Shawnta Smith
Queer Women’s Studies
B.S., June 2006, cum Laude
Shawnta Smith said “Without CUNY BA/BS, I would have been lost, without direction, trying to find a program that I could fit into instead of a program that fits me.” Smith found the right fit in CUNY BA/BS, and graduated with a Bachelors of Science in “Queer Women’s Studies.” Her courses, taken at Brooklyn College, were drawn from the English, Health, Sociology, and Women’s Studies departments, under the guidance of Prof. Barbara Winslow, Women’s Studies, Brooklyn. With the help of the CUNY Pipeline Program (http://web.gc.cuny.edu/oeodp/resources/pipeinfoapp.pdf), she went on to complete a Master’s in Library and Information Science with a Certificate in Archiving and Preservation Studies at Queens College Graduate School of Library and Information Studies in June 2008. She is the recipient of awards and fellowships from the Union Square Awards, the Urban Libraries Council, the NY Black Librarian’s Caucus, and the City of New York.
Currently, Smith is a Young Adult Reference Librarian at the Brooklyn Public Library at the Grand Army Plaza Central Branch, is a Coordinator at the Lesbian Herstory Archives, and is Memberships and Fellowships Coordinator at the Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies (CLAGS) at the CUNY Graduate Center.
Smith finds equilibrium as co-coordinator of a queer women-of-color writing group in Brooklyn, NY and as a producer and collective member of Rivers of Honey, a women-of-color Cabaret at WOW Cafe Theater. Smith is also a blogger and creative writer, currently working on commissions about Librarianship, Queer Archiving, and Lesbian Young Adult Fiction.
Before obtaining her Bachelor’s degree, Smith was co-founder and Director of Sister Outsider, a collective organization that employs self-supporting young women to develop social justice projects and earn living wages in Brooklyn, New York.; was a founding board member of FIERCE, a lesbian, bisexual, gay, and transsexual youth activist organization in NYC; and was founding member of YA-YA Network, a network for NYC-based youth organizations.
Smith has also been a presenter at several conferences including the Barnard College Scholar and the Feminist Conference.
It feels damm good to read about someone and know exactly who they are,what they represent and how they feel. I have had the honor to breathe the same air as Shawnta and I must stay that she has never changed. So PROUD that she has found her place in this world WHERE SHE can educate ,enlighten and transfer her powerful energy to others..Stay Xsperienced
Luv, LATAM
P.S your hair looks great!!!!
You are wonderful
I am so very proud of what you’ve accomplished thus far. I know you got more to do and I’m so sure your gonna do it. You know how I feel about about you but I’m gonna let your readers know as well. I love you so much and I respect you as well. I not only love you as my niece but, I love you like the daughter I never had. Your my hero…you go girl!!!!
Awww Penny dat was so sweet!!! <3
This is just the beginning of the extraordinary things that will come from this wonderful, outstanding, amazing human-being…
Keep up the great and impressive work!!!
Heeyyyyyyyy Dats My Big Sista!!!… I am so Proud of you Shawnta, and I feel so honoured and blessed to know and be related to someone as strong, knowledgeable, determined, and just Amazing as you! Because you are going to take part in the future of this planet, I feel much more hopeful to still be in it. You are making such a difference in the LGBTQ community. You inspire me, as well as all those around you, to be involved in what we believe in and make a change, no matter how small. And I always knew that you were going to end up being a devout writer, but i didn’t know you were going to start writing lesbian young adult fiction; Now that’s profound, that’s what I’m talkin’ bout! Soon they gonna have ya picture in the papers, best selling #1 fiction, i’m telling you! And soon the NY Times gonna be begging for YOU to write for THEM lol!
… Please Keep doing what you doing, cuz only you do it best!!! Love You Shawnta. See you soon!
So honored to know you and call you my friend. You are an inspiration to all who you meet, and your welcoming and nurturing spirit give us the courage to step forward without fear. Thank you.
AND you mad cool.
peace,
S
As a colleague and direct supervisor, I’m thrilled to know Shawnta. She is so smart, creative, well-read, and has a great sense of humor. I love working with her! I think she brings a great spirit to the library, and the patrons really notice it. I notice it too! I’m probably tipping my hand a bit when it comes time for staff reviews. So I’ll stop right here. Lol.