Houston, TX

Shift Press is a youth-led, youth-produced publication that highlights the ways young people build, influence, and experience power in the Greater Houston area. This summer, Shift Press will respond to the pandemic and build community among youth through a partnership with government agencies (City of Houston Mayor’s Office of Education and Houston ISD school board members), local non-profits (OCA Houston and Mi Familia Vota), and grassroots organizing groups (ONE Houston).

We will help young people use storytelling to answer the question: How has the COVID-19 pandemic shown the strengths and/or vulnerabilities of your community? Greater Houston-area youth will be able to participate in one of three ways:

1. The Shift Press fellowship, where 8 high school students will work with a professional writer to learn the skills to effectively narrate the implications of COVID on their communities and personal lives.
2. The Open Pitch, where high school and college aged folks can submit pitches about COVID’s effects on their community and work with an editor to have their pieces published.
3. An 8-week series of online community conversations, hosted by young people and livestreamed on Facebook, Instagram, Youtube, and Twitter, on COVID-19 and the election season.

Shift Press will be run by the Institute of Engagement, a collective that helps young people take responsible ownership of their Houston. Their team consists of 6 current college students and class of 2020 college graduates, all graduates from a diverse range of Houston ISD public schools.