Main fundraiser photo

Statement Arts College Prep 2019!

Tax deductible
HELP US GET 16 MORE TERRIFIC NYC
KIDS INTO COLLEGE!
 
If you can help us level the playing field for some amazing young people who deserve a chance, we'd be extremely grateful. Thanks for taking the time to check out our campaign. This July, Statement Arts will sponsor its free StART Dreaming College Preparatory Program for 16 under-served New York City young people. StART Dreaming is a year-long endeavor.  It costs $50,000 to run the summer portion alone.   This campaign will fund the summer program and keep it free for all of our students. 

 
 
WHAT WE WANT TO DO
This year marks the eighth anniversary of our annual StART Dreaming College Preparatory Program.  Sixteen new students will start with us this July.  To date, the program has been a HUGE success.  Every StART Dreaming graduate has gone on to attend a higher learning institution, and many of our students have received substantial scholarships.  
 

 
The primary goal of the StART Dreaming College Prep Program is to immerse young people in performing arts education to which they do not have access, and help them get into college. We use the arts to foster creative, academic, and personal confidence. While we have had kids coming in from 4 of the 5 boroughs, most of our students live in Washington Heights, the Bronx, Brooklyn and Harlem. The majority of our students identify as people of color and come from low-income communities. 
 
 
StART Dreaming begins with a 3-week summer intensive at Punto Space in Midtown, led by 4 teaching artists and a social worker. Our teaching artists offer students master classes in acting, private voice lessons, dance and interpretive coaching. Each student chooses a song and monologue to work on, and participates in many other group performances. This specialized arts instruction culminates in a final performance in which each student has a solo. The show is free and open to the public. 
 
 
Our social worker and writing teacher lead a writing group in which students process their artistic growth and ultimately draw on that to draft their college admission essays. In addition to our teaching artists and social worker, our interns provide invaluable support. Interns are StART Dreaming alumni who are currently attending college. Interns inspire new cohorts, learn valuable teaching skills, and hone their performance techniques. We hope that our students continue to return as interns and eventually run Statement Arts one day. 
 
 
While this campaign is designed to fund the summer portion of our program, StART Dreaming continues throughout the rest of the year. From August through June, we offer StART Dreaming students access to immersive cultural activities, performance opportunities, and college guidance. In addition to our free SAT prep class, as well as one-on-one mentoring with volunteers at Morgan Stanley, we also assist them in creating audition tapes for their Arts Supplement- an integral piece to the extremely competitive college entrance process. 
 
 
After spending a summer and senior year in StART Dreaming, our students are often admitted to multiple colleges with substantial scholarships. We have a 100% success rate in college admissions and matriculation.We have received tremendous support, not only from the community, but in past years, State Senator Adriano Espaillat and City Councilman Ydanis Rodriguez have come to our Final Performance! 


WHAT WE NEED
We'd like to offer every student an equal chance to participate at no cost to them. We have received several grants for this program but need to raise - at a minimum - an additional $35,000 to cover the summer portion.  Any additional funds we raise will go towards the costs of the fall and winter sessions.  



Whatever you are able to give: $10, $50, or $200, or more, we promise it will make an impact. As a 501(c)(3), all money donated to Statement Arts is tax-deductible! 


THE IMPACT
We have a 100% success rate at getting our students both accepted to and enrolled in college. Most of our students get substantial scholarships and many get full rides. At Statement Arts, we believe that education is the great equalizer, and we want to continue our work and commitment to arts education and mentorship. With your generous support, our organization can make a difference in the lives of disenfranchised youth here in New York City. Some of the schools where our kids have been accepted include;



THOUGHTS FROM OUR KIDS
"Statement Arts believes in second chances."
"They helped me prepare for college, jobs, everything really."
"When I got down on myself, they didn't... they noticed and they picked me up."
"They have given me more confidence."
"They taught me to dream." 


OTHER WAYS YOU CAN HELP
Sharing this campaign with your friends can really make a difference. Please help us get the word out and make some noise about our campaign. Like us on Facebook, tweet about us, forward our campaign on to all of your friends.

We'd like to thank everyone who helps us with this program and we look forward to empowering many more young people in the future. 

Want to send a check? Statement Arts 2 River Terrace, Suite #3K NYC, NY 10282  

ABOUT US
Statement Arts is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose mission is to build self confidence and enrich under-served youth with creative experiences through arts education: music, acting, dance, photography, visual art, filmmaking and writing. We believe that these arts education channels enhance young people's intellectual performance and self esteem, enabling them to become ambassadors in their communities. www.statementarts.org   

The footage for our video was shot by our Alumni Doc Team.


A HUGE thank you to Ari Espay for his amazing photos! You can follow him on instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/ari_espay


And to Nina Sacharow, our terrific editor.

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Donations 

  • Judith Ewell Rogers
    • $25
    • 4 yrs
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Fundraising team (7)

Liza Politi
Organizer
New York, NY
Statement Arts
Beneficiary
Michael OMalley
Team member
Madison McCulough
Team member
Alexis Tener
Team member
Zahaira Curiel
Team member

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