Community connections help UW Tacoma student grow as a civic leader

Cameron Cyprain was born on Fort Lewis military base to military parents. He joined the Navy himself after high school, working jobs where he used digital tools extensively. During his service, Cyprain lived in more than seven different states and countries.

“I've moved so much in my life,” he said. “I think I've probably relocated almost every year of my adult life.”

Drawn to the beautiful campus, close-knit community and proximity to his support network, the University of Washington Tacoma was Cyprain’s top choice when it came time to return to school.

“I feel really connected to the school in a way that I don't know that I would at a larger campus, especially since I’ve been out of education for a while,” he says. “There’s a lot to get involved in here.”

With a passion for people and a strong belief in the power of technology, Cyprain is interested in how digital infrastructure can help streamline fragmented social service systems to better support those in need. His interest grew out of his experience establishing himself in Tacoma.

Listening with heart

While searching for housing and resources to get on his feet when moving to Tacoma, Cyprain noticed people congregating around social service sites like food pantries, churches and shelters.

Cyprain started asking questions and listening to the stories of those accessing services. He wanted to understand what made it difficult for people to find and navigate the help they needed. He heard many examples of how disconnected services, inconsistent eligibility requirements and inaccessible information created barriers.

To date, Cyprain has listened to the experiences of more than 100 people seeking resources and the care providers who support them. Those conversations have shaped both his understanding of the problem and the solutions he hopes to build.

“In my view, a well-designed digital system is the closest thing we have to an objective, impartial tool for programs of any significant scale,” Cyprain said. “You have dozens of organizations in the city receiving much of the same population. Thousands of people each year. Technology can give us a bird's-eye view of what's going on.”

For Cyprain, the most rewarding part of the work is the meaning it gives to those who feel heard. A listening ear, a ride, a place to sleep can change someone’s perspective. It can translate into feeling seen, feeling valued and feeling human.

Now, he is taking what he learned from those conversations, looking for ways to amplify the lessons and proposing more effective systems.

Elevating often unheard voices

UW Tacoma has been a key part of Cyprain’s journey. He attributes the small class sizes and community connectedness to helping him turn his curiosity into action.

When former UW Tacoma lecturer Brittny Goodsell learned last year that Cyprain was working on housing security issues, she connected him with Olympia Mayor Dontae Payne, for whom homelessness is a top priority.  

“This is the intimacy of having a smaller campus,” Cyprain said. “She helped me a lot.”

During their time together, Cyprain shared with the mayor what he had heard during the interviews, potential solutions including improvements to the HMIS system, and the barriers to progress. Cyprain saw the meeting as an opportunity to elevate what he heard in Tacoma to hopefully inform the mayor’s strategies to address housing insecurity in nearby Olympia.

National recognition for local efforts

Cyprain’s journey to learn and grow isn’t stopping there. He was awarded the Campus Compact Newman Civic Fellowship, a national, yearlong learning and networking opportunity for emerging leaders, including a three-day conference in Washington, D.C.

It was UW Tacoma Chancellor Sheila Edwards Lange who nominated Cyprain in recognition of his leadership potential and commitment to community engagement.

“Cameron exemplifies the thoughtful, equity-centered leadership that the Newman Civic Leadership Fellowship seeks to honor,” Chancellor Lange said. “He is deeply committed to solving public challenges by understanding how systems work, bringing people together and listening to community voices to better understand their needs. We are thrilled that he is representing UW Tacoma through this esteemed fellowship.”

Cyprain hopes that his time in the fellowship will help him become a more impactful community leader and organizer. He wants to better leverage lessons learned from the community to inform advocates and policymakers and drive system-level change.

“In my mind, there is a reality where degrees of what I've done are commonplace and not the exception,” Cyprain said. “Hopefully, I can push things in that direction.”

Looking ahead to a bright future

After completing his bachelor’s degree in business administration, Cyprain hopes to pursue graduate study in business analytics, where he can focus on designing technology solutions that transform fragmented social service systems. Eventually, he’d like to work for the state.

For now, he’s focused on continuing to listen, learn and elevate insights from people whose voices are often unheard in the South Sound.