In an interview with Awake (found at https://awakemilwaukee.org/2023/12/19/survivor-story-carl-huber/), Carl Huber took the time to share the story of his path to healing.
In the interview, Huber talks about the abuse he suffered and the complicated path he has followed, over the years, to finding justice, peace, and healing.
Huber’s Master of Professional Studies degree played a role in his path. According to Huber,
In May 2023 I completed my master’s degree in professional studies, built around storytelling. It led me to create a digital project about my life. I started by telling my whole story but then I went back and I took the sexual abuse part out. My professor asked me why I removed it. It was complex; there’s the shame and I always tried to protect others from what happened to me. But the professor’s question changed my whole course of study. I started interviewing experts in restorative justice, and I also did some training in spiritual direction. Both of those things are about listening. I believe in the power of storytelling as a means for people to feel validated, to feel heard, and it’s been a big part of my own healing.
According to Dr. Mitra Emad, who introduced Huber to the digital storytelling project, “We can all learn to hold space for each others' stories with compassion, shared knowledge, and deep listening.” Digital storytelling is a cornerstone of work in the Master of Professional Studies program because it enables individual transformation while simultaneously encouraging the development of new forms of multimodal communication.
Huber’s interview with Awake is a step in encouraging others to heal. Awake is a community of abuse survivors, their loved ones, and ordinary Catholics coming together for a shared mission of awakening, transformation, and healing. Founded in 2019 by a group of Catholics gathered in a tiny living room in Milwaukee, Awake is not sponsored by any parish or diocese; Awake works in collaboration with the entire Church to serve the people of God in the United States and beyond. According to Huber, “The response to Awake publishing my story has been overwhelmingly positive! That is very humbling to me as I stand on the shoulders of the strength of family, friends, mental health professionals, and educators who believed in me.”
For more information about the Master of Professional Studies, please visit z.umn.edu/umdmps