a lifetime commitment of addressing racial injustices,” said Judith Scully, a professor of law and director of the Social Justice Advocacy program at Stetson College of Law. “Our curriculum is merely a foundation for our students to stand upon as they begin to see themselves as courageous leaders with a focus on racial equity.”

The eight fellows selected this year are: Marizzol Medina and Jordan Nielubowski from Eckerd College; Katherine Mack and Dean Mucaj from St. Petersburg College; Zenea Johnson and Jessica King from Stetson University’s College of Law; and Dala Daniels and Kima Sibayan from the University of South Florida St. Petersburg campus.

“I’m so proud to see our second cohort of SPHERE Racial Justice Fellows stepping up to this challenging and rewarding program,” said Amanda Hagood, an Eckerd College Animal Studies instructor and SPHERE curriculum committee member. “It helps our students engage deeply and courageously with the problems of systemic racism at both campus and community levels, and builds the leadership skills needed to take all of that heart-work and headwork forward. We, as the faculty and staff supporting this process, can learn so much from our student fellows.”

Fellows follow a curriculum that covers issues on racial history, diversity, equity and more, have regular meetings with mentors and will complete a six-week internship in the summer of 2023 that focuses on deepening their understanding of systemic racism and developing opportunities to drive healing and transformation. Last year, Racial Justice Student Fellows completed internships with organizations such as the NAACP, the city of St. Petersburg, the St. Pete Youth Farm and Community Tampa Bay.

Right now, there is a lot of mistrust on both sides. My goal was to start bridging the gap between students and university police, especially regarding students of color.

Over the course of the academic year, students will also be involved in several approved activities, events or discussions related to race equity and racial justice and are able to participate in biweekly planning meetings with consortium institution representatives to help shape the vision, goals and activities of a Truth, Racial Healing and Transformation Center for Pinellas County. This can include participating in other meetings at their home institutions as well as engaging with community members.

“It is important to create translational opportunities between what students are learning in the classroom and activating their interests and passions to have an impact in the community,” said Julie Rocco, director of strategic investments with the Foundation for a Healthy St. Petersburg. “Race equity work is hard, but it is uplifting when you believe there are others who are eager in joining this effort and aspire to what many in our community and the foundation strive to achieve.”

SPHERE emerged out of a community task force that was convened to connect efforts in addressing inequalities that exist in the region. These institutions, which collectively serve more than 40,000 students, have been collaborating since the fall of 2020 to create a consortium working to dismantle racial hierarchies in the region.