In this article, the author shares how she was able to help young choreographers in East Oakland, California, to find their own creative voices, choose new movement styles and discover dance as a way to express something important and meaningful about their lives through their two-year dance history project. East Oakland School of the Arts (EOSA) began six years ago when Oakland was breaking up its comprehensive high schools into "autonomous small schools." Its mission statement includes using "the transformative power of the arts" to help the underserved students reach their potential. EOSA's dance department includes a full program encompassing three levels of basic dance classes, in which students study jazz and modern techniques, world dance forms, improvisation, and choreography. The most advanced course is Dance Production. EOSA's Dance Production class participated in two full-year projects that combined research and choreography. In 2006-2007, the project stressed dance history. In 2007-2008, the focus shifted to how dance can express historical issues. The author states that the project became a huge learning experience for all of them, as the students created a dance that truly had meaning to their lives, and she learned from guiding them through the difficult process of creating meaningful dances.