Pomona students have everyone's ears now

Chris Schultz breaks down as he worries that his younger brothers will become homeless because his family is four months behind in rent.

Evelyn Aguilar's home was foreclosed, so her family is among a dozen people sharing a one-bedroom apartment.

Victoria Gonzalez may delay college for a year to support her family.

These students, all 17, and 14 of their classmates tell their tales in "Is Anybody Listening?", a nine-minute video made by students at Village Academy High School in Pomona. The production quality is minimal; students speak directly to the camera in front of a blue background, laced with footage of foreclosed homes, abandoned storefronts and others advertising going-out-of-business sales.

But the tales of families dealing with the economic crisis are deeply personal.

This week, in his first major speech on education since taking office, President Obama described the video and spoke directly to the Pomona students.

"I am listening. We are listening. America is listening," the president said. "And we are not going to rest until your parents can keep their jobs, your families can keep their homes, and you can focus on what you should be focusing on: your own education."

Although the subject is dispiriting, the story of how the documentary came to be made at a low-income yet high-achieving public school -- and ended up in a speech by the president -- is extraordinary.

In October, teacher Michael Steinman's Advanced Placement English class finished studying F. Scott Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatsby," a novel about wealth and the American dream. He asked his students if the recession was affecting them.

"Thirty-one hands shot up in the air simultaneously," he said.

Students told him about families losing homes, cupboards becoming bare and parents going without medication because their benefits were cut. He asked them to write essays about their experiences and then suggested they create a documentary.

The video begins with students reeling off their dream jobs: environmental scientist, psychologist, guidance counselor, actress. Then they explain why their dreams may not come true.

"My father has just lost one of his [two] jobs, and now it's even more difficult for us to pay for our house," said Jose Lopez, 17.

"He used to come home smiling every day and, well, now it's not the same anymore. He comes home and he's worried all the time, and I see it in his eyes," Jorge Bravo said.