The Project

In 2022, John C. Arroyo, Ph.D, AICP, Assistant Professor in Urban Studies and Planning and Chicanx and Latinx Studies at the University of California San Diego (formerly Assistant Professor in Engaging Diverse Communities and Founding Director of the Pacific Northwest Just Futures Institute for Racial and Climate Justice at the University of Oregon), became one of six Whiting Foundation Public Engagement Fellows that year. His vision was to create a limited documentary series aimed at bringing attention to the housing realities of the ever-growing Latino/a/x migrant community in Oregon.

The series follows the seven major regions of Oregon, each presenting a unique housing challenge. Key themes include:

• • • Eviction, Displacement and Gentrification (Portland Metro Area: Portland, Hillsboro, Beaverton)
    • Farmworker/Agricultural Housing (Woodburn)
    • Rental Challenges and Affordable Housing (Eugene, Springfield)
    • Fire Recovery (Rogue Valley, Parts 1 and 2: Medford, Talent, Phoenix)
    • Homeownership (Central Oregon: Bend, Madras, Prineville)
      
    • COVID-19 and Inter-generational Housing (Hermiston, Tri-Cities, Parts 1 and 2)
    • Mobile Homes and Rural Housing (Ontario)

Every episode in the Casa y Comunidad dosuseries begins by centering one family or individual, incorporating on-site filming in and around their home, workplace, or town or city to capture their personal migration and housing history. These resident testimonios are supplemented by interviews with other experts to provide regional and historical context. Partners include state and local housing and community development agencies, school districts, libraries, and ethnic-serving community-based organizations. A robust dissemination plan is centered around Casa y Comunidad as a teaching tool for Oregon Department of Education’s K-12 requirement for ethnic studies (HB 2845/HB 2023). The project website includes supplemental learning aids such as photographs, historical documents, planning records, and news articles expanding on the current themes addressed in the videos.

Casa y Comunidad is free, open-access, and bilingual (English and Spanish). It is designed for all audiences — particularly 9-12 classrooms, housing and community-development-focused policymakers, and all Oregonians.

The Team

John C. Arroyo

Director, Executive Producer, Whiting Foundation Public Engagement Fellow

John C. Arroyo, Ph.D., AICP is Assistant Professor of Urban Studies and Planning and Chicanx and Latinx Studies at the University of California San Diego. Prior to his appointment at UC San Diego he was Assistant Professor in Engaging Diverse Communities (with affiliations in the departments of Indigenous, Race, and Ethnic Studies and Historic Preservation) at the University of Oregon, where he was also Founding Director of the Pacific Northwest Just Futures Institute for Racial and Climate Justice – the largest social science and humanities grant awarded in UO’s history. Previously, Dr. Arroyo was an Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Fellow in Latino Studies at the School for Advanced Research in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Arroyo received his doctorate in Urban Planning, Policy, and Design from MIT. He is a national expert on the social, political, and cultural dimensions of Latino/a/x-centered built and natural environments (specifically housing, ethnic retail corridors, and transportation), urban design practices in emerging gateways, and arts and cultural planning. His scholarly and applied research has been published in the Journal of the American Planning Association, Journal of Planning Education and Research, Planning Theory and Practice, Cityscape and featured on national media outlets such as the Los Angeles Times, NPR, and U.S. News and World Report. He has raised nearly $5 million through competitive grants and prestigious fellowships supported by American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education, American Planning Association, the Mellon Foundation, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Research Council/Ford Foundation, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, and the Whiting Foundation. Dr. Arroyo currently serves on boards of the Public Humanities Network of the Consortium for Humanities Centers and Institutes (CHCI) and the School for Advanced Research (SAR). A certified planner, he has over 25 years of experience working with various arts and urbanism-related nonprofits, foundations, and government agencies in research, grantmaking, and technical assistance capacities across the US, Europe, Latin America, and the Caribbean. The son of Mexican immigrants, his commitment to social justice and equity is rooted in being born and raised East L.A.

