Story Gathering: Sandbox for post-high school young adults is centered around “own voices” and a central theme of unity and understanding across cultures (and communities). Fellows choose a topic that relates to their ethnic or cultural community. The program was created as a young adult (18-29) counterpart to our award-winning Story Gathering: Workshop for high school students. Each fellow will receive compensation upon submission of their final piece. The amount of compensation the fellow receives is dependent on program funding at the time of the sandbox.
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2025 Sandbox Details:
The 2025 program will comprise of a series of seven in-person sessions held in Bellevue, WA, including the showcase and dress rehearsal, and five one-on-one virtual meetings with the instructor. Over the course of eight weeks, participants will engage in discussion and workshop their stories together while receiving one-on-one support from the instructor during the virtual meetings. Participants will hone a variety of skills that will help them in the creation of their final piece. Group sessions will comprise of participant-led discussions on identity, community, culture, and media. The stories written during this program will be written in the style of feature articles. Participants are expected to identify and conduct at least one interview to include in the piece.
The program concludes with an in-person showcase held in Bellevue, WA, where participants will be able to present their piece to the public. Friends and family are more than welcome to join! Part of the showcase will include a participant panel where they will be able to answer audience questions, moderated by EchoX staff. After the closing showcase, participants who have participated in all required sessions, submitted a completed piece ready for publication, and completed an exist survey will receive a certificate of completion and a small stipend for their work.
All completed pieces will be published on Voices, EchoX’s news and features feed. Each piece will also be rotated through the EchoX homepage as a feature based on a schedule picked by the students.
PROGRAM ELIGIBILITY
The workshop is designed for any post-high school young adults ages 18-29 who are interested in, curious to learn more, and/or passionate about their ethnic cultural heritage, community, or identity. If you have questions or concerns about your eligibility, please email info@echox.org and a member of our staff will get back to you shortly!
Prospective participants still in high school should apply to our “Story Gathering: Workshop” program which is specifically designed for high school students.
PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS
Over the course of eight weeks, students will:
- Attend all five (5) in-person group meetings (1.5 hours/each),
- Schedule and attend five (5) virtual 1:1s with the instructor (1 hour/each),
- Write a minimum 1000-word piece that relates to their ethnic culture (community, family, or self/identity),
- Interview at least one (1) person for inclusion in the written piece,
- Prepare a five-minute presentation on their work,
- Attend an in-person dress rehearsal for the showcase (1.5 hours), and
- Attend and present at an in-person showcase featuring all students and their work (3 hours).
2025 SCHEDULE
The program runs from October 13, 2025 to December 7, 2025. All in-person meetings will be held in Bellevue, WA, as stipulated by the grant.
- Week 1 Oct 13-19: In-person and Virtual
- Virtual: Participants must schedule one (1) 45-min meeting with the program instructor between Oct 14-17 to get to know your story and answer an program questions
- In-person: Sat, Oct 18 at Third Culture Coffee, 2:00-3:15pm
- Week 2 Oct 20-26: In-person, Virtual optional
- Virtual: Fellows must schedule one 1:1 either in week 2 or in week 3
- In-person: Sat, Oct 25 at Third Culture Coffee, 2:00-3:15pm
- Week 3 Oct 27-Nov 2: In-person, Virtual optional
- Virtual: Fellows must schedule one 1:1 either in week 2 or in week 3
- In-person on Sat, Nov 1 at Third Culture Coffee, 2:00-3:15pm
- Week 4 Nov 3-9: In-person on Sat, Nov 8 and Virtual
- Virtual: Fellows must schedule one (1) 1:1 in week 4
- In-person: Sat, Nov 8 at Third Culture Coffee, 2:00-3:15pm
- Week 5 Nov 10-16: Virtual
- Fellows must schedule one (1) 1:1 in week 5
- Week 6 Nov 17-23: In person, Virtual optional
- Virtual: Fellows must schedule one (1) 1:1 in week 6 or in week 7
- In-person: Sat, Nov 22 at Third Culture Coffee, 2:00-3:15pm
- Week 7 Nov 24-30: Virtual optional
- Virtual: Fellows must schedule one (1) 1:1 in week 6 or in week 7
- Week 8 Dec 1-Dec 7: In person 2x and Virtual 2x
- Virtual: Fellows must schedule one (1) 1:1 in week 8
- Virtual: A small group meeting for showcase preparation, scheduled by the group on day 1 of the in-person program (October 18)
- In-person: Dress rehearsal on Thursday, Dec 4 at Third Culture Coffee
- In-person: Final Showcase on Sunday, Dec 7 at Third Culture Coffee
HOW TO APPLY:
Applications for “Story Gathering: Sandbox 2025” are now open through October 10, 2025. Apply today!
If you would like to be notified on future opportunities to participate in our workshops, please join our mailing list!
2024 Story Gathering Sandbox Pieces:
Curanderismo by Brenda Rodriguez
Becoming Peruvian: Marginalization and the Making of Identity Through Academia by Mateo Acuña
Lost in Translation by Sonam Sherpa
Tenzin by Tenzin Lodoe
2023 Story Gathering Sandbox Pieces:
Voices of Latin America: An Indigenous PhD Student’s Perspective with ISLA by Elizabeth Nova
A Re-memory of Central Asia’s Soviet Apartments: Exploring the Legacies of Colonial City Landscapes by Fotima Ibrokhim
Somali Girls Club is Just Getting Started by Jehan Hashi
Unweaving the Tapestry of Identity: A Tibetan-American on “Being Yourself” by Zenden Nhangkar
The 2023 and 2024 workshops were sponsored by the Muckleshoot Tribe and by the City of Bellevue through their Eastside Arts Partnerships. Thank you!
Meet the 2023, 2024, 2025 instructor:
Kathryn Lam is driven by multicultural digital storytelling and strives to create a world where the celebration of our differences is what brings us together. She graduated from the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa (2016) where she received a B.A. in English and French. While in university, Kathryn was the editor of Seawords, a monthly marine science magazine. She has worked abroad as a high school teacher in France and as an editor for international Ph.D. candidates in Denmark and the Netherlands. Kathryn enjoys immersing herself in multicultural experiences and has both traveled extensively and lived abroad.
Meet the 2024 instructor:
Troy Landrum Jr. is a native of Indianapolis, IN and has lived in Seattle, WA for 10 years. His passion for reading and writing bloomed as he navigated a path of self-rediscovery through identity, faith, culture and his family’s migration stories from Jim Crow South to the Midwest. These intersections are at the helm of his human experience and literature process as a Black artist and oral historian. Troy graduated with a Masters in Fine Arts at the University of Washington Bothell and is currently a free lance storytelling consultant, a freelance journalist for the South Seattle Emerald, and a Novelist. His novel In Progress explores the question of “Home” through the Historical American time period of The Great Migration. A period in American history where millions of African American people moved from the South to Northern and Midwestern cities. He dedicates his work to the brilliance of African American History and the brilliance of his family history through the work of literature and preservation. He is very excited to join the EchoX team and share in the magic that they have created through the Story Gathering series.
Questions, comments, or concerns? Email info@echox.org and a member of our team will get back to you shortly. Interested in our youth opportunities? Check out our Instagram page for the latest announcements and updates.
The 2025 workshop is sponsored by the City of Bellevue through their Eastside Arts Partnerships and the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe. Thank you!
