On Thursday, August 15, 2024, 14 middle school students from Stanley Avenue Preservation in Brooklyn’s East New York neighborhood presented their plans for the future design of one of the community rooms at the property as part of the NYCHA STEAM Innovators program.
The NYCHA STEAM Innovators is a new pilot program to support design justice for youth in NYCHA. The program is designed to illustrate the relevance of STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics) and connect younger residents with skills and resources so they can create positive structural change in their communities. Over the summer, these young people have been working with Salvadori STEAM educators and professional designers to learn about the built environment and apply those new skills to create a design proposal for a room at the community center at Stanley Avenue Preservation.
The students who took part in the program are Jihad Browne, Jaire Browne, Anayah Cobbler, Daniel Davis, Kamauri Davis, Khyree Davis, Mikaila Davis, Chrishaun Everett, Shamaire Garcia, Mason Garcia, Katiyah Hill, Jayveon Ingram, Cheyanne Parris and Dakoda Trumpet.
“Part of design justice is ensuring all stakeholders have a voice in community development, and that includes young people. The students in this program learned about the built environment, how architects and engineers work, and even received ongoing feedback from professional designers to make their final floor plan and model proposals. We are so excited to see the thoughtful design ideas from our students throughout this summer partnership, and we can’t wait to see their visions realized,” said Trenton Price, Executive Director of the Salvadori Center.
All of the students involved in the STEAM Innovators program are part of the on-site youth programming run by CAMBA. The plans they’ve put forward are technically sound and have input from community residents. The redesign will be implemented this fall in partnership with the Public Housing Community Fund, L+M Development Partners and C+C Apartment Management.
At the presentation the students showed their hand-drawn floor plans, digital floor plans they created in collaboration with L+M Development Partners, their inspiration board with community input and ideas, colors and materials, as well as their final scale model of a future rebuilt community center. Students also took questions from local leaders, Stanley Avenue employees and program sponsors during the event, defending their concepts and proposals for the redesign.
“We are incredibly proud of the dedication and creativity our students have shown throughout this program. Partnerships like this are vital to CAMBA's mission of empowering young people and providing them with opportunities to learn, grow, and make a meaningful impact in their communities. This collaboration with Salvadori and the NYCHA STEAM Innovators program has not only equipped our students with valuable skills but also allowed them to contribute directly to the future of their community. We are thrilled to see their designs come to life and look forward to continuing to support their journey,” said Reginald Murray, Program Director, CAMBA's Penn Wortman Cornerstone Community Center.
