YA National Blog: Stories of Resilience Through the Arts – YANJEP Affiliate Spotlight
At this critical time, National Young Audiences Arts for Learning (YA) is celebrating the big and small ways their affiliates are working to sustain and uplift their important work to inspire young people and expand their learning through the arts. We are honored to be part of their weekly series that highlight stories of support and resilience that they see emerging from across the YA Network. Below is our affiliate spotlight.
Young Audiences Arts for Learning New Jersey & Eastern Pennsylvania
Princeton, NJ
Young Audiences Arts for Learning New Jersey & Eastern Pennsylvania (YANJEP), the leading provider of arts education in New Jersey and Eastern Pennsylvania, offers over 4,000 programs – performances, residencies, professional learning, and family events – each year.
During these unprecedented times, YANJEP’s priorities have been to support students, school communities, and teaching artists, while finding innovative ways to connect children with arts experiences wherever – and however – their schooling is taking place. The Princeton, NJ-based organization is currently working with its diverse group of teaching artists to channel their collective creativity, artistry, and educational mastery into developing dynamic and engaging online resources.
Soon after schools transitioned to remote learning, YANJEP launched ARTS CONNECTION, a weekly interactive, student-focused video series that allows teaching artists to continue to be a bright spot in every child’s day. Every Monday, YANJEP releases engaging new assembly program content, free on YouTube, to help children across the region stay connected and inspired by the arts while learning from home. ARTS CONNECTION is also being shared through public library systems, school district websites, teacher classroom portals, and other platforms. Thanks to the popularity and sharing of the video series, YANJP has seen a 50% increase in new YouTube subscribers and a 220% increase in views over the past month.
YANJEP is also developing student-focused Live Virtual Arts Experiences, with assembly performances and workshops offered through Google Classroom, Flipboard, and Zoom. YANJEP staff is working closely with an initial cohort of teaching artists to develop, rehearse, and implement virtual school programming, which will be available to schools in June.
With its teaching artists facing an estimated losses of $400,000 in wages, the organization collaborated with funders and donors to offer artists financial support. Generous individual donors and foundations were flexible in providing unspent grants funds that YANJEP allocated to artist relief. Further, YANJEP moved swiftly to launch its Artist Innovation Fund. The Fund’s first initiative was a call for YANJEP teaching artists to create online resources to get students, teachers, families, and fellow teaching artists through the period of school closures and beyond. One of the many programs in development is Freestyle Repertory Theatre’s video series, Home Fooling: How to Teach Your Family to Play Improv Games with You. The series will be designed to help families play improv games together and to practice live theatre.
“We know the arts are essential to education,” said YANJEP President & CEO Michele Russo, “and we are determined to be part of children’s learning, even when buildings are closed.” YANJEP believes that, during these challenging times, children need the arts more than ever. The organization remains committed to keeping its community of students, teachers, and families connected with its teaching artists and the creativity they offer.