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For some aspiring storytellers, their experience growing up in NYCHA housing might be the place where their story begins. 

A new project between the Fund for Public Housing and BRIC Arts Media aims to train NYCHA youth in Brooklyn how to tell that story through digital media.  

The free program will teach a group of 15 ������Ƶ ages 14-18 how to develop and produce their own video content with the use of professional equipment. As part of the six-week project, which will hold in-person classes twice per week through August 16 at Brooklyn’s Ingersoll Community Center, participants will earn a stipend of up to $350. 

“We wanted to give youth an opportunity to tell their story about growing up at NYCHA from their perspective,” said Carrie Torres, Strategic Projects Manager in NYCHA’s Office of Public/Private Partnerships.  

Ms. Torres noted that the program is an initiative of the Fund for Public Housing, a nonprofit that works to support NYCHA and its residents, with a key focus on opportunities for youth. The resident videos produced during the training program will be showcased on the Fund for Public Housing’s  and its social media channels to help highlight the Fund’s mission with positive messages about living at NYCHA.  

“It’s important to hear from youth and to give them an opportunity to share their point of view,” said Ms. Torres, adding that the youth will also have the chance to “develop positive relationships.” 

Classes will be led by a teaching artist from , a leading arts and media institution in downtown Brooklyn. By participating in the six-week project, the young ������Ƶ will receive quality skills training and experience to be able to explore potential opportunities in the multi-media industry. 

“With this project and BRIC, it’s really giving them access to training so they can explore future career paths,” Ms. Torres said. 

The students will learn about content development, set production, and how to create a storyboard, while also receiving hands-on experience with equipment such as cameras and boom microphones. In addition, they’ll work on editing their video content into a finished product of approximately two to three minutes in length.   

“They will develop their story, film their story, and learn how to produce and edit,” Ms. Torres noted.  

Each of the resident storytellers will be credited for their work when the videos are showcased on the Fund for Public Housing website and social media at the end of the course. NYCHA and the Fund are planning to launch a similar youth media program in the Bronx this fall.