Lucero Cortez

Assistant Director, Executive Producer, Assistant Editor

Lucero Cortez is a video producer and editor based out of Portland, Oregon. She’s passionate about using her knowledge and skills to express and share the stories of Latine people – both at a local and global scale. Her natural creative inclinations, her personal history, and her passions land her at the intersection of digital storytelling, archiving, and collaboration making Casa y Comunidad an exceptionally personal project for her. You can learn more about Lucero and her work by visiting www.lucerocortez.com.

Nadya Barba-Ramirez

Production Coordinator

Nadya is a concurrent Juris Doctor and Master of Public Administration student at the University of Oregon. She graduated from the University of Utah in 2019 with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and International Studies, with a minor in economics. She is a native of Utah, however, she has been living in Oregon since 2021. At the University of Oregon, she is a Graduate Employee at the Pacific Northwest Just Futures Institute for Racial and Climate Justice, where she works alongside Professor John C. Arroyo. Her involvement with Casa y Comunidad has allowed her to feel connected to the Latino community as she pursues her degrees. In addition to her academic passions, Nadya enjoys exploring creative projects such as photography, videography, and website design, all of which she has been able to apply through this project. As a first-generation Mexican-American, Casa y Comunidad is close to her heart and she looks forward to seeing the impact it has on the Oregon community, and beyond.

Jackelyn Cortez-Fregoso

Camera Operator, Editor

Jackelyn is a video creative from Woodburn, Oregon with 8 years of experience working with the Latine community through art and education, as well as other BIPOC communities. She graduated from Portland State University’s Film program in 2018 and has since focused on documentary filmmaking. Coming from a lively family who loved to tell stories through music and film, Jackelyn became passionate in applying her skills in video towards the pursuit of helping underserved people tell their own stories, from their own perspectives.

Caty Jimenez

Sound Operator

Caty is a recent graduate of Portland State University, where she earned her Bachelor of Arts in Film, and a minor in Japanese. She has been creating films for herself and others for over 9 years and is looking forward to continuing to do so. As a lifelong resident of Oregon, she feels deeply connected to the land and people that make up the state. Outside of filmmaking, she enjoys creating collages from old magazines, late-night gaming sessions, and hanging out with her two cats, Vaquita and Loot.

Esmeralda Flores

Outreach Coordinator

Esmeralda Flores was born in Portland, Oregon, and grew up in Washington County. She has experience working in the nonprofit, event planning, and mentorship industries. She is a recent graduate of the University of Oregon with her Master of Public Administration. She is supporting the outreach efforts by ensuring that policymakers and 9th-12th grade educators are informed about the release of Casa y Comunidad, an informative educational resource for Oregonians.

Kennedy Barrera-Cruz

Digital Designer

Kennedy Barrera-Cruz is a digital designer located in Portland, Oregon. Kennedy currently works as a designer at a digital agency but freelances in her free time whenever she can — especially with projects close to her heart that impact our community in a positive way. She grew up in Hillsboro and different rural parts of Oregon. There, she worked on farms with her family alongside migrant workers. If she could summarize her work in a few words, it would be brown, trans, colorful, and playful. She likes attending design events in Portland and facilitating a mentorship program for BIPOC design students at Portland State University.

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank all community partners, state and local agencies, and educational partners for helping make this project possible. We would especially like to thank everyone who took the time to share their story with us on camera.

