SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, USA
100CAMERAS X FIRST COMMUNITY HOUSING
Made possible by Adobe
100cameras X First Community Housing is a part of a 8 class course that is custom designed by 100cameras to equip passionate creatives with the tools to empower youth in a community they care about with the opportunity to learn how to process their stories and create change. Pictured here is a 100cameras student during the course. This program was made possible by Adobe.
ABOUT THE PROGRAM
100cameras X First Community Housing took place in San Jose, California USA in partnership with First Community Housing (FCH), a nonprofit created to develop, construct, and manage affordable housing for San Jose and the greater San Francisco Bay Area. FCH serves low-income populations including formerly homeless individuals, families, senior citizens, and those with special needs like chronic and mental illness and developmental disabilities. As a part of its mission, vision, and values, the organization provides its residents with a wide array of services, and its resident services team specializes in the implementation of programming focused on environmental sustainability, alternative transportation, healthy living/food resources, and digital literacy.
“Students that are participating in this program all reside at our affordable housing complexes. The last few years have been exceptionally challenging for this group and their families due to the pandemic. COVID-19 unknowns, virtual learning, and the need for isolation has disrupted many of our students’ development of critical social skills. Parents have expressed to us that more than ever, their children are experiencing anxiety and stress. This opportunity is meaningful in that it will allow them to understand that not all communication must be verbal; and that not all communication is done in the traditional written form. Additionally, oftentimes art programs are not regularly accessible due to their cost of supply and enrollment fees. The 100cameras curriculum has been therapeutic for our participants. It has aided in healing from the pandemic,” reflects Kristen Yamada, Digital Literacy Program Manager, First Community Housing + Program Leader.
“Taking photos can be a way of showing your everyday life to people. If there is anything that you need to show people - or that if people know, it’s better - they will get a better understanding of you.
I would say it’s good for young people to tell your stories because it could help in the future. To show people who they really are, and it could actually help since they’re kids and it could show growth. Because they’re young - it could help them grow up to be a better person, to share their things, to be comfortable to show people who they really are.
My favorite memory would be the time where we drew our experience in our life - our ups and downs - that was really fun. I had to go deep back into the past and kind of learned a lot about how I got over many things. It made me feel strong.”
Since 1986, the organization has developed housing for 1,700+ households, serving 4,500 people at 22 properties, with another 1,800 units in development.
Through funding, donations, and partnerships such as 100cameras, First Community Housing’s digital literacy programming is empowering underrepresented communities with the skills and tools needed to overcome the digital divide. Additionally, they create safe, judgement-free, and inclusive environments that foster lifelong learning opportunities for all.
Youth participants enrolled in the 100cameras X First Community Housing program not only had an opportunity to learn important digital and photography skills, but were also given an outlet and space to be creative, build community, and be heard through the unique visual medium of photography. As reflected by 15 year old youth program participant, Yanet, “I would say that when I first signed up I didn’t think I was going to like it because I’m not an artsy person, and I know that photography is an art. But then as I started coming to the classes, it was a good experience, and I got to see how you can tell your story using photography. I learned that they don’t have to be perfect all the time, and they just have to have a meaning behind it. I took a picture in the beginning with my sister. So we were walking home, and it was during the afternoon so you can see our shadows in front of us. And we made a heart with our hands. So she made half a heart, and then I made the other half, and that was my favorite one. It represents the love that me and my sister have for each other.”
“It is apparent that the limited interactions many students had with other groups and individuals during the COVID-19 pandemic greatly impacted their overall mental health and well-being. Many kids came to the program with anxiety and other stressors that were never an issue before. As the program progressed, I was happily surprised to see participants’ attitudes becoming less gloomy, more participative, and positive. Participants’ post-survey answers also concur with these behavioral changes.
One of our youngest students who rarely speaks was actively engaged in Lesson 4 - Range of Feelings. He proudly showed us the photo he took of a soda bottle. When asked to share more about what he liked about this photo, he explained that the Mountain Dew bottle is lonely because it’s empty and was by itself. I believe it is because of the 100cameras methodology, safe space we have created, practice of encouraging compliments from peers, and uplifting students during our photo review activities that more students are seeing that their voices can be seen and heard. That they all matter.
I hope we can continue to encourage these participants to be brave and hone in on their newly acquired photography skills as their new powerful form of expression: communication.”
MEET THE STUDENTS
“This program aligns with our organization’s mission of being resident centric in all that we do. It has truly been a creative catalyst for building community.”
ABOUT THE PROGRAM LEADER
Kristen Yamada has been working at First Community Housing for over three years. She has degrees in Communication Studies and has an extensive 15-year background in broadcast television and information technology. Kristen knows firsthand the importance of empowering and uplifting community voices through various communication mediums, tools, and art forms. In her position as a Digital Literacy Program Manager, she teaches and designs digital literacy programming to promote digital inclusion at the company’s 22 properties and counting. Additionally, she works on a team within her department that is dedicated to bringing free high-speed internet access to all residing at First Community Housing properties. Kristen is especially passionate about partnering with 100cameras on this program because they make participants realize the importance of their voices and their ability to share their stories, culture, and identity without words. Photography is a powerful medium that transcends the barriers that language cannot bridge.
STUDENT IMAGE GALLERY
“This program experience was very fun. It was very educational. I felt very happy about it and safe. Some of it was challenging which I feel is good in some ways. I have talked to a lot of different people in this class, and I like that because you get to learn different things from different people and you learn a lot from their experiences.”
Follow us on social media to see images from the field as captured by the 100cameras X First Community Housing team and the student photographers.
Thank you to Adobe for making this program possible! Check out the exclusive 100cameras x Adobe Stock collection.
