Creating a New Crop of World Changers in Cedar Falls?

Each year, the University of Northern Iowa graduates a group of students that have their hearts set on making the lives of the people around them better.

They come from a major that doesn’t get as much attention as education or business, but they are developed in Cedar Falls to create transformational change in their communities. The major is Leisure, Youth and Human Services.

I graduated with a degree in Leisure, Youth and Human Services in 2007 and was well prepared to enter the nonprofit sector, educated to create positive impacts on my community. Often the major is overlooked, and even more often I get mocked for having a degree in leisure.

I will admit I have been hesitant to own up to my degree in the past, but when I was recently asked to speak at the major’s recognition banquet I took a lot of time to reflect on the amazing things I learned and the life-changing opportunities I was given by the faculty and staff who work diligently to train the students of Leisure, Youth and Human Services.

I would like the rest of the Cedar Falls community to know about these wonderful students who are cultivated into community transformer at our very own University of Northern Iowa. The following is the speech I gave to the students and their families:

“I was honored to be ask to speak today. Only five years ago I was attending this banquet with a great excitement to get out into the world and start creating positive change. My parents were sitting with me, and they were thinking two things. The first were thoughts of pride in their son for graduating, and the second thought was what the heck is a degree in Leisure, Youth and Human Services.

I am sure they were not the only parents thinking that then, and I would bet many of you are thinking the same thing now. Well, I hope that I can shed some light on the importance of this major, and ensure you that the graduates of this program have the chance to do amazing things to help improve the lives of everyone around them.

"Even as a graduate of the program, I use to avoid saying the specific name of the major. I would say I have a Nonprofit Administration degree, which I have heard is a complete taboo nowadays. Not only is it a taboo, it is just wrong, because I was educated in so much more. However, I avoided the name because of the perceived unimportance of the work done in the areas of Leisure, Youth and Human Service.

"That perceived insignificance of is simply incorrect, and the importance of the work in these sectors could not be more important than it is today. In a time when even those who felt they were secure are now struggling to ensure the quality of life for themselves and their families, this sector, your students, have an enormous role in maintaining our status as the best country in the world.

"Let’s begin with Leisure. Putting this term first is probably the major reason I avoided using the name. If you look up famous quotes about leisure, you are hard pressed to find a quote that is not about leisure being a waste of time. I would beg to differ with the great minds of the past, and share that without leisure we lose the real flavor of life to the eternal race for perceived success. The first thing to understand is that leisure is not simply an activity, or inactivity, it is a state of mind in which a person is free to enjoy life, to reflect on what is really important, and become energized to affect change in the world.

"I contend that those who make a conscious choice to enter this state of mind have the ability to be more powerful and transformational in their workplaces, their communities, their country and their world. The American Psychological Association sites that 53 percent of Americans report personal illness due to stress, and 70 percent of that stress comes from work.

"These students, your children, are entering this field in order to create spaces where the transformational state of mind of leisure can take place. A state of mind which can relieve the stress on our lives, and give us the ability to be more productive citizens. They are the professionals who will have the great ideas to put bike trails through their cities, bring community members together for learning opportunities or Main Street events. They are the professionals who make my community, Cedar Falls, a community I love, and provide me with the space to become the best person I can be.

"Next we have youth. We are quick to say that the youth are our future leaders, but we are also quick to dismiss them as unworthy of our time. We continue to see discussions around education in this country at the same time as we see a reduction of funding for our public schools and universities.

There is a sign outside the Waterloo School’s administration building that has a thermometer with the number of mentors needed, and the mercury rises to the level at which they currently have mentors. I have driven by that sign nearly every day for the last five years, and if it has rise,n it has only crept up. The mercury is definitely not threatening to hit the top.

"These students, your children, will not stand for ignoring our future leaders. They will work to provide them with a positive influence in their lives, they will implement youth sports programs, summer camps, mentor programs, educational opportunities, and work to ensure that they are prepared to be the next leaders of this great country and the world. Their influence on the youth will have a major impact on our collective future. 

"If you think back to the defining moments of your life, I bet many of you can think of a prominent figure in your childhood who shaped what you decided to do with your life. In an era when many Iowans spent their life working on the family farm, Norman Borlaug was encouraged by his grandfather to be the first person in his family to go to college. His grandfather, and other mentors, took an interest in his life and ensured that he had the mindset that he could succeed.

"Borlaug went on to become a Nobel Peace Prize winner for his work in seed genetics and to be known as the man who fed the world. He was able to do so because of people not looking at him as simply a child, but a child with potential to change the world. These students, your children, could be that influence on the future Norman Borlaug’s of the world.

"This brings us nicely to Human Services. As the State Director of the Iowa Food Bank Association, this piece of our major’s name holds a strong place in my heart. Our duty as citizens of this world to support each other is often ignored in the race to the top, the race to be the best, or the race to be better than our fellow woman or man. In this race, as in any competition, there are naturally winners and losers.

"Unfortunately, with some rare exceptions, these losers continue to lose, often of no fault of their own. As they continue to sink deeper into poverty and hunger, society progressively forgets or ignores their existence. These students, your children, will not stand for this injustice. They are driven by the sentiment of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. when he said, 'Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere,' and they have decided to fight for justice. 

"Again, we are quick to say as a society that we believe in this sentiment. Our churches preach serving the hungry, the poor and widowed. Our conscious tells us that it is not okay that children in America, or anywhere in the world, go to bed hungry. However, often our actions do not follow our beliefs or our consciences.

"Jane Addams, the progressive leader whom is arguably the reason this major even exists, created a refuge for the downtrodden in Chicago called the Hull House. The organization, first formed in 1889, provided foster care, domestic violence counseling, child development programs and job training to 60,000 children, families and community groups each year.

"In January of this year they could no longer pay the bills, and had to close their doors. The Hull House felt the same crunch as Iowa’s food banks and many human service organizations. As the need continues to rise due to a long term economic recession and rise in cost of nearly all of our basic needs, the human service sector is continually targeted as unworthy of government resources and targets for deficit reduction measures.

"Just last week I was told by an Iowa State legislator that funding to feed the hungry is not worthy of precious general fund dollars, and that we should beg for the scraps at the end of the budget year. The individuals affected don’t have a voice to shout at their elected officials because they are simply fighting to put food on the table and keep a roof over their head. These students, your children, will be their voice. They will fight for the individuals we ignore on a daily basis to have the same chance for the quality of life that all mankind deserves.

"A year after I graduated, my father passed away unexpectedly.  As is the case with most sons, I was always working for my father’s approval and never really knew if he was proud of my work. I never knew if he understood what I was fighting for, why I didn’t see success as a big number in my savings account, why I worked long hours with little return to try to give a voice to one more hungry Iowan. However, during a very stressful time at work a few months ago, as I was sorting through a pile of what I assumed was trash, I uncovered a short note I had never received from my father. In the note he said that he was extremely proud of my work and that my dedication to the cause was a true test of my character.

"I hope that I have shared with you the importance of your child’s work; I hope that you will not judge their success by their salary but by their ability to create a better society for all, I hope that you, and all of the students, will be proud of their degree in Leisure, Youth and Human Services.”

I hope that Cedar Falls is proud of this group of world changers created right in our backyard!