Community Organizations
Bend Redmond Habitat for Humanity
Centro de Servicios para Campesinos
Coalición Fortaleza
Doulas Latinas
Euvalcree
Farmworker Housing Development Corporation
Habitat for Humanity of Central Lane
Hacienda CDC
Hispanic Advisory Committee, City of Hermiston
Just Futures Institute for Racial and Climate Justice
Latino Community Association
NeighborImpact
New Horizons
Pineros y Campesinos del Noroeste
Radio La Ley
Únete

Mellon Foundation
Armando I. Bengochea, Ph.D.
Dan Kent
Dianne Harris, Ph.D. (formerly)

University of California San Diego
Alison Pau
Devaney Kerr
Isaac Martin, Ph.D.
Lawrence Frank, Ph.D.
Luis Alvarez, Ph.D.
Nancy Kawk, Ph.D.
Robert Castro
University of California Advancing Faculty Diversity Program
University of California San Diego, Latinx Cluster Hire Initiative
University of California San Diego, School of Social Sciences
University of California San Diego, Chicanx and Latinx Studies Program
University of California San Diego, Department of Urban Studies and Planning

University of Oregon
Alaí Reyes-Santos, Ph.D.
Alayne Switzer, CRA
Angelique Lewis
Laura Pulido, Ph.D.
Mackenzie Karp
Mara Fields
Mark Carey, Ph.D.
Marsha Gravesen, CRA
Marsha Weisiger, Ph.D.
Stephanie LeMenager, Ph.D.
Tash O’Brien
University of Oregon, Center for Environmental Futures
University of Oregon, Foundation Relations
University of Oregon, Libraries
University of Oregon, School of Planning, Public Policy and Management
Vidusha Devasthali

Whiting Foundation
Daniel Reid
Katy Einerson

The Project

In 2022, John C. Arroyo, Ph.D, AICP, Assistant Professor in Urban Studies and Planning and Chicanx and Latinx Studies at the University of California San Diego (formerly Assistant Professor in Engaging Diverse Communities and Founding Director of the Pacific Northwest Just Futures Institute for Racial and Climate Justice at the University of Oregon), became one of six Whiting Foundation Public Engagement Fellows that year. His vision was to create a limited documentary series aimed at bringing attention to the housing realities of the ever-growing Latino/a/x migrant community in Oregon.

The series follows the seven major regions of Oregon, each presenting a unique housing challenge. Key themes include:

• • • Displacement and Gentrification (Portland Metro Area: Portland, Hillsboro, Beaverton)
    • Farmworker/Agricultural Housing (Woodburn)
    • Rental Challenges and Affordable Housing (Eugene, Springfield)
    • Fire Recovery (Rogue Valley, Parts 1 and 2: Medford, Talent, Phoenix)
    • Homeownership (Central Oregon: Bend, Madras, Prineville)
      
    • COVID-19 and Inter-generational Housing (Hermiston, Tri-Cities, Parts 1 and 2)
    • Mobile Homes and Rural Housing (Ontario)

Every episode in the Casa y Comunidad dosuseries begins by centering one family or individual, incorporating on-site filming in and around their home, workplace, or town or city to capture their personal migration and housing history. These resident testimonios are supplemented by interviews with other experts to provide regional and historical context. Partners include state and local housing and community development agencies, school districts, libraries, and ethnic-serving community-based organizations. A robust dissemination plan is centered around Casa y Comunidad as a teaching tool for Oregon Department of Education’s K-12 requirement for ethnic studies (HB 2845/HB 2023). The project website includes supplemental learning aids such as photographs, historical documents, planning records, and news articles expanding on the current themes addressed in the videos.

Casa y Comunidad is free, open-access, and bilingual (English and Spanish). It is designed for all audiences — particularly 9-12 classrooms, housing and community-development-focused policymakers, and all Oregonians.

