California Story Fund
Las Grandes de East L.A. and Boyle Heights:
Women as Community Builders
California State University, Los Angeles
University Auxiliary Services
Los Angeles
Project Director: Dionne Espinoza
East Los Angeles high school students to document the lives of ten notable women in the community
This project will document the lives of ten women from East Los Angeles and Boyle Heights who have contributed to strengthening their respective communities through cultural preservation, social activism or community service and improvement.
The project is a collaborative effort among faculty and students at California State University, Los Angeles, faculty and students at Roosevelt High School in L.A.’s Boyle Heights area, and community activist and writer Claudio Rodrìguez.
The stories will be gathered by Roosevelt High students from the Social Awareness, Leadership and Education Academy, one of six learning communities at the school. In special workshops there, the students will learn to conduct research, use video equipment and formulate meaningful questions.
“The project will document the history of the Chicano community in East Los Angeles and Boyle Heights from the perspective of women whose visions of community have made this region a better place for all residents,” said Rodrìguez, who will facilitate the workshops. “The young people will benefit by learning about community building and civic engagement as well as research practices, women’s history and how to communicate across generations,” she added.
The project will culminate in spring 2009 with a presentation of excerpts from the interviews and a panel discussion with participants, to include students and interviewees.