During the Spring 2026 term, schools working with Americans Who Tell the Truth have enjoyed energizing conversations with living AWTT portrait subjects.  As these students become changemakers, they appreciate the stories and guidance offered by those paving the way for their work. AWTT is extremely grateful to the portrait subjects who have generously offered to spend time talking with students; these face-to-face (and virtual) sessions help students to realize that they, too, can become changemakers.

Leah Penniman

On a rainy afternoon, a beautiful beam of light poked through the window when Black farmer Leah Penniman Zoomed with students at Radnor Middle School in Wayne, Pennsylvania. Motivated by the work and research that Caitlin Liston and Jon Savitch’s students had done for AWTT’s Samantha Smith Challenge, students asked Penniman many compelling questions:

• How did you get into farming?
• We are doing a food project right now on various food issues including food justice/apartheid, industrial v. local food chains, and regenerative farming. Is there anything you can share about those issues?
• How did you get so many people to join the farm and the movement since the business wasn’t “for profit” and was instead geared towards helping people?

Penniman answered these questions and more.  She explained how human evolution is set up for collaboration and not competition.  She encouraged them all to volunteer and to realize that local people and the land have a voice that they need to support.  Finally, she explained how “food desert” is really not a good description for places where healthy food is hard to find.  She prefers the term “food apartheid,” which describes the same condition but implies that it is a condition that can be changed. 

Students had thoughtful and enthusiastic reactions to the conversation:

“I thought it was really cool to hear her firsthand experiences that we wouldn’t have heard about in some other way, like the Monsanto story.”

“It’s really cool to hear somebody who is telling you to go ahead and advocate. Go take action. It’s really cool to hear from someone who is an advocate herself.”

“I liked the way she talked about how it’s not called a food desert, but a food apartheid, because it’s not natural, and it can get better.”

“I was a little scared because she’s so important and we’re just Watershedders. She’s such a role model.”

Teacher response:

“It was so inspiring hearing from her and seeing how the students engaged with her stories. She makes me want to get out there and take action.”

Con Fullam

As part of AWTT’s School Partnership Project, musician and choir director Con Fullam visited Old Town Elementary School and Leonard Middle School (Old Town, Maine) in mid-April, 2026. The students had hosted his portrait in their schools and had done research to learn about his story and the formation of Pihcintu, the multinational girls’ chorus for immigrants and refugees, that he founded in 2006 to give “Voices for the Voiceless.” The students at both schools asked important questions.  Here are just a few:

• What have you learned from the girls in the chorus?
• How can kids our age help people in our community?
• What does it mean “to give someone their voice back?”
• Who inspired you when you were growing up?
• If you could give kids one piece of advice, what would it be?

Thoughtful questions, Inspired students. Hearts and minds opened with music. 

Old Town Elementary School teacher Lisa Harvey shared the following comment:

“Meeting Con Fullam and learning about his remarkable work with the multinational girls choir was a powerful testament to the impact of music and storytelling. As an Americans Who Tell the Truth portrait subject, his inspiring story encouraged our students to ask thoughtful questions that delved into his journey and deep passion for his work. Collectively, the students were truly impressed by the opportunity to meet and engage with Mr. Fullam, and their admiration deepened even further when they heard the recording of the Pihcintu chorus singing Somewhere. It was a wonderful experience for all!”

Mia Tretta

Note: Mia was standing in for anti-gun violence activist Shannon Watts.

Mia Tretta is a junior at Brown University studying International and Public Affairs as well as Education.  She is from California and at the age of fifteen was injured in the 2019 shooting at Saugus HIgh School in Santa Clarita, California. Since that time she has been very involved with Students Demand Action.  Mia was also a student at Brown in December 2025 when a person entered Barus and Holley Building and killed two and wounded nine other students. 

Two Troy Howard Middle School students experienced a powerful conversation with Mia.  They discussed Mia’s internal debate about whether she was lucky or unlucky to be a survivor; they also learned that her best friend was killed in the Saugus High School shooting. She talked about her journey after both of these shootings—multiple surgeries, hesitancy to be in large open spaces, and her commitment to working with Students Demand Action.  She discussed the importance of red flag laws, safe gun storage, and strict regulations around ghost guns. 

According to Troy Howard teacher Caitlin Hutt, “the Troy Howard students were gushing to their friends after they signed off about how awesome it was to meet Mia, and about how they want to start a SDA chapter here in Belfast.”

One of the Troy Howard students wrote that “ONE is enough, but how come more keep happening if we educate against it? Mia considers herself lucky even though she’s lost a lot.”

Both students learned a lot about ghost guns and felt really sad that, as a society, we have “lost track” of the shootings and the people we’ve lost. They took to heart Mia’s message of seeing people as people and not numbers. They came away with a better understanding of why she wants to be a voice for people who have lost their voice to shootings. And so do they!

Dawn Wooten

Rachel Beckwith’s sixth-grade gifted and talented ELA class at Leonard Middle School (Old Town, Maine) conducted a virtual interview with Dawn Wooten, an RN who blew the whistle on mistreatment of immigrants at an ICE detention facility. Rachel explained that her class has been studying epistemology, focusing on the concept of the illusion of knowledge.

Dawn shared her experiences of working in the facility, including concerns about COVID protocols, medical procedures without consent, and documentation shredding, which led to her wrongful termination and continuing legal battles. Dawn explained how the facility treated detainees as having lower value due to their immigration status. She described her ongoing experience as a whistleblower, detailing the challenges she has faced over five years, including ongoing litigation, threats to her safety, and the impact on her family. She talked about the trauma of being under surveillance, moving multiple times, and dealing with threats to her and her children’s safety. 

The students asked questions about her patients, motivations for wrongdoing, and the reasons behind the threats she receives. Despite these difficulties, Wooten expressed that she would do it again, as she has become a “professional stand-up for women who don’t have voices.”

LMS students expressed much appreciation and inspiration.

“It’s amazing how someone is so strong that they can risk themselves to tell the truth about reality.”

“I appreciated the strength Dawn Wooten has and for being strong enough to share such vulnerable memories.”

“Thank you for that experience. It made me think about how not to take my life for granted.”

“Talking to Dawn Wooten and hearing about her story was fascinating, and she inspired me to have the power to speak out next time I have the chance.”