The initiative was created in collaboration with Sagrado’s Community Engagement program.
By Institutional Communications
Stories of community leaders, merchants, musicians, teachers, and young residents of Barrio Obrero shaped the third edition of Voces del Caño, a community journalism initiative that connects students from Universidad del Sagrado Corazón with the communities of Caño Martín Peña through narrative journalism and service-learning.
Held at the TV-1 studio of the Ferré Rangel School of Communication, the event featured 17 narrative profiles written by students enrolled in PER 223: Narrative Journalism, taught by Professor Mariliana Torres Pagán. In addition, 30 profile excerpts were displayed in the school lobby as part of an exhibition open to the university community.
Voces del Caño is the result of a collaboration between the narrative journalism course and Sagrado’s Community Engagement Program, which facilitates service-learning experiences through the courses offered at the university. This year, the journalism project partnered with the Barrio Obrero Oeste se Reinventa Foundation and the Caño Martín Peña Enlace Project to highlight stories, contributions, and community leaders.
During the live presentation, students shared excerpts from their profiles alongside the individuals they interviewed, who joined them before an audience of family members, faculty, students, and community residents. The event became a space for dialogue and recognition of the voices working daily for the well-being of Barrio Obrero.
Photos by Sofía Díaz Rivera (Community Outreach)
Professor Torres Pagán highlighted the students’ commitment throughout the reporting process and their engagement with the community. As part of the project, students visited the neighborhood to learn about the community’s concerns, strengths, and ongoing transformation.
Journalism academic leader María de los Milagros Colón emphasized the educational and human value of the initiative, particularly the field experience it provides students.
The initiative Voces del Caño takes its name from the communities surrounding Caño Martín Peña and seeks to amplify the stories of those building community in different ways. Through interviews and narrative profiles, students document lived experiences and preserve the collective memory of historically marginalized sectors.
For Laura Narváez Príncipe, coordinator of Community Engagement, the project also serves as a tool for preserving community legacy.
“These profiles are part of the legacy the community leaves for future generations. Voces del Caño is a small sample of all the people who are part of the community and who work from their own areas of expertise to build a better community for themselves and for those who come after them,” Narváez expressed.
Narváez added that the profiles feature community leaders, librarians, merchants, journalists, religious leaders, musicians, and young people who contribute daily to the development of Barrio Obrero.
Beyond an academic presentation, Voces del Caño represents Sagrado’s commitment to the surrounding communities and demonstrates the power of journalism as a tool to listen, document, and preserve the stories that shape Puerto Rico’s identity.