Opening the Book on a Historic Partnership

Faculty and students from the Lewis & Clark Graduate School of Education and Counseling took part in the grand opening of the Albina One housing development, hosting a reading corner for children and families. The Albina Vision Trust describes Albina One as a 94-unit, family-oriented affordable housing development featuring culturally-specific, on-site services by community partner Portland Opportunities Industrialization Center (POIC); gorgeous, communally accessible balconies; shared community floors; and a large, lush courtyard that will be entirely affordable with 75 units locked between 30-60% AMI and 19 Section 8-eligible units.

Albina One was built intentionally to center the community and serve people of all ages,” says Andy Saultz, dean of the graduate school. “Lewis & Clark is honored to be the higher education partner of the Albina Vision Trust.”

Secondary MAT program director Maika Yeigh, along with secondary MAT students Fabiola Rio and Sofia Leggio and Lewis & Clark undergraduate Dolyn Kinney, hosted the activities. Books were purchased from Third Eye Books and additional games, puzzles, and art supplies came from other sources and donations. The materials will remain at Albina One to become part of their future library.

Yeigh was thrilled with the turnout, estimating they served 30-40 families.

We had a lot of visitors. Families sat and read to their children, worked puzzles, and did art together,” says Yeigh. “Our student volunteers facilitated stories and games and art to children who came in on their own.”

The materials will remain at Albina One to become part of their future library.Amenities at Albina One include community rooms on the ground and top floors, on-site property management offices, secure bike parking, and an outdoor plaza with garden and play areas. Tenants have access to multimodal transportation options including TriMet’s Rose Quarter Transit Center, the Portland Streetcar, frequent-service bus lines, Interstate 5, and bike share stations. The project is less than one mile from a grocery store and other commercial activities; also nearby are the Willamette River, Harriet Tubman Middle School, Dawson Park and Lillis Albina Park, and several churches with historic ties to Portland’s Black community.

The Albina Vision Trust and Lewis & Clark announced their historic partnership in April 2025, outlining their intent to weave education and opportunity into the built and cultural fabric of a redeveloped Lower Albina. The goal of the partnership is to create permanent infrastructure and programming for residents, students, educators, and community members to learn together and build community-based knowledge, contributing to the flourishing of one of the most innovative zip codes in the United States.

In the announcement, Winta Yohannes, executive director of the AVT, states that the Albina Vision Trust cannot build a world-class district without a world-class commitment to education.

“Education is the backbone of economic mobility, community-led development, and all visionary acts of hope and healing,” she says. “We are proud to approach this partnership with Lewis & Clark as both builders and learners.”

Saultz, Yeigh, and the entire graduate school are looking forward to finding more ways to partner with AVT, and are excited to learn how the graduate school and Lewis & Clark can help meet the needs and wants of AVT’s community.

Secondary MAT Program Albina One Albina Vision Trust