For 2019-2020 Schweitzer Fellow Dmitra Inteuse Gideon, life is a journey. Dmitra has always been a writer, but she forewent an English degree in favor of a Bachelors in International Studies from the University of Denver. After college, she worked as a counselor at a runaway shelter, a middle school counselor, and an intern in Madagascar. At her many jobs, Dmitra was “struck by the remnants of colonialism and how oppression is internalized. That internalized oppression causes people to lose their voice, and when people lose their voice, they lose their ability to choose to live differently.” This focus on personal voice led her to seek a Masters of Fine Arts in creative writing at Chatham University.
Despite her winding career path, Dmitra has always been drawn to service work; in fact, she says she doesn’t know what else she would do if not service. Dmitra believes that to be born with privilege is an opportunity to be grateful and use what you have to give back. She emphasizes that success in service work is “when [she] becomes irrelevant, and when the community is doing what it needs to do on it’s own” whereas a culture of selfishness defines success as being indispensable.
Dmitra was attracted to the Pittsburgh Schweitzer Fellowship Program because of her eclectic interests. She admits that caring about so many causes at once can be quite frustrating, so she appreciates that the Schweitzer program accommodates “the desire to work on multiple fronts.” Dmitra also admires Albert Schweitzer and his dedication to work in which he believed.
For her Schweitzer Fellowship project, Dmitra is partnering with the Homeless Children’s Education Fund to teach a creative writing class at Westinghouse Academy in Homewood.
When Dmitra first started working with children, the prevailing method of teaching was positive youth development, which seeks to amplify positive aspects of “at risk” children’s lives. Now, Dmitra believes in the social justice youth development philosophy which identifies youth as “possible change agents” instead of “at risk.” She describes this model of development as empowerment instead of prevention. Dmitra plans to use this philosophy in the classroom, inviting her students to find a social or environmental justice issue about which they are passionate. Then, Dmitra will guide the students through the creation of a creative writing project to respond to their issue.
At the end of her teaching year, Dmitra will put on a public exhibition of her students’ work so that “their parents and people in their immediate community can hear what they have to say and maybe see these children in a different way.” Dmitra hopes to provide her students with books, art supplies, and snacks in order to make the classroom environment more welcoming. She also aims to allow her students to create professional quality work.
In her free time, Dmitra enjoys spending time with her 12 year old pitbull/mastiff mix, Big Boy. After she gets her Masters degree, Dmitra plans to get a Ph.D. from the University of Vermont.
Dmitra is an Environmental Fellow.
