Meet The 2019 BMOC Academy Fellows!

PLI is proud to present 16 new Fellows joining the Boys & Men of Color (BMOC) Academy (half of the cohort shown). Their amazing work lives at the intersection of workforce development, out-of-school time engagement (OST), homelessness, the arts, k-12 education, and more, all of which impact the lives of BMOC in Baltimore. We are excited to watch their growth and impact in the city!

The 2019 PLI Boys & Men of Color Academy has officially begun! Saturday, April 13th was the official kick-off to introduce the new Fellows into the network, and meet Alumni, faculty members, and others who will be supporting them through their 7-month Academy journey.

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Smalltimore Homes Tiny Prototype

Hey Smalltimoreans,

Here's a rough sketch of the first tiny home that was built by our ED, LaQuida Chancey. After quickly realizing this is not going to be the best way to help eradicate homelessness in Baltimore, micro-shelters were the new focus!

Take a virtual tour on YouTube from the Tiny Home Expo in 2021:

Tiny Tour

What is a Micro-Shelter?

We're celebrating one year of service, and we're wondering, are people catching on to the micro-shelter lingo? Although most people refer to them as tiny homes, LaQuida Chancey, the founder of Smalltimore Homes, believes that the term "micro-shelter" more accurately describes their structures. Smalltimore homes formed a relationship with the Baltimore Community Toolbank in 2018, and began meeting volunteers there monthly to assemble "Thing 1", "Thing 2" and "Thing 3".

These shelters transform 3 panels that convert from a bench seat with storage underneath (Fig 1) to a seated tabled setting on opposite sides (not shown) and a bed configuration (Fig 2).

Figure 1 has a permanently placed bench seat with storage underneath, using the bottom row of the configuration. It also displays the second transformation panel on the top row, creating a table for eating or a desk for writing. For additional seating, the third transformation panel can be used on the lower row, therefore, providing seating on either side of the table. Finally, Figure 2 shows all 3 transformation panels on the bottom row configured as a bed.

Check out our 20ft Tiny Home on Youtube:

Tiny Tour