Students Design Community Rooms via NYCHA STEAM Innovators Program
Twenty-two middle school students from Astoria Houses in Queens and 14 middle school students from Stanley Avenue Preservation (Linden and Penn-Wortman Houses) in Brooklyn’s East New York neighborhood recently cut the ribbons on new community rooms, designed by and for young New Yorkers. Through the NYCHA STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics) Innovators program, the students worked with Salvadori STEAM educators and professional designers from WSP and L+M Development Partners to learn about careers in design and develop the new community spaces – which involved creating 3D models, technical floor plans, and vision boards. Students, families, and community members celebrated the new community rooms at Stanley Avenue Preservation CAMBA Cornerstone on December 10 and at the HANAC Astoria Cornerstone program at Astoria Houses on December 16.
NYCHA STEAM Innovators is a new pilot program that supports design justice for youth in NYCHA. The program illustrates the relevance of STEAM and connects younger residents with skills and resources so they can create positive structural change in their communities. The New York Building Foundation, the charitable arm of the New York Building Congress, and L + M Development Partners were among the first organizations to sponsor the program. Their support was integral to the success of the program, and these initial projects can now serve as a model to be replicated at future NYCHA developments.
All of the students involved in the STEAM Innovators program are part of the on-site youth programming run by CAMBA in East New York and HANAC in Astoria. The plans they created are technically sound and have input from community residents.
In the fall, volunteers from Turner Construction, L+M Development Partners, the Public Housing Community Fund, and Salvadori Center turned their visions into reality. Complete with new furniture, new paint, and new room layouts, these resources provide not only needed the investment in the spaces, but they also create areas to serve the unique needs of the middle school youth who use the community center after school. The transformation of the center was made possible with grants from the New York Building Foundation and L+M Development Partners, in addition to support from the Public Housing Community Fund.
“We are thrilled to see the young people’s visions become reality in these new community rooms,” said Trenton Price, Executive Director of the Salvadori Center. “The students worked hard this summer to learn how architects, engineers, and designers work, and they used that knowledge to bring their own visions to their community. Now to see those visions come to life for all youth in their community centers to use is exciting. The students’ thoughtful design work produced change and investment in their community.”
“The Public Housing Community Fund is all about bringing resources to NYCHA residents. We are very excited about the NYCHA STEAM Innovators program because not only do these community rooms receive much-needed resources, the young people learned valuable STEAM skills this summer. Young people have great perspectives and power to change their communities through programs like this. Congratulations to our student designers,“ said Alex Zablocki, Executive Director for the Public Housing Community Fund.
“We are so excited to see talented youth from NYCHA communities creating such unique spaces within their community centers, and to be connecting them to career opportunities in New York’s building industry,” said NYCHA Chief Executive Officer Lisa Bova-Hiatt. “NYCHA is home to so many outstanding young people, and we can’t wait to see what the NYCHA STEAM Innovators design next. We send our sincere gratitude to all of our partners for their support in this exciting venture, including the Public Housing Community Fund, Salvadori Center, New York Building Foundation, L+M Development Partners, WSP, Turner Construction, and Janovic Paint.”
“At L+M, we believe that affordable housing and social responsibility go hand in hand, so helping deliver resources and deepen opportunities for young people in the Stanley Avenue Preservation community is a fitting addition to L+M’s work at this property. Our partnership with Salvadori Center and the Public Housing Community Fund is a powerful demonstration of bringing youth voices to the community design process and amplifying them to create a space for the students to enjoy now and into the future. We were thrilled to hear that the students took inspiration from their visit to our office this summer and meeting with our design and development teams. Congratulations to the Stanley Avenue Preservation youth on this exciting accomplishment,” said Lisa Gomez, CEO of L+M Development Partners.
“Congratulations to these amazing young people on their design work this summer,” said Carlo A. Scissura, Esq., President and CEO of the New York Building Congress. “At the New York Building Foundation, we are proud to support pathways for youth to explore our great building industry here in New York City. We see our next generation of designers, engineers, and builders in this room, and we are so excited for the future they will design and create.”
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