Let’s meet a young man by the name of Shane Cohen-Mungan. He is 17 years old and a Philadelphia native. He currently attends Julia R. Masterman Laboratory and Demonstration School.

Shane has walked the streets of downtown listening to the sounds of the Beatles, Kendrick Lamar and Frank Ocean. He has two siblings, a sister and a brother. He comes from a family of socialists and doesn’t fall far from the apple tree in his values. He prides himself on having meaningful conversations, having empathy and compassion, and being dedicated to social justice.

Shane is the type of person who doesn’t believe in a favorite song or having a No. 1 place to go, although his favorite type of art at the moment is surrealism. Surrealism became a phenomenon in the 20th Century. Surrealism, according to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, is “the creative potential of the unconscious mind.” His favorite artists are people such as Salvador Dali and Remedios Varo Uranga. He is also a fan of impressionism and dadaism, which are two forms of art.

He recently won a Silver Key regional award for his short story from publishing company Scholastic.

Shane wants to give back by way of educating others. He currently goes to a highly-ranked Philadelphia School District magnet school and understands that most people can’t get the type of education he has, because they don’t have the resources or time to be in such a rigorous environment. He sees the education system as being biased to people who are elite. He says it isn’t fair that people who want to go to college can’t afford it, but he wants to solve that problem.

If you happen to see Shane downtown, stop and say hello. He likes to have stimulating conversations with like-minded people.