The Team

John C. Arroyo

Director, Executive Producer, Whiting Foundation Public Engagement Fellow

John C. Arroyo, Ph.D., AICP is Assistant Professor of Urban Studies and Planning and Chicanx and Latinx Studies at the University of California San Diego. Prior to his appointment at UC San Diego he was Assistant Professor in Engaging Diverse Communities (with affiliations in the departments of Indigenous, Race, and Ethnic Studies and Historic Preservation) at the University of Oregon, where he was also Founding Director of the Pacific Northwest Just Futures Institute for Racial and Climate Justice – the largest social science and humanities grant awarded in UO’s history. Previously, Dr. Arroyo was an Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Fellow in Latino Studies at the School for Advanced Research in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Arroyo received his doctorate in Urban Planning, Policy, and Design from MIT. He is a national expert on the social, political, and cultural dimensions of Latino/a/x-centered built and natural environments (specifically housing, ethnic retail corridors, and transportation), urban design practices in emerging gateways, and arts and cultural planning. His scholarly and applied research has been published in the Journal of the American Planning Association, Journal of Planning Education and Research, Planning Theory and Practice, Cityscape and featured on national media outlets such as the Los Angeles Times, NPR, and U.S. News and World Report. He has raised nearly $5 million through competitive grants and prestigious fellowships supported by American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education, American Planning Association, the Mellon Foundation, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Research Council/Ford Foundation, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, and the Whiting Foundation. Dr. Arroyo currently serves on boards of the Public Humanities Network of the Consortium for Humanities Centers and Institutes (CHCI) and the School for Advanced Research (SAR). A certified planner, he has over 25 years of experience working with various arts and urbanism-related nonprofits, foundations, and government agencies in research, grantmaking, and technical assistance capacities across the US, Europe, Latin America, and the Caribbean. The son of Mexican immigrants, his commitment to social justice and equity is rooted in being born and raised East L.A.

Lucero Cortez

Assistant Director, Executive Producer, Assistant Editor

Lucero Cortez is a video producer and editor based out of Portland, Oregon. She’s passionate about using her knowledge and skills to express and share the stories of Latine people – both at a local and global scale. Her natural creative inclinations, her personal history, and her passions land her at the intersection of digital storytelling, archiving, and collaboration making Casa y Comunidad an exceptionally personal project for her. You can learn more about Lucero and her work by visiting www.lucerocortez.com.

Nadya Barba-Ramirez

Production Coordinator

Nadya is a concurrent Juris Doctor and Master of Public Administration student at the University of Oregon. She graduated from the University of Utah in 2019 with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and International Studies, with a minor in economics. She is a native of Utah, however, she has been living in Oregon since 2021. At the University of Oregon, she is a Graduate Employee at the Pacific Northwest Just Futures Institute for Racial and Climate Justice, where she works alongside Professor John C. Arroyo. Her involvement with Casa y Comunidad has allowed her to feel connected to the Latino community as she pursues her degrees. In addition to her academic passions, Nadya enjoys exploring creative projects such as photography, videography, and website design, all of which she has been able to apply through this project. As a first-generation Mexican-American, Casa y Comunidad is close to her heart and she looks forward to seeing the impact it has on the Oregon community, and beyond.

Jackelyn Cortez-Fregoso

Camera Operator, Editor

Jackelyn is a video creative from Woodburn, Oregon with 8 years of experience working with the Latine community through art and education, as well as other BIPOC communities. She graduated from Portland State University’s Film program in 2018 and has since focused on documentary filmmaking. Coming from a lively family who loved to tell stories through music and film, Jackelyn became passionate in applying her skills in video towards the pursuit of helping underserved people tell their own stories, from their own perspectives.

Caty Jimenez

Sound Operator

Caty is a recent graduate of Portland State University, where she earned her Bachelor of Arts in Film, and a minor in Japanese. She has been creating films for herself and others for over 9 years and is looking forward to continuing to do so. As a lifelong resident of Oregon, she feels deeply connected to the land and people that make up the state. Outside of filmmaking, she enjoys creating collages from old magazines, late-night gaming sessions, and hanging out with her two cats, Vaquita and Loot.

Esmeralda Flores

Outreach Coordinator

Esmeralda Flores was born in Portland, Oregon, and grew up in Washington County. She has experience working in the nonprofit, event planning, and mentorship industries. She is a recent graduate of the University of Oregon with her Master of Public Administration. She is supporting the outreach efforts by ensuring that policymakers and 9th-12th grade educators are informed about the release of Casa y Comunidad, an informative educational resource for Oregonians.

