Howard Street Charter students make art for unsheltered neighbors in Salem's Pallet homes

Howard Street Charter School wants to help people experiencing homelessness in the Salem community. And they're doing it the best way they know how — sharing their art.

Howard Street, which teaches students in grades 6-8, is unique in its structure as students are required to take art, drama, Spanish and STEM classes — science, technology, engineering and math — throughout their enrollment.

This year, each of the school's 188 students will create a work of art on an 8x10 inch canvas using pencils or watercolors.

They hope to complete the first round of work by spring break, then make a second piece after, likely focusing on other mediums and materials that could be used for outdoor decoration.

The students' unique pieces will be displayed at Salem Arts Association's Bush Barn this spring before individuals living in the city's Pallet micro shelters can take them to brighten their space.

"When (someone's) living on the street, they're thinking about their immediate needs — food, clothing, shelter," art teacher Lena James said. "When they get to move into a shelter, it's nice to make it feel like it's theirs, even if it's only temporary."

Salem City Council approved three new micro-shelter village sites earlier this month, one of which will ultimately replace the Village of Hope site at 2640 Portland Road NE near the former DMV building. The other existing village is at 3737 Portland Road NE.

The shelters have room for two people, allow them to secure their belongings and give them a safe, warm place to sleep. Advocates say this allows people experiencing homelessness to stabilize, get treatment and connect to more permanent housing solutions.

James said she hopes the recipients take the art with them wherever they go next, and that they know there are people in the community who care.

"For the students, (the project is about) building empathy and understanding for others who aren't as fortunate as them," James said.

"We want them to know this is an issue and they can do something about it," she said, adding they hope the students feel empowered by this work to do more. "Even small things will help."

'What can we do as middle schoolers?'

Since moving to Howard Street's downtown location in 2020, James said the homeless community is far more visible to students and staff.

Local agencies estimate more than 1,000 people are living unsheltered or without stable housing in the region, in addition to the hundreds of children in Salem-Keizer Public Schools.

More than 400 people are on a waitlist for Salem's micro shelters.

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Throughout December, Howard Street students met via Zoom with local experts — including advocates from local shelters and nonprofits, as well as city officials and city councilors — to learn about the current state of homelessness in Salem.

Students then dove into reflective conversations in class this January.

"Why do you think people are homeless?" teacher Robert Salberg asked his class earlier this month.

Maybe they don't have family support, one student suggested. Another listed student loan debt. Others mentioned dealing with drug addiction or mental health problems, losing a job, being impacted by the 2020 wildfires or being a domestic violence survivor.

The students then read an article about the 12 myths of homelessness and asked what barriers people may face in getting help, such as having a pet, living in poor health or not having proper identification.

They talked about housing-first initiatives that aim to ensure folks struggling have stable shelter before addressing other needs. The students asked themselves, "What can we do as middle schoolers to help?"

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Salberg, who teaches theater arts and health and fitness at Howard Street, originally came up with the idea for the Pallet art project when he and a few coworkers virtually attended a "project-based learning" training last fall through San Diego's High Tech High.

Salberg said they wanted to create a project that would serve a purpose beyond the walls of the classroom.

"It became increasingly clear it was a significant way our kids could contribute in a positive way to a problem in our community that seems to have no simple solution," he said.

A sense of belonging

Over the next few weeks, Howard Street students will work with alumni and local artists to craft their one-of-a-kind works of art. Most will be for inside the Pallet shelters, but if they get enough volunteers, Principal Christina Tracy said they hope to do art for outdoor enjoyment as well.

August Woodward, 12, began working on possible designs this week.

The students were tasked with picking words they want to communicate through their art, such as comfort, security, bravery, friendship or grace.

Woodward was working on their illustration for "hope," in which a person is surrounded by darkness but carries a lantern that shines bright.

The seventh-grader also picked the word "belonging."

"I know a lot of people who are homeless," Woodward said. "Usually when they do get, like, what they need in life, like someplace to stay, they usually don't feel like they deserve it, or they don't feel like they belong in that place."

Woodward said they wanted to draw a family welcoming an alien or something society doesn't approve of to show they can belong and be accepted, and that they do deserve support.

Woodward is nervous to share their art because they're still finding their own style as an artist. While art is a hobby Woodward enjoys, they said they'd like to make it a larger priority.

"I'm just, like, exploring new ideas and different hobbies," they said. "I'm still a kid, and I don't know exactly what drives my attention."

To learn more about this project and Howard Street Charter School, go to howardstreet.org.

Contact education reporter Natalie Pate at npate@statesmanjournal.com, 503-399-6745, Twitter @NataliePateGwin, or Facebook at Facebook.com/nataliepatejournalist.

This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: Howard Street Charter students make art for Salem's unsheltered community