Lawrence resident Courtney Morin.

Courtney Morin of Lawrence, has been named Northern Essex Community College’s Newman Civic Fellow for her outstanding leadership roles and devotion to advocating for community college students.

Morin, a biology and liberal arts: philosophy major, was nominated by NECC President Lane Glenn, who wrote, “College faculty and staff describe Courtney with words such as motivated, collaborative, innovative, dedicated, change-maker, and advocate.”

Morin has served as a voice for her fellow students and for social change everywhere.

During her first year at Northern Essex, in fall 2017, Morin became the president of the Amnesty International Club, where she initiated fundraising for refugees. In spring 2017, she started as a general member of the Student Government Association, an appointed group of students who strive to be the voice of the student body and uphold fair representation for all members of the college.

Morin has attended several advocacy days at the Massachusetts Statehouse to advocate for sexual assault prevention, college affordability, educational attainment disparities between white and Latinx students, housing and food insecurity, mental health and the interconnectedness of these issues. Morin currently serves as the Vice President of the Haverhill Campus for SGA.

In fall 2018, she was elected as the NECC Student Trustee to the Board of Trustees. In this role, she offers a student perspective on the issues and concerns impacting the college. She was elected to a second term in fall 2019.

“Beyond the NECC community, Courtney was elected in 2018 to serve as the Vice Chair of the Student Advisory Council to the Massachusetts Board of Higher Education, where she supported and promoted initiatives such as open educational resources (OER), changing student trustee eligibility requirements, and Every Voice Coalition’s bills, aimed at addressing sexual violence and misconduct on higher education campuses,” wrote. Glenn “Through these initiatives, she continues as a volunteer as Every Voice Coalition’s Campus Lead and as the OER Campus Student Representative for Northern Essex Community College.”

“Courtney recognizes that it is essential to build collaborations in her advocacy to create a strong voice to effect social change,” he wrote. “Her personal challenges have emboldened her to fight for change not only to benefit NECC students, but community college students across the state.”

Morin’s message to her fellow students and friends is: “that they must work together to accomplish their goals, that one member cannot do all of the work alone.”

The Newman Civic Fellowship distinguishes and supports students who have shown leadership and an investment in their communities across the country to help solve problems they may be facing. It is a yearlong fellowship program that provides a variety of opportunities for the student to network, learn, and grow. This includes attending a national conference of Newman Civic Fellows. The fellowship is named after Campus Compact founder Frank Newman, and focuses on the skills fellows will need to effectively and actively set and accomplish goals that address public problems and build equitable communities.

What is next for Morin? She is interested in the intersection of medical law, human rights, and bioethics and plans to transfer after NECC to a four-year-university as a double major in neuroscience and philosophy to prepare for entrance to law school. She hopes that no matter where the future may take her, that she is doing her part in making the world a more just place for all.