Stories of Impact
Transforming Southeast Michigan
Will Jones III, volunteer, Black Men Read
our community reads
For our friend Kallista Marie at Our Community Reads, the vision of a future where Black children feel empowered and academically confident is worth striving towards. Since 2020, OCR has been creating safe spaces for Black children to be seen, valued, celebrated, and empowered. They host monthly spaces for girls (3rd through 8th grade) and boys (4th through 10th grade) that foster connection and provide mentorship. They offer workshops that create opportunities for self-awareness and create confidence. And they even provide opportunities for students to travel, letting them explore and discover their world in new ways.
“Thank you so much Ms. K and your team for giving these girls this opportunity they will never forget. Love it. You rock.” – Queens Club Parent
“What first stood out to me about Kallista was that she participated in not just one, but two Learning Communities at NEW. Kallista shows real dedication to herself and her leadership development to come back for a whole other year! She has also helped connect so many people to Champions for Change and Leadership Deli, such as her Son. Kallista nutures sense of community in that sense. She brings a this cool, calm and collected; ready to learn and fully present energy. She brings joyful ambiance and has a welcoming personality that makes people really want to talk to her and feel comfortable with her.” – Carly Friedrich, NEW team member
As part of our 2022-23 Champions for Change cohort, Kallista joined other leaders committed to racial justice in a ten (10) months, intensive leadership development experience. During the program, we created an inclusive community of anti-racist and thriving leaders and organizations. We healed through collective harm of white supremacy through principles of co-liberation and embodied practice. And we learned and practiced new ways of intentionally centering people with marginalized identities, voices, stories, and bodies.
“The tour with Matt Sigfried was huge. The history of Ypsi blew my mind. I was born and raised in Ypsi, and I didn’t know most of that stuff. You see how many things have happened over the years that got us to where we are today.”
Since our time together, Kallista often reflects on the conversations she was part of. “They opened me up, challenged my perspective, and expanded my heart. It’s helped me be a more evolved person, a community member, a mom, all of the things.”
“Kallista’s passion for literacy in particular with youth is contagious. She does a great job at connecting and collaborating with others in our Learning Communities. Even long after the programs have finished, she finds ways to still connect with other folks from other Learning Communities, such as Black Men Read. It was obvious that Kallista was not there to just learn for herself, but to nurture her sense of community and action, and other folks organizations. We feel so lucky to know Kallista and are honored to have her be a part of our community.” – Carly Friedrich
In 2023-24, NEW brought another seventy-nine (79) of SE Michigan’s leaders through our learning communities. We’re proud and grateful to work alongside Kallista and Our Community Reads in pursuit of our shared vision of a just and thriving society.
OUR MOST RECENT COMMUNITY IMPACT REPORT
Each year, NEW surveys the communities, organizations, and individuals we serve to understand the impact of our work. The following report highlights important findings from NEW’s 2024 Community Survey, as we reflect on work done in 2023.