In this episode, we talk with Dr. Maru Gonzalez, Associate Professor and Youth Development Specialist in NC State’s Department of Agricultural and Human Sciences. Maru’s work centers on how young people build belonging and agency through civic engagement, storytelling, and community connection.

She shares insights from her work as co-director of #PassTheMicYouth, a youth-led multimedia initiative that amplifies young voices and provides educators with research-based tools for teaching social impact storytelling.

Our conversation covers her books Teaching Storytelling in Classrooms & Communities: Amplifying Student Voices and Inspiring Social Change and her forthcoming The Community Engaged Classroom.

References

• Kokozos, M., & Gonzalez, M. (2024). Collaborating for Social Change: Promising Practices for Effective Youth-Adult Partnerships. The Journal of Extension, 62(3).

• Gonzalez, M., Kokozos, M., McKee, K., & Byrd, C. (2024). Storytelling through a Critical Positive Youth Development Framework: A Mixed Methods Approach. Journal of Youth Development, 19(1), 1-14.

• Gonzalez, M., Kokozos, M., & Byrd, C. (2025). Teaching storytelling in classrooms and communities: Amplifying student voices and inspiring social change. Routledge. 10.4324/9781003461753. https://www.routledge.com/Teaching-Storytelling-in-Classrooms-and-Communities-Amplifying-Student-Voices-and-Inspiring-Social-Change/Gonzalez-Kokozos-Byrd/p/book/9781032598925 

• Pass the Mic Youth. (n.d.). Pass the Mic Youth. North Carolina State University Cooperative Extension. Retrieved from https://passthemicyouth.ces.ncsu.edu/