Building Future Leaders Takes a Village: Here’s One of Them
How the Lowery Institute raises up a new generation of change agents
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In today’s society, millennials and Generation Z are typically seen as individuals who are most concerned about things like fashion, reality TV, and the number of followers and likes they have on social media. Contrary to this, the Lowery Institute in Atlanta, Georgia, is training a new generation of leaders through their Change Agent Fellowship Program. These young adults are defying the odds and bringing about change in their designated communities, as well as throughout Atlanta, and around the world. Upon completion of the Change Agent program, they make their mark through service, both during and after their college matriculation.
Since its inception in 2013, the Change Agent program has trained hundreds of college students (100 students each year) in the Atlanta University Center (AUC), including Morehouse and Spelman colleges and Clark Atlanta University. Students from Georgia State University and Agnes Scott College are also accepted into the program. The students are trained and learn about community and service leadership, as well as social justice and how they can act upon it.
Joseph E. Lowrey, ’98, hailed as the “Dean of the Civil Rights Movement,” has served in various capacities over the past eight decades: leader, pastor, servant, freedom fighter, and father. A civil rights advocate as early as the 1950s, Lowery headed the Alabama Civic Affairs Association in Mobile, Alabama, the organization which led the movement to desegregate buses and public accommodations. In 1957, Lowery co-founded with colleague and friend Martin Luther King Jr. the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), where he served in many positions, including chairman of the board and chief executive officer. Throughout his career, Lowery has been committed to human rights and social justice nationally and globally.
Joseph E. Lowery’s daughter, Cheryl Lowery, is the executive director at the institute. She oversees this unique training and preparatory program where leaders are…
