Schwarzman Scholar

Story power

UGA’s newest Schwarzman Scholar dives into social narratives of education

By Stephanie Schupska

Shaun Kleber is deeply interested in stories, in the social narratives that shape how different people and different groups view the world.

This fall, he will have the opportunity to learn about a whole new set of stories through the Schwarzman Scholars program.

In December 2019, Shaun was one of 148 candidates selected internationally as a Schwarzman Scholar, a graduate fellowship designed to prepare the next generation of leaders with an understanding of China’s role in global trends.

Shaun graduated from UGA in 2016 with bachelor’s degrees in international affairs, political science, and economics. A Foundation Fellow and Honors Program alumnus, he spent two years with McKinsey & Company as a business analyst before transitioning to work with City Year, an AmeriCorps program. He first served as a student success coach in Detroit. He is now a team leader with City Year Boston and supervises student success coaches at UP Academy Boston, developing tailored strategies for middle school student achievement.

His interest in storytelling emerged while working with AmeriCorps.

“As I started working with students and working in communities that are very different from the one I grew up in and have existed in for most of my life, I started recognizing the power of stories in shaping our reality,” he said.

Originally, his main focus was education—his career aspirations are in education policy—and how educational opportunities help shape students’ futures. The more time Shaun has spent with students, the more he has realized the power that stories and social narratives have in determining what paths students will take.

“It got me interested in the Schwarzman program and China specifically in recognizing that they have very different styles of storytelling and very different stories guiding their society and their sense of reality,” he said.

Shaun is UGA’s fifth Schwarzman Scholar. The incoming Class of 2021 was narrowed down from a pool of more than 4,700 candidates from China, the U.S., and around the world. It includes students from 41 countries and 108 universities.

Five classes of Schwarzman Scholars have been named since the highly competitive program opened to applicants in 2015. Students focus their studies on public policy, economics and business, or international studies and, in many ways, can design their own academic programs.

Shaun’s program, he said, will center around leadership in shaping social narratives. His coursework will focus on leadership, communication, policy, and education.

“As China’s influence is rising in the world, I think understanding the values and stories that guide their society is going to be critical to understanding the world that we are going to be living in, in the 21st century,” he said.

After he completes his year as a Schwarzman Scholar, Shaun will attend Harvard Law School and continue to pursue a career in education policy and public education administration.

“I met Shaun when he was in high school, and I enjoyed getting the chance to work closely with him while he was a student at UGA,” said David S. Williams, associate provost and director of the Honors Program. “It has been clear all along that he is destined to make a very positive impact on society.”

In Shaun’s time with City Year and in his internship while in college with the superintendent of Atlanta Public Schools, he has confronted issues such as intergenerational poverty, segregated neighborhoods, and insufficient access to basic resources. He is working to unlock the potential of individuals through education, he said, before ultimately working to unlock the potential of the American South through both public education and public policy.

“The Schwarzman Scholars program prepares and connects future global leaders, and that makes it the perfect fit for Shaun,” said Jessica Hunt, UGA’s major scholarships coordinator. “He made a profound impact on our campus as an undergraduate, and he has already demonstrated a remarkable commitment to building community in Detroit, Atlanta, and Boston. He will no doubt do the same during his year as a Schwarzman Scholar.”

Now almost four years out from his time at UGA, Shaun says he can look back and see how the Honors Program and Foundation Fellowship have helped shape him.

“What I took from this program is the very real power that comes in creating teams and groups that are deeply diverse— not just surface diversity, not just demographic diversity, but diversity of thought, background, and experience,” he said. “There’s so much vibrance and power in the community that’s built by the Honors Program and Foundation Fellowship in expanding our horizons and our perspectives.”