Voices of Silicon Valley: Using Heritage Discourse to Counteract Placelessness and Build Belonging

FAIN: AE-295745-24

Foothill-De Anza Community College District (Cupertino, CA 95014-5702)
Lori Clinchard (Project Director: May 2023 to present)

A three-year oral history project on the history of Silicon Valley.

This project is intended to increase access to the oral histories of De Anza College’s California History Center (CHC), while also creating new oral histories, digital stories, and an educational walking tour, within a Humanities context and curriculum. De Anza College is eager to undertake the work of reframing historical narratives that better reflect an authentic identity for the people of Silicon Valley. In keeping with the National Endowment for the Humanities' special initiative, A More Perfect Union, this project is motivated by the recognition that the American story is incomplete without the stories of the countless Americans who have been bypassed, ignored, and forgotten. By addressing such marginalization, this project: (1) increases accessibility of the local oral histories already housed at CHC; (2) promotes the creation of new historical narratives, and (3) works with campus and community partners to develop new curriculum and experiential learning activities.