ROCHESTER, N.Y. — There are some African American young people in Rochester who are shaking up the status quo. Shanterra Mitchum, known affectionately around the city as “Shan,” is one of them.

She was just awarded “Action For a Better Community’s” James McCuller award for excellence. She’s also been recognized as one of Rochester’s change makers in action, and named one of Rochester’s 2023 40-under-40. 

News10NBC Lynette Adams spent some time with Mitchum and says it’s the power of her presence, her passion and her positive outlook. 

Shanterra Mitchum is a part of Rochester’s Roots.  

“Yeah, so, I think for me, where I get the passion from is just from the environment that I grew up in, the community that i grew up in and feeling like, ‘Oh, I needed someone. I needed someone to give me an opportunity. I needed someone to see me.’ And being able to have a community that rallied around me, that offered me opportunities. It just showed me how important this work is and how necessary it is,” says Mitchum.

Spend time around Shanterra Mitchum and before long, you will begin to feel her passion. It’s contagious.

This wife and mother of three children under 12, is the director of Rochester programs for the Center for Teen Empowerment, co-founder of of MC Collective, a coaching and consulting firm, and associate pastor at Rock Hope Fellowship in Rochester.

She’s done all of this at just 34 years old. 

Lynette wanted to know where she gets the energy.

“I love young people,” Mitchum says. “I love being around young people. Young people give me life. They speak in a way that is candid and honest. There’s no sugarcoating when it comes to young people and I enjoy that.”

Mitchum spends most of her time at Teen Empowerment, which helps young leaders learn to use their voice to tackle community issues. 

Teen Empowerment is in the process of expanding on the city’s northwest side. It will be a third location in Rochester. She and her aunt are co-founders of MC Collective — aiming to empower other women.

“I remember walking into spaces and oftentimes feeling invisible, oftentimes feeling like, “Where’s my tribe? Who can I connect with,'” says _______.

What’s she’s realizing, women of color often need healing before anything else. But she’s confident she can help with that.

“And so my hope is to bring awareness that this little black girl from Conkey and Avenue D right, one of the most impoverished communities in our city, one of the most crime ridden communities in our city. I came from there,” Mitchum explains. “I didn’t come from anywhere else. I came from there. And so if you give us the right opportunities, we will show you how amazing we are.”