Kennedy Barrera-Cruz

Digital Designer

Kennedy Barrera-Cruz is a digital designer located in Portland, Oregon. Kennedy currently works as a designer at a digital agency but freelances in her free time whenever she can — especially with projects close to her heart that impact our community in a positive way. She grew up in Hillsboro and different rural parts of Oregon. There, she worked on farms with her family alongside migrant workers. If she could summarize her work in a few words, it would be brown, trans, colorful, and playful. She likes attending design events in Portland and facilitating a mentorship program for BIPOC design students at Portland State University.

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank all community partners, state and local agencies, and educational partners for helping make this project possible. We would especially like to thank everyone who took the time to share their story with us on camera.

The Project

In 2022, John C. Arroyo, Ph.D, AICP, Assistant Professor in Urban Studies and Planning and Chicanx and Latinx Studies at the University of California San Diego (formerly Assistant Professor in Engaging Diverse Communities and Founding Director of the Pacific Northwest Just Futures Institute for Racial and Climate Justice at the University of Oregon), became one of six Whiting Foundation Public Engagement Fellows that year. His vision was to create a limited documentary series aimed at bringing attention to the housing realities of the ever-growing Latino/a/x migrant community in Oregon.

The series follows the seven major regions of Oregon, each presenting a unique housing challenge. Key themes include:

• • • Displacement and Gentrification (Portland Metro Area: Portland, Hillsboro, Beaverton)
    • Farmworker/Agricultural Housing (Woodburn)
    • Rental Challenges and Affordable Housing (Eugene, Springfield)
    • Fire Recovery (Rogue Valley, Parts 1 and 2: Medford, Talent, Phoenix)
    • Homeownership (Central Oregon: Bend, Madras, Prineville)
      
    • COVID-19 and Inter-generational Housing (Hermiston, Tri-Cities, Parts 1 and 2)
    • Mobile Homes and Rural Housing (Ontario)

Every episode in the Casa y Comunidad dosuseries begins by centering one family or individual, incorporating on-site filming in and around their home, workplace, or town or city to capture their personal migration and housing history. These resident testimonios are supplemented by interviews with other experts to provide regional and historical context. Partners include state and local housing and community development agencies, school districts, libraries, and ethnic-serving community-based organizations. A robust dissemination plan is centered around Casa y Comunidad as a teaching tool for Oregon Department of Education’s K-12 requirement for ethnic studies (HB 2845/HB 2023). The project website includes supplemental learning aids such as photographs, historical documents, planning records, and news articles expanding on the current themes addressed in the videos.

Casa y Comunidad is free, open-access, and bilingual (English and Spanish). It is designed for all audiences — particularly 9-12 classrooms, housing and community-development-focused policymakers, and all Oregonians.

The Team

John C. Arroyo

Director, Executive Producer, Whiting Foundation Public Engagement Fellow

John C. Arroyo, Ph.D., AICP is Assistant Professor of Urban Studies and Planning and Chicanx and Latinx Studies at the University of California San Diego. Prior to his appointment at UC San Diego he was Assistant Professor in Engaging Diverse Communities (with affiliations in the departments of Indigenous, Race, and Ethnic Studies and Historic Preservation) at the University of Oregon, where he was also Founding Director of the Pacific Northwest Just Futures Institute for Racial and Climate Justice – the largest social science and humanities grant awarded in UO’s history. Previously, Dr. Arroyo was an Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Fellow in Latino Studies at the School for Advanced Research in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Arroyo received his doctorate in Urban Planning, Policy, and Design from MIT. He is a national expert on the social, political, and cultural dimensions of Latino/a/x-centered built and natural environments (specifically housing, ethnic retail corridors, and transportation), urban design practices in emerging gateways, and arts and cultural planning. His scholarly and applied research has been published in the Journal of the American Planning Association, Journal of Planning Education and Research, Planning Theory and Practice, Cityscape and featured on national media outlets such as the Los Angeles Times, NPR, and U.S. News and World Report. He has raised nearly $5 million through competitive grants and prestigious fellowships supported by American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education, American Planning Association, the Mellon Foundation, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Research Council/Ford Foundation, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, and the Whiting Foundation. Dr. Arroyo currently serves on boards of the Public Humanities Network of the Consortium for Humanities Centers and Institutes (CHCI) and the School for Advanced Research (SAR). A certified planner, he has over 25 years of experience working with various arts and urbanism-related nonprofits, foundations, and government agencies in research, grantmaking, and technical assistance capacities across the US, Europe, Latin America, and the Caribbean. The son of Mexican immigrants, his commitment to social justice and equity is rooted in being born and raised East L.A.

