On November 19, 2012, I was honored to be invited to the White House by First Lady Michelle Obama for the presentation of the 2012 National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Awards,” said Jeffrey A. Rich, Board Chair of the Ohio Arts Council. “This is a wonderful program developed by the President’s Committee on Arts and the Humanities to shine light on great after school programs that change the lives of our children.”
“The 2012 awardees demonstrate the power that comes from young people realizing their creative promise,” said Mrs. Obama. ” These outstanding organizations from across the country inspire our youth to explore the world of possibility that awaits them.”
This year awardees included the “African Culture Connection” from Omaha, Nebraska. This incredible organization is run by Charles Abovissi, a professional dancer, drummer, choreographer and educator from the west African nation of Benin. Mr. Abovissi founded the organization in 2006 to bring the traditional arts of Africa to under served largely African American students in the center of rural America.
AS220 Youth Studio of Providence, Rhode Island, targets impoverished children who have failed in school or are wards of the state, many of whom are in penal institutions. This 10 year old program uses workshops offered by teaching artists in creative writing, photography, hip-hop and design to help some 450 students a year discover new talents while forming relationships with adult role models. As program director Anne Kugler states, “The arts are a way of connecting with very, very disconnected , hard to engage youth in a way that doesn’t feel like a program with adults telling them what to do.”
The California City of San Fernando’s Mariachi Master Apprentice Program performed for us all at the White House awards ceremony. If you closed your eyes and listened you would have thought you were in a great Mexican night club listening to a top professional group. Instead, there were 7 exceptionally talented high school students and their teacher presenting a first class musical performance. As parent Gerardo Ascencio, Sr. beamed when he spoke, “When they walk on stage, oh my goodness, you should see them. The way they carry themselves is amazing! They’re proud to be Hispanic and proud to be Mexican-American.”
“Myths contain profound wisdom,” says Dr. G. Kwame Scruggs, PhD and executive director of suburban Akron’s Alchemy, Inc. This imaginative and unique Ohio program uses thousands of year old stories to help young African-American men make a successful transition from boyhood to manhood. “They speak to archetypal situations, universal dilemmas.” Imbedded in the myths are guides to behavior Scruggs believes can help counter some of the destructive images of masculinity that have taken root in some urban cultures.
As an attorney, Board Chair Jeff Rich was particularly interested in the award winning program sponsored by the Bronx School of Law, Government and Justice. The “New York City Urban Debate League” is the most popular activity at this small public high school in the South Bronx. Hundreds of trophies, medals, plaques and awards have been won, not by the schools athletic teams but by their champion debaters! “There is nothing more rigorous, yet more fun, than debate,” says Eric Fogel, the executive director of the NY program. “As a former high school debator myself, I know how influential that experience was in my selection of the law as my career,” said Board Chair Jeff Rich in speaking to one the the student debaters after the ceremony.
“From high school historian internship programs to a youth radio network, from Oakland and Seattle to New York and Hong Kong China, the 12 awardees represented the best of our world’s youth. These imaginative and resourceful programs help inspire and train the next generation of creators. I was proud to represent the Ohio Arts Council at the White House, ” said Rich.
