Dr. Shanta Barton-Stubbs - Founder and Executive Director of New Image Youth Center a Real Life Superhero Creating Meaningful Change in Her Community

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Have you ever met a real-life superhero? What does that person look like to you? To me a real-life superhero is someone that inspires people, provides them with opportunities to hope and dream, and gives them the tools to fulfill those dreams. In 2020, we’re in a world in isolation fighting against COVID-19, and in a world where we’re challenged to look more within ourselves, and ask ourselves if we want to make a change. Do we want to become better as people and as a society, and become the leaders that we wish existed? I know I do. Since the death of George Floyd, I took a deeper look within and asked myself am I or have I ever been prejudiced towards someone? How will I change to be a  better human being, and be a  superhero to my child? In the music industry,  there is still a major racial injustice with labels, managers, and agents taking advantage of black artists, and even with the little things such as classifying Hip-Hop, Rap, R&B, and Soul music as “urban.” I want to challenge our industry to be better, and I want to be better by being more intentional.  

Dr. Shanta Barton-Stubbs is a real-life superhero! She’s the founder and Executive Director of the New Image Youth Center (NIYC) in the Parramore neighborhood in Orlando, FL, which was once considered one of America’s top 25 most dangerous neighborhoods. Through the NIYC, Shanta has created a place for hope, for dreams, a place to get away from “the hood” and a place where dreams become a reality. In a neighborhood where kids  are fighting for survival from their surroundings, and then survival in their schools, graduating High School and  going on to College is often an afterthought. Shanta has created a home, where kids develop and progress in their life academically, socially, are conscious about health and wellness, and learn how to deal with crisis intervention. These kids are not only thinking about graduating and attending College, but their dreaming of being leaders and making a change in their community. 

I had the honor to get to know Shanta during my days with Rock for Hunger, and we spent a few days at NIYC getting to know her and the kids, and being able to provide field trips, and other fun activities. Shanta has been someone I’ve wanted on the podcast for quite a while, and I’m so happy that life has finally steered me back into her path. This is such an important, powerful, and relevant conversation. In this conversation, we talk about Shanta’s story, the impact she’s had with New Image Youth Center, her educational background as a Licensed Mental Health Therapist, the impact on COVID-19 on her program, and the tough conversations she’s had with her students after the death of George Floyd and Black Lives Matter. 

I hope you enjoy his episode with the AMAZING Dr. Shanta Barton-Stubbs. 

Quotes from Shanta Barton-Stubbs 
“We give them a reason to dream, and we give them the resources to reach those dreams.” 
“You start at the elementary level, that’s when you’re beginning to start exposing them to life outside their norm, and they’re beginning to think.” 
“Parramore is like the movie Boyz N the Hood.” 
“There is a life that we may not even know about that they’re experiencing at home.” 
“We learn from each other when we are different.” 
“I know how to present myself, and I want to be able to do that freely without anybody judging me.” 
“There needs to be opposing sides presented in these classrooms so people can form their own opinions, thoughts, and values from there.” 
“It’s ok to feel and to express.” 
“You can’t minimize the issues of kids because they’re young, they internalize that. And what happens is they actually repress it, and you see those issues come out in their adult life.” 
“We have to remember that a lot of times not all kids are the same, and they’re going to express in different ways.” 
“I would rather see my kids alive, than dead because they’re standing up for what they believe in.”
“Give us the same opportunities that everyone else has.” 
“Let’s pour money into these communities not where you’re pushing them out but where you’re providing resources. Where you’re giving the opportunity to be able to be better.” 
“It’s hurtful when you see people who do not look like you coming in from the outside and tell you what your community needs.” 

Highlights from this Episode
[02:01] Introduction 
[06:04] Being an Author 
[09:40] Services provided by NIYC 
[12:14] Her Father Moving His Church from a Middle Class Neighborhood to Parramore 
[16:20] Changes in the Community since NIYC 
[18:08] Succeeding in a Dangerous Neighborhood and Succeeding in School 
[22:49] Mindset behind having a K-12 school in an at-risk neighborhood 
[25:53] Getting Education in White School with White Teachers 
[30:18] No judgement zone and re-education 
[33:20] Prejudice and learning to become better 
[36:52] Tools Gained from Studying Criminal Justice 
[38:15] Police Officer is a Career and Education 
[40:32] Diversity in Literature Required at Schools 
[43:22] Coping with the Rise of Depression, Anxiety and Suicide in Kids and Teens 
[49:00] Conversations with Kids Around the Death of George Floyd 
[54:06] The Wrong with Posting All Lives Matter 
[59:18] Understanding the Kneeling During the National Anthem 
[01:01:54] Making Permanent Changes that Matter 
[01:06:47] Actions and Changes we can Create in Our Community 
[01:11:17] Getting to Know Shanta Barton-Stubbs 

Links to people, places, and things mentioned
Boyz N the Hood (Movie) 
Beverly Hills Cop (Movie) 
Colin Kappernick 
Equal Justice Initiative 
Stacia Pierce 
NAACP 
Michelle Obama 
Jamie Fox 
Michael Jackson 
Madam CJ Walker 
Black Panthers 
Coffee and Counseling (Podcast) 
Cindy Trimm
Jay Shetty
[BOOKS]
There is Good in My Hood by Dr. Shanta Barton-Stubbs 
There is Good in My Neighborhood Coloring Book by Dr. Shanta Barton-Stubbs 
So You Want to Start a Non For Profit? By Dr. Shanta Barton-Stubbs 
Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates 
Dear Adults, We have Issues Too by Dr. Shanta Barton-Stubbs 
Becoming Michelle Obama 

Shanta’s Definition of Making It:
“Being able to look back and there is a long line of successful African American children who have come from an area such as Parramore, and now they’re viewed as successful and they’re also giving back to the same community or the same place that once gave back to them.” 

Get in touch with Shanta Barton-Stubbs 
https://newimageyouth.org/
https://www.underconstructionempowerment.com/

Keep in touch:chris.goyzueta@gmail.com
www.makingitwithchrisg.com
https://www.instagram.com/chrisgoyzueta/
https://www.facebook.com/makingitwithchrisg

Credits: 
Host: Chris Goyzueta (Chris G.)
Producer: Jason Trosclair
Executive Producer: ONElive Creative Agency  
Music: Emily Kopp