Sydney Smith joined the ACLU of Missouri in July of 2022 as a Community Engagement Restorative Justice Fellow. Her role will be to develop and implement strategies to expand the ACLU-MO's school-to-prison-pipeline work and engage members, volunteers and the public on issues related to criminal justice, racial justice, restorative justice, voting rights, and more.
Sydney graduated with a BA in Political Science at University of Missouri: St. Louis (UMSL) in 2020 and graduated with a BS in Psychology at Missouri State University in 2017. She is currently enrolled as a doctoral student studying Political Science at UMSL. She holds certificates in Conflict Resolution and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. For her work in civic engagement and voting rights, Sydney was awarded the Excellence in Civic Engagement award from UMSL and was honored on the Student Honor Roll for the ALL IN College Campus Democracy Challenge. She is still heavily involved in her school student organizations and has served in various leadership roles over the course of her academic career.
She has previously worked as a Youth Leader and Deputy Juvenile Officer in Missouri where she witnessed first-hand some of the long-lasting impacts of the school-to-prison pipeline. Though she has seen great strides for restorative justice in the juvenile justice world in Missouri, she learned that there is more that can be done and this fueled her passion for advocacy work in this sphere.
In her spare time, she enjoys backpacking, climbing, and camping out in Colorado with the goal to summit their 14ers (mountains exceeding 14,000 feet). She would love to see the outdoors become a more diverse and inclusive setting as she believes the outdoors should be made for everyone to enjoy.