Capture Individual Stories

Keep the momentum alive with a platform that connects, celebrates and continues to involve the youth as they grow.

Benefits of Soft Skills Videos

Show off the amazing things Hack the Hood youth accomplish.
Give them a place to celebrate victories (like the video game award) and connect to other movements (like Youth Hub).
Chronicle youth as they launch their professional careers. Show the diversity of paths to success.
Connect youth from one cohort to another, across years and across location. Encourage long-term connections to each other through events (competitions, guest speakers, etc.)
Show progress over time. Have the youth create videos of themselves on day 1 and at key milestones (i.e. weekly) to demonstrate the potential for improvement.
Recording their thoughts and sharing ideas will help to form and solidify identify as someone interested in Tech.
Use video stories as a tool to reach out to disconnected youth. Show how the work is fun, you get paid, and leads to an exciting future.

Build a platform connects youth to one another, but also to Hack the Hood and to local communities.

Support interactions between the youth who have graduated from a Hack the Hood program and the others who are creating inspired Tech in their communities.
Encourage quick video postings where people describe what they are working on/working toward/working for.
Foster sub-groups of people with common interests, such as video games, helping local businesses, creating art, etc.

Decide whether to build your own or use a current platform like Twitter, Google Circles, or Reddit.
Establish a habit by filming short videos during Hack the Hood sessions. Tag them with different interests, skills, locations, etc. to connect them to other videos.
Capture youth at milestones: first day of college, internships, competitions, etc.
Fuel the community side by seeking videos from admired Tech activists around the communities where Hack the Hood extends. Mentors, funders, facilitators, artists, entertainers, etc.
Establish roles within Hack the Hood to keep the community going. E.g. Zakiya to ask thoughtful questions and encourage responses from a variety of people.
Susan to bring new people in and connect youth to the broader community.
Inspiring tech professionals post links to articles, comments on videos and draw attention to community projects.
Youth could share resources, post up things that interested them, celebrate each other, as well as learn how to use social media in a professional way.

Establish the habit of creating videos during the session so that they can continue the momentum seamlessly after the program.
Identify strong community moderators and youth leaders to contribute content and facilitate discussion.
Help youth record “local genius” (in tech) in their lives. Prompt them to see what amazing things they are doing themselves.