Madalyn Graff Schenk, b. 1950
Madalyn Schenk moved to New Orleans from Chicago in the 1980s. Hoping to be noticed, she became a lifetime member of NCJW. They did notice. She was engaged immediately in many tasks. Later, as Vice President of the NCJW Public Affairs Committee, she helped bring HIPPY to New Orleans as a pilot program. She lobbied Renee Pratt, a new legislator, to expand HIPPY to seven areas of the state.
Introduced to the New Orleans Center for the Creative Arts (NOCCA) by a non-Jewish mentor and community leader, Elizabeth Rack, Schenk became its President, oversaw its comeback from Katrina and its expansion. Schenk also helped find a permanent home for the Science and Math Charter School in the biotech corridor. Called by Renna Godchaux to a pro-choice meeting in 1989, Schenk organized the first pro-choice march in New Orleans, Mobilize for Women’s Lives, at City Park. She was active in the Coalition for Louisiana Women in the 1990s and has remained, for decades, a supporter of Planned Parenthood of Louisiana.
Madalyn and Robert Schenk with Bill and Hillary Clinton, 1997. Courtesy, Madalyn Schenk.
Madalyn Schenk with Mary Landrieu, ca. 2014. Courtesy, Madalyn Schenk.
Madalyn Schenk: NCJWs Hippy Program
Return to Education
