SPNN/St Paul Neighborhood Network

Amplify a Voice. Preserve a Story. Shape our Future.

OUR STORIES. OUR VOICES. OUR FUTURE

What happens when a young person picks up a camera for the first time? When an elder shares a story that might otherwise be lost? When a new filmmaker sees their work on a screen? When someone gains the digital skills needed to pursue a new opportunity?

At Saint Paul Neighborhood Network (SPNN), these moments are more than creative experiences. They are moments of transformation. 

For more than 40 years, SPNN has helped Minnesotans find their voices, share their experiences, build new skills, and connect with their communities through the power of media.

In 2026, our work continues to show what is possible when storytelling belongs to everyone

• Through our Elder Stories Project, young people are learning to preserve the histories and wisdom of Black, Brown, Indigenous, and immigrant elders.
• Through our youth media programs, emerging creators are learning filmmaking, photography, podcasting, and digital storytelling—discovering their talents and seeing new possibilities for their futures.
• Through Doc U and our emerging filmmaker programs, community members are gaining access to the equipment, mentorship, and creative opportunities they need to tell stories too often left out of mainstream media.
• Through our digital literacy and community technology initiatives, we are helping neighbors build skills, overcome barriers, and participate more fully in an increasingly digital world.
• And through our community productions and civic media work, we continue to make space for stories, conversations, and perspectives that strengthen civic participation and neighborhood connections. 

Why your support matters

Stories do not tell themselves. They need people who believe they matter. We invite you to invest in more than cameras, computers, classes, and community media.

• Invest in a young person's first film.
• Invest in an elder's history being preserved.
• Invest in a filmmaker whose perspective deserves to be seen. 
• Invest in a neighbor gaining access to technology and opportunity. 
• Invest in a community where everyone has the power to tell their own story.

Every gift helps sustain the tools, spaces, training, mentorship, and creative opportunities that make this work possible. Together, we can ensure that the next generation does not simply inherit the stories of our communities—they have the power to tell new ones.