New initiative looks to expand youth arts access
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A youth performance through cultural center Heritage Works (left) and a young Detroit Symphony Orchestra Civic Youth Ensembles musician. Photos: Courtesy of Detroit Excellence in Youth Arts
Detroit kids are poised to have better access to arts education through a collaborative effort with federal funding and buy-in from Henry Ford Health.
Why it matters: Visual arts, storytelling, music and other forms unlock artistic potential in children beyond those pursuing art as a career.
- This education helps them become creative thinkers and leaders in any job field, according to the new Detroit Partnership for Arts Education (DPAE).
State of play: The partnership officially launched last month.
- It's meant to show what opportunities are available for Detroit youth and will work to improve that access so all kids can participate, according to Nafeesah Symonette, director of Detroit Excellence in Youth Arts, an organization coordinating the effort.
The latest: DPAE created a first-of-its-kind map and directory of programs, such as Grateful Studios' violin and cello lessons or Class Act Detroit's illustration, game design, DJing and podcasting programs.
- DPAE also researched arts access from more than 100 schools, state databases and individual organizations — finding that children living in the city and those with less economic mobility are less likely to benefit from arts programs.
- High program costs and transportation issues are seen as "top barriers" to participation.
Between the lines: The hope is for these findings to spur more arts dollars to fund teachers, supplies and nonprofit operations, Symonette says.
What they're saying: "It's not about finding the next artist or the next famous actor," she tells us. "It is about developing young people into whole human beings who know how to articulate themselves and talk about what their emotions are …"
Zoom in: A key piece of Detroit's effort was getting other sectors to understand they hold a stake in the issue — people like Henry Ford Health CEO Robert Riney and former Detroit Medical Center Children's Hospital of Michigan CEO Herman Gray signed on as founding members.
- The project also received $75,000 from the National Endowment for the Arts.
The bottom line: "The long-term goal is to create ongoing civic infrastructure," Symonette says, "and the use of private and public revenue streams that support arts education both in school and out of school."