January Newsletter
A Letter from Our Executive Director
Dear 826 MSP community,
Five years ago, I was finishing up my time in graduate school and thinking about what I wanted to do next. I had long been an admirer of the 826 National network of youth writing centers after I interned at the Los Angeles chapter in 2011, and I had a dream of bringing a chapter to my hometown of Minneapolis. After connecting with 826 National and sharing my vision, I was delighted to hear that work had already been happening for a number of years. Fast forward through many things clicking into place, and a few months later I found myself starting as Executive Director of that very organization, at the time named Mid-Continent Oceanographic Institute (MOI).
Suffice it to say, being Executive Director at MOI—now 826 MSP—for the last five years has been my dream job and the privilege of my life. Since I started in 2017, so much has changed—for me personally (I am now a mom with my own young writer at home), for our organization (we've joined the 826 Network, changed our name, and moved locations), locally (the Twin Cities had an uprising and became the epicenter in the fight for racial justice), and globally (with an ongoing pandemic). Through this time, we've continually adapted to meet new challenges and opportunities, finding resilience and deepening ties with our community in the face of it all.
Now, as 826 MSP looks ahead, we are ready for a new chapter. With a mixture of a heavy heart and excitement toward the future, I share the bittersweet news that this will be my last school year with 826 MSP. My last day at our organization will be July 1. Many important milestones have been met in the last five years, both for 826 MSP and for me personally, and the time has come for me to move onto something new. I look forward to championing educational justice in a new arena and cheerleading the work of 826 MSP from the sidelines.
The organization is stable, with an incredibly talented staff and board and a new strategic plan. We are now looking for the next visionary and bold Executive Director to lead our organization into its next phase. We are partnering with 826-affiliated Reflector Lab for the search, and applications are open now until March 31. Find the job description here, and please share with your network. Interested candidates with questions about the search can reach out to our Hiring Committee at edsearch@826msp.org.
I have so much pride in and admiration for our team of staff, board, and volunteers, and what we have been able to build with students in the Twin Cities. Early in my tenure, someone gifted me this poem, “The Writer” by Richard Wilbur, about the importance of supporting young writers and the weight of their words. I’ve returned to this poem many times, and it’s always reminded me of how beautiful, transformative, and meaningful this work is. I encourage anyone considering taking up the mantle of leadership for this organization to read it.
We still have important work ahead of us before I leave—we are finishing creating organizational values and revising our mission statement, and we will continue to support students, families, and schools through this difficult school year. I look forward to taking time over the next few months to reminisce and say goodbye to our community. We hope to have some farewell celebrations in June, and in the meantime, feel free to reach out to me at Samantha@826msp.org to set up a Zoom coffee meeting.
Thank you for your continued support in writing the future with Twin Cities’ young authors. We could not do this work without you. I could not have done this work without you.
Samantha Sencer-Mura
826 MSP Executive Director
ID: Samantha holds a chapbook for a student reading his piece at the microphone at a past book release party.
Student Spotlight
Check out some of the writing that has come from our After-School Writing Lab thus far in 2022. As our programs have been operating virtually during the month of January, these pieces come from the following prompt: "Write a poem based on the view from your own window at home."
Upcoming Events
New volunteer orientation on February 4, 3-4:30pm. Email Aminah to sign up.
New volunteer orientation on February 11, 3-4:30pm. Email Aminah to sign up.
New volunteer orientation on February 18, 3-4:30pm. Email Aminah to sign up.
New volunteer orientation on February 25, 3-4:30pm. Email Aminah to sign up.
Join us virtually at Books for Breakfast on February 17, 2022! This fundraiser will be hosted collaboratively by 826 MSP and our sister chapter, 826CHI, featuring youth authors and two incredible guests from our respective cities: Danez Smith and Eve L. Ewing!
