At the end of March, three mentees, two mentors, and two staff traveled to Washington D.C. for an low income housing conference...


“If we’ve gotten this far in a couple of days, imagine how far we could go in a couple of years,” says 17-year old Ashley Seymour, reflecting on her experience traveling to Washington, D.C. Seven representatives of the DREAM Program, including kids from the Elm Street community in Winooski, mentors from UVM and St. Michael’s College, and DREAM staff, attended the 2007 Housing Policy Conference put on by the National Low Income Housing Coalition. The coalition is “dedicated solely to ending America’s affordable housing crisis.”

DREAM, a Vermont mentoring program, matches college students with children living in affordable housing communities. Focusing on empowerment through knowledge of current issues and venues for action, DREAM sent kids and mentors to learn how to impact national affordable housing. The seven member delegation discussed the issue with representatives from across the country. The group met with representatives from Senators Leahy and Sanders’ offices to discuss housing. They then toured the capital building and visited the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial.

Speaking on her experience, UVM sophomore Michelle Kniffin states “This has motivated me…to learn more about the issues and pursue a career in public policy, which will enable me to address issues such as affordable housing…”

These experiences happen thanks to community support and with special thanks to the Founders’ Fund for this event.