Lucero Cortez

Assistant Director, Executive Producer, Assistant Editor

Lucero Cortez is a video producer and editor based out of Portland, Oregon. She’s passionate about using her knowledge and skills to express and share the stories of Latine people – both at a local and global scale. Her natural creative inclinations, her personal history, and her passions land her at the intersection of digital storytelling, archiving, and collaboration making Casa y Comunidad an exceptionally personal project for her. You can learn more about Lucero and her work by visiting www.lucerocortez.com.

Nadya Barba-Ramirez

Production Coordinator

Nadya is a concurrent Juris Doctor and Master of Public Administration student at the University of Oregon. She graduated from the University of Utah in 2019 with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and International Studies, with a minor in economics. She is a native of Utah, however, she has been living in Oregon since 2021. At the University of Oregon, she is a Graduate Employee at the Pacific Northwest Just Futures Institute for Racial and Climate Justice, where she works alongside Professor John C. Arroyo. Her involvement with Casa y Comunidad has allowed her to feel connected to the Latino community as she pursues her degrees. In addition to her academic passions, Nadya enjoys exploring creative projects such as photography, videography, and website design, all of which she has been able to apply through this project. As a first-generation Mexican-American, Casa y Comunidad is close to her heart and she looks forward to seeing the impact it has on the Oregon community, and beyond.

Jackelyn Cortez-Fregoso

Camera Operator, Editor

Jackelyn is a video creative from Woodburn, Oregon with 8 years of experience working with the Latine community through art and education, as well as other BIPOC communities. She graduated from Portland State University’s Film program in 2018 and has since focused on documentary filmmaking. Coming from a lively family who loved to tell stories through music and film, Jackelyn became passionate in applying her skills in video towards the pursuit of helping underserved people tell their own stories, from their own perspectives.

Caty Jimenez

Sound Operator

Caty is a recent graduate of Portland State University, where she earned her Bachelor of Arts in Film, and a minor in Japanese. She has been creating films for herself and others for over 9 years and is looking forward to continuing to do so. As a lifelong resident of Oregon, she feels deeply connected to the land and people that make up the state. Outside of filmmaking, she enjoys creating collages from old magazines, late-night gaming sessions, and hanging out with her two cats, Vaquita and Loot.

Esmeralda Flores

Outreach Coordinator

Esmeralda Flores was born in Portland, Oregon, and grew up in Washington County. She has experience working in the nonprofit, event planning, and mentorship industries. She is a recent graduate of the University of Oregon with her Master of Public Administration. She is supporting the outreach efforts by ensuring that policymakers and 9th-12th grade educators are informed about the release of Casa y Comunidad, an informative educational resource for Oregonians.

Kennedy Barrera-Cruz

Digital Designer

Kennedy Barrera-Cruz is a digital designer located in Portland, Oregon. Kennedy currently works as a designer at a digital agency but freelances in her free time whenever she can — especially with projects close to her heart that impact our community in a positive way. She grew up in Hillsboro and different rural parts of Oregon. There, she worked on farms with her family alongside migrant workers. If she could summarize her work in a few words, it would be brown, trans, colorful, and playful. She likes attending design events in Portland and facilitating a mentorship program for BIPOC design students at Portland State University.

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank all community partners, state and local agencies, and educational partners for helping make this project possible. We would especially like to thank everyone who took the time to share their story with us on camera.