Economic Empowerment
Hygiene kits and a school closet without stigma
Valeria Sanchez, a student at Central East High School, is planning Humanos Unidos, a youth-led project to support unhoused individuals, low-income students and immigrant families in Fresno.
A Dignity Kit holds hygiene items and bilingual resource cards. A Dignity Closet is a confidential model for schools, "so students can access essentials without stigma." Both belong to Humanos Unidos, the project Valeria Sanchez is building in Fresno.
She is still in the planning stage, and says so. "I've been mapping out what the project will look like," she says, from the kits to the closet.
“Young people aren't just the future. We're the leaders shaping the present.”
Valeria Sanchez
The project is youth-led. It is meant to support unhoused individuals, low-income students and immigrant families with what she calls dignity-centered care.
She is a student at Central East High School. The reason is close to home. "I care about this because I've seen how many young people in my community struggle silently with basic needs, and how often language barriers or shame keep families from asking for help," she says.