Common Unity
by Briianna Hiers
Hailing from the East Side of San Antonio, Lawrence Scott, Ph.D. (B.A. ’01), witnessed overwhelming disparities and inequities.
Scott knew he wanted to make a difference. Though his circumstances initially motivated him to study law, a transformative encounter with a fellow undergraduate peer on the St. Mary’s University campus led him to shift his focus toward community impact and service.
Now, he continues to transform generations as an Associate Professor of Educational Leadership at Texas A&M University-San Antonio and the executive director of the Community for Life Foundation, a philanthropic organization that provides scholarships to undergraduate and graduate students.
During his own time as a Political Science major, Scott worked in the St. Mary’s School of Law’s Office of Financial Aid Assistance and ran for Student Government Association President during his junior year.
“I wanted to be a civil rights attorney,” Scott said. “But growing up in a low-income household, under those circumstances, my ambition to study law was motivated by money.”
An encounter with a student at the Subway restaurant on campus shifted Scott’s perspective.
“A student who was aware I was running for Student Government Association president approached me and asked a litany of questions about my plans for positive change on campus, such as food pricing, parking and student union fees,” Scott said. “The student then asked me, ‘What do you stand for?’ ”
Scott quickly realized his aspirations were rooted in self-serving motives. He had no good answers.
“Everything about that interaction began ruminating in my head,” he said.
He dropped out of the race and studied abroad in London to broaden his perspective of the world. The study abroad trip to London would instill in him the intent of God’s plan for his life, affirming his mission and purpose.
“I made it to London and began to unpack my bag in the flat when my mystery roommate walked in. It was the student who approached me at the St. Mary’s campus Subway,” Scott said.
That student’s name was Amir Samandi (B.A. ’02), now the executive director of the nonprofit organization Students of Service (SOS), which develops young leaders who have a global perspective to solve local problems. In London, Samandi helped Scott gain a clearer understanding of what it means to have a greater mission.
“It was the concepts of servant leadership that really helped us form a lifelong friendship,” Samandi said.
“What I learned through my growing friendship with Amir in London was to strip myself of a title and the trappings of this idea of success and the trappings of money and accolades,” Scott said. “I needed to find a mission.”
Upon returning from his studies abroad, Scott realized he no longer aspired to become an attorney, describing this decision as his most significant “paradigmatic shift.”
Instead, he began a music ministry. Although Scott’s music ministry proved successful, sharing a stage with renowned Gospel artists, such as Kirk Franklin and Mary Mary, he left behind music to pursue ministry full time.
“What I learned through my growing friendship with Amir in London was to strip myself of a title and the trappings of this idea of success and the trappings of money and accolades. I needed to find a mission.”
— Lawrence Scott
During his senior year, Scott had the opportunity to travel to West Africa to pursue missionary work through St. Mary’s University’s Service-Learning Center, now known as the Office of Community Engagement, which develops students through community service and civic engagement. Scott also took on the opportunity to instruct orphaned students in West Africa for an end-of-summer showcase while working with Mother Teresa’s missionary program called Missionaries of Charity, teaching English to orphaned and impoverished children.
“It was the concepts of servant leadership that really helped us form a lifelong friendship.”
— Amir Samandi
These experiences instilled in Scott a love for teaching, prompting him to take what he learned through his missionary work and apply it to the community in which he grew up. He said his experience in West Africa became his defining moment.
Exercising his vocation and mission earned Scott many recognitions and opportunities. He became the first African American to be awarded San Antonio Business Journal’s 40 under 40 Man of the Year, serving more than 16 years in the K-12 sector as an educator and leading a nationwide advisory team of experts, which provided input to the Texas State Board of Education on the importance of African American studies.
Now, in his role as professor and nonprofit leader, Scott allows his faith to lead the way. He teaches courses at Texas A&M University-San Antonio on curriculum development, special education programs and effective public relations strategies to leaders of education. Scott also serves as the executive director of the Community for Life Foundation, driving initiatives that have awarded more than $800,000 in scholarships.
“Lawrence Scott gives back so much to the community and has helped bring so many young educators into the profession,” Samandi said. “He is truly a man who puts the community first. Still, he has not forgotten the importance of individual relationships and has been a mentor and friend to so many.”
“I was blessed to be a student at St. Mary’s University “, Scott said. “I found a community that would nurture common unity and my walk in my faith in Christ.”
