The Activist in Residence for Fall 2018 was Ellen Stackable. Ellen is the Executive Director and co-founder of the organization Poetic Justice, which focuses on giving a voice to women who are incarcerated in Oklahoma. The organization uses creative writing as a means of reinstating identity and has reached close to 2,000 women thus far. In 2015, she was one of ten women awarded the Women of the Year Pinnacle Award and was named a CNN Hero in 2018.
The Activist in Residence for Spring 2018 was Ebony Noelle Golden. Golden hails from Houston, but has spent the last decade in New York. A poet, dancer, choreographer, and perfromance artist, Golden is the founder of Betty's Daughter Arts Collaborative, a group of artists who come together to create impactful performance pieces. The group performs in Harlem and the Bronx, both of which Golden has called home during her residency in New York.
The Activists in Residence for Spring 2016 were Chenjerai and Saadiqa Kumanyika, activists from South Carolina. Chenjerai holds a creativity professorship in Clemson University's Department of Communication Studies, and his work centers on diversity in public media. He is also a founding member of the hip-hop group Spooks whose first album, S.I.O.S.O.S. Vol. 1 (2000, produced singles that reached gold-selling in four countries and made top ten charts around the world. Saadiqa is an educator and domestic violence and sexual assault advocate. Her work focuses on developing curriculums and workshops that strengthen community-based problem solving, social justice efficacy, and economic empowerment. In addition, she teaches Women in Global Perspective and Women and Leadership at Clemson University.
The Activist in Residence for Fall 2015 was Sarah Adams-Cornell, a local advocate for Native American culture, education, and rights. Sarah is a member of the Choctaw Nation, serves on the Board for the OK Choctaw Tribal Alliance, is a core member of Idle No More Central Oklahoma, serves on the OKCPS Native American Student Services Parent Committee, and co-hosts a radio program, "Womyn Warrior Talk," which addresses topics concerning Indian Country and current news. She was named 2014 Cottey College Young Alumna of the Year for her leadership in her culture and community.
The Activists in Residence for Spring 2015 were Pamela Yates and Paco de Onís, the Director and Producer partnership behind Skylight Pictures. Skylight Pictures is a company dedicated to creating feature-length documentary films and digital media tools that advance awareness of human rights and the quest for justice. Skylight Pictures executes its mission by implementing multi-year outreach campaigns designed to engage, educate and activate social change.
The Activist in Residence for Spring 2014 was Claudia Bernardi. Claudia is the creator and Director of the School of Art and Open Studio of Perquin in Morazán, El Salvador, serving children, youth, adults, and the elderly. To learn more about Claudia's work, please visit the Walls of Hope website.
The Activist in Residence for Fall 2013 was Gwendolyn Fields. Gwendolyn serves as Executive Director of The Advocacy Council, where she advocates for the rights of disenfranchised groups, particularly those effected by the failed war on drugs and mass incarceration. For more information about Gwen's work and mission, please visit AdvocacyCouncil.org.
The Activists in Residence for both Fall 2012 and Spring 2013 were The Selmon family. The Selmons have a long and decorated history with the University of Oklahoma, the Norman community, and local and international activism. They started the SHINE Foundation in 2005 to help the Ma Feeta and the children of Rainbow Town in Liberia.
The Activist in Residence for Spring 2012 was Lauren Zuniga, a nationally touring poet, teaching artist, and activist from the Oklahoma City area. The Women of the World Poetry Slam ranked Lauren in the top five female poets. Visit Lauren's website.
The Activist in Residence for Fall 2011 was Pramada Menon. Pramada is a queer feminist activist who has been actively involved in the social justice and women’s human rights sector in India for more than two decades. She is the co-founder of CREA and served as Director of Programs from 2000 until 2008. Since 2008, she has been working as an independent consultant with a variety of organizations on issues of women’s human rights, gender and sexuality, organizational change management and professional coaching. Pramada has also traveled with her show Fat, Feminist and Free to various cities. In 2013, she directed her first documentary film And You Thought You Knew Me, a film that explores the lives of five people, who were assigned female gender at birth, and their interactions with sexuality, queer activism, gender and Delhi.
The Activist in Residence for Spring 2011 was Shelby Knox, an activist and blogger, feminist organizer for reproductive justice and sexual health.
The Activist in Residence for Fall 2010 was Mona Eltahawy. Mona is an award winning columnist and an international public speaker on Arab and Muslim issues. Visit Mona's website.
The Actvist in Residence for Spring 2010 was Nathaniel Batchelder, the Director of The Peace House in Oklahoma City. The Peace Hosue is an education and advocacy center for a wide variety of justice and peace issues, including human rights, economic justice, environmental sustainability, nonviolence, and peace. For more information, visit the Peace House's website.
The Activist in Residence for Fall 2009 was Franciska Issaka, a gender consultant serving development projects in Ghana. For more information about Issaka and her projects, visit the CENSUDI website.
