The Arts Fund
for Child Health and Development

Administered by
Brian Razzino, Ph.D.
Pediatric Clinical Psychologist

The Arts Fund for Child Health and Development supports scholarships for
The Theatre Lab's Summer Acting Camps for Kids.

 

MISSION

To create a positive impact on the social, emotional and intellectual development of children through involvement in the arts. It is the aim of this scholarship program to open opportunities for participation in the arts to children which have been heretofore shut-off.

 

WHY YOUTH INVOLVEMENT IN THE ARTS IS CRITICAL

1. Beyond cultural enrichment, learning in arts programs like music and theatre clearly relates to higher achievement in other areas including mathematics and reading.

2. Important intellectual gains correlate with involvement in music and theatre including increased attention, concentration, better memory and language development to name a few.

3. Involvement stimulates the development of crucial life skills like responsibility, respect for others, empathy, working as a team, and functioning in leadership roles.

4. Increased self-esteem, social skills building, enhanced self-discipline, greater community awareness, creative and constructive self-expression, and overall motivation to learn.

5. The arts reach children and students in ways that they are otherwise not being reached. Young people who are considered classroom failures, perhaps “acting out” because conventional education practices are not engaging them, frequently become the high-achievers in arts learning settings. 

6. Children without financial support to enroll in arts programs often benefit the most from them. Typically these youths come from areas where programs have been cut the most. Tragically, these kids also demonstrate the greatest need for arts enrichment.

 

HOW YOUR CONTRIBUTION WILL HELP

Despite the wealth of positive benefits, arts programs in schools across the nation have experienced devastating cutbacks, all but eliminating them from the academic curriculum.

1. Fund dollars provide kids with programming at The Theatre Lab where they can find out what they're good at as soon as possible. These programs include improvisation, scene study, storytelling, creative writing, group singing, and mime— each designed to increase spontaneity, engage the imagination, promote self-confidence, and encourage ensemble spirit AND all taught by caring, high-level professional artists and teachers dedicated to meeting each child at his or her level.

2. Theatre Lab classes parallel and reflect everyday life as kids are encouraged to discover what it means to be tested, to try out (audition), and to experience frustration and “failures.”

3. Theatre Lab experiences stimulate learning how to cope , stretch, adapt, grow and overcome obstacles (i.e., not take "no" for an answer). In short, how to pursue their passions and achieve their dreams.

 

Click to learn more about the Fund and the benefits of arts education

Click to donate to the Fund

Click to contact us about the Fund

Click for info on the Summer Acting Camp for Kids