The Center for Law, Engagement, And Politics (LEAP) at Sam Houston State University offers unique learning opportunities for students related to the fine arts; history; civil rights; literature; and, in particular, law, engagement, and politics. Its mission is to promote civic leadership skills by providing educational and professional experiences across all disciplines through programming, volunteerism, experiential learning, and travel.
As LEAP prepares to celebrate its 20th anniversary this month, we caught up with Professor Mike Yawn and some of the LEAP students to learn more about the organization. I use the term “caught up” because, literally, Yawn sent me their busy schedule for the week and said, “Here is where we will be when.” The where just happened to be when LEAP was at the Meals on Wheels Senior Center volunteering alongside community seniors to paint bowls for the upcoming annual Empty Bowls fundraiser for the Meals program. LEAP has assisted with Empty Bowls from its beginning in Huntsville (and Yawn shared that the idea was originally brought to Huntsville by a LEAP student who had seen it in another locale).
Jacob Wessels, from Cypress, has been participating with LEAP for the last two years. He shared that the event opportunities are awesome, but he also really appreciates the student and faculty mentoring, noting that Jean Loveall helped him through LSAT scores. One of his favorite events was a trip to Austin. “We visited the Texas Supreme Court and saw Justice Evan Young,” said Jacob. “We got to visit with him and ask him questions. It was a neat experience.” One of Jacob’s favorite ongoing service projects is helping the Huntsville Lion’s Club place and retrieve flags for their downtown flag project.
I also visited with Mikaela Baires, a student originally from Long Island, New York. When I asked about the different components of LEAP as outlined above in the mission statement, she balked at the distinction. “In my opinion, it’s all educational. Anything and everything can be a lesson if you’re open to it. The service opportunities teach us to how to relate to and communicate with members of this community, which will be beneficial for communicating with people I work with and for in the future. The more you give, the more you get.” Mikaela summed it up, “The LEAP program is one of the best things to come out of Sam Houston State University, hands down.”
When SHSU Professor Mike Yawn was working on his PhD at Arizona State University, they had a program called Junior Fellows. Fellowship programs are pretty common in different places. The concept was to recruit promising students in apprenticeship-style positions, with faculty members providing sponsorship and mentorship.
He decided to begin a similar program at Sam Houston State. It was called Junior Fellows from 2005 to 2012. “We did a lot of work,” recalls Yawn. “We did not have a grand design. We knew that we wanted to teach skills and we wanted to contribute to and support the community.”
Through trial and error, the group progressed to a model that worked. Up until 2012, all costs of attending events, travel, and program supplies came out of the pockets of students and faculty. As the program continued to grow, this was becoming a challenge. Fortunately, at this point, the University saw enough value in the program to expand and fund it. Since 2013, it has been the Center for Law, Engagement, and Politics.
Yawn explains, “Now we have a budget for things and a little more formalized structure. We only have two staff members. It’s me and program coordinator Jean Loveall, who came onboard shortly after the 2013 expansion. We keep it running with the help of student workers.”
While the LEAP Center hosts approximately 150 events per year, the bulk of opportunities come from facilitating outside connections providing chances for student education and service. There is a wide variety of experiences, and students can lean in where their interests lie.
Yawn describes the offerings, “We oversee the Pre-law Society. Some students are only interested in that. Some students do volunteer work, and that’s really all they can do. We have two internship programs. We send some students to Austin and some students to the City of Huntsville. Then we have programs. And we also go to events and outside programs.”
While Yawn is an energetic catalyst for student involvement, he doesn’t see staff as the biggest factor. “Jean and I don’t do all the work. We don’t do any magic. Our job is just to open doors for learning opportunities, and it’s the student’s job and responsibility to walk through those doors. And then they will find doors beyond there that we didn’t even know about. And if they’re good students, and if it’s good for them, they’ll go through those doors. That’s great.”
Yawn describes the education model as Prepare, Experience, Reflect. He explained, “Today, before we came to this event, the students had to do a little bit of prep work to familiarize themselves with what the Senior Center is, what Empty Bowls is. Then they go and they experience it. And then one of them will write about it afterward to reflect on it. And then we use that. First, on social media, to benefit the agency that we are working with. Then, next time we will send the prior blog beforehand to the students going to that agency so they know what they’re getting into and what to expect. So, it’s also a training tool, and it’s a machine that builds on itself.”
Yawn credits student leadership as the biggest success factor for LEAP. In any given year, there may be 2,000-3,000 students who participate in at least one LEAP affiliated event. But there are a select few who participate heavily across all aspects of the Center’s offerings. These are eligible to become LEAP Ambassadors.
The LEAP Ambassadors are selected by the LEAP Center to serve as Student Advisory Board Members–typically referred to as Ambassadors. To be considered as a possible Ambassador, a student must have at least a 3.4 GPA, a demonstrated record of meaningful public service, and have participated in multiple LEAP events. Members of the existing advisory board are responsible for selecting new members. LEAP Ambassadors meet twice a month in formal meetings, have office hours each week, and participate in 20+ events per semester. Ambassadors participate regularly in meaningful volunteer service in the community, assist with LEAP programs, and often engage in community internships to assist their engagement and professional development.
“It’s the ambassadors, four or five ambassadors, who are carrying the bulk of the work on a day-to-day, week-to-week basis,” said Yawn. “Anytime we benefit from something or somebody else’s generosity or their thoughtfulness, we write a thank you note. And that’s a learning process. And it’s the ambassadors who do that. For each event we do, the students write a blog. And that’s the ambassadors generally who write the blog. They’re the ones who are making those connections in the community; they’re the ones who are serving truly as ambassadors for us in their volunteer work in the programs and championing student involvement. We couldn’t do any of that without them and we hope, in the process of that, those students are getting the skills to be the leaders of tomorrow.”
According to Yawn, there have been some generous people over the years who have donated money specifically for LEAP Ambassador scholarships. “Walter Pinegar has endowed a scholarship each year. Also, the Martinez family, and Wayne Scott and Andrea Scott. And there are a couple of other scholarships as well.”
Yawn continued, “When our kids get a scholarship. We sit down. When they get Russell Martinez’s scholarship, they read the obituaries of both Ila and Andrew. They have to know who that Martinez family is and what their contributions were. This is real money given by real people for a real purpose, and it’s important that our students understand that. And we really try to make it clear that the importance of this goes beyond the money, that this is a model for them in the community. So that’s something that we approach not only with the scholarships, but we hope, in everything we do.”
In today’s world of extremism and self-serving narratives, it is both refreshing and encouraging to see young people embracing civic service and community relations as a core component of their education. Thank you Mike, Jean, and LEAP students for all you do for our communities.
Over the twenty years the LEAP Center has been operating, students and staff have:
