Freedom School


The cornerstone of all Freedom Project activities is the summer Freedom School. Students spend five weeks at the LEAD Center in Sunflower and one week attending creative classes at the University of Mississippi, followed by an extended educational field trip. The intensity and rigor of the Freedom School forges a sense of unity and mission among the Freedom Fellows.

At Freedom School, Fellows a follow a structured curriculum the combines traditional academic subjects (reading, writing, math) with performance and project-based courses (public speaking, drama, media production, martial arts). Classes are taught by experienced teachers aided by college students recruited for the summer. At the end of the six weeks, Fellows put on a special Freedom Day for the community.


"The Freedom School has helped me as a person become more disciplined and more capable of approaching people."

April Hannah
3rd Year Fellow
The Freedom School does not simply "keep young people off the streets"; it shows students the power of an achievement-oriented education. By offering intensive academics based on the history of freedom struggles, the Freedom School instills both essential skills and self-confidence in our students; by providing drama, media production, and martial arts classes, it gives students an outlet for their physical and creative energies; by sponsoring Freedom Day, it connects young people to their communities in a positive way; by leading extended educational field trips, it shows students the world that awaits them if they pursue education. Ultimately, the intensive summer program gives our young people the chance to live and learn differently.