FOLUKE CULTURAL ARTS CENTER INC
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Mission Statement
Foluké Cultural Arts Center, of Cleveland Ohio, is the Central Neighborhood's ONLY arts center. making performing arts and arts education available to all, particularly those who live in “underserved” areas. MISSION: FolukéARTS is a community based organization based in Cleveland Ohio. BIPOC founded and led Foluke Cultural Arts is committed to strengthen and support underprivileged communities by providing access to performing arts, visual arts, and arts education. Our focus is at-risk Children, Youth, and Teens, and older adults. The goal is to provide positive alternatives to negative behaviors by instilling discipline, self-pride and boosting self-confidence through self-expression and self-discovery, in addition to promoting academic achievements, socio-economic development, and community enhancement. VISION: To provide multi-generational arts education services to the Greater Cleveland Area with a special commitment to the Cedar-Central 'Promise' Neighborhood. To implement arts and culture activities that will develop positive community 'norms' through the belief that it takes a village to raise a child, and that the older people are keepers of the culture and must remain dynamic members of society to provide younger generations positive role models.
About This Cause
Art is the commentary to life. It shapes culture. However, because of budget cuts, many children are without access to it and thus without access to a means of shaping their world. Not only that, but research indicates that children without access to arts education are at a disadvantage in regard to other subjects such as math and reading comprehension. The arts -- while important to study, for their intrinsic value, also promote skills seen as important in academic and life successes. The top 10 skills that children learn from the arts are: ● Creativity; ●Confidence; ● Perseverance; ● Problem Solving; ● Focus;● Non-Verbal Communication; ● Receiving Constructive Feedback; ● Collaboration; ● Dedication; and ●Accountability. Our classes are available to north east Ohio students regardless of income between the ages of 6 - 17. Our focus is the children of the Cleveland Central Neighborhood, and they take precedence, but we have also engaged students who present with special needs to participate. Foluke Cultural Arts is also a partner with University Hospitals Rainbow Babies and Children's Antifragility Initiative for children of families who have experienced trauma. Our targeted population is primarily young, black, and poor. Families are dominated by 1,672 single mothers. Central's oldest and youngest residents are much poorer than their counterparts in the greater Cleveland area, and Central is also home to the largest concentration of public housing. The Promise Neighborhood, according to the 2012 Census has 2,042 of its residents with incomes below $12,000. Foluké Cultural Arts Center is leveling the learning field by becoming the link between the children of Cleveland's Central Promise Neighborhood and the artistic education that they've been missing. FolukéArts, the ONLY arts center dedicated to the Central community, provides out-of-school time and summer arts programming to children ages 6 to 17, exposing them to and instructing them in dance, theater, music and visual arts. For 22 years, Foluké has provided arts education and programming at multiple sites throughout the Cleveland's Central neighborhood, in collaboration with multiple community partners. Founder and Executive Director Dava Cansler continues to lead this growing and developing organization. Through the years, she has remained committed to her vision of supporting this divided community by forging deep and authentic relationships with students and families, while simultaneously remaining adaptable and open to responding to the community’s needs. Since inception, a long partnership with Lane Metropolitan Church has been a cornerstone of volunteers and resources. Other collaborations have included Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority housing facilities , Friendly Inn Settlement House (community center), the Sisters of Charity Foundation's Building Healthy Communities initiative, Cleveland Metropolitan School District, Starting Point, University Hospital’s Rainbow Babies And Children’s Anti-Fragility Initiative, and the Governor’s Office of Faith-Based And Community Initiatives, just to name a few. The organization remains committed to working in partnership as it continues to develop new models for service post COVID and beyond. Prior to the pandemic, in 2019, Foluké was on a path to build on a vision: to create a new, neutrally located arts campus for Central, with the ability to serve families from every part of the Central community, and beyond. Of course, in March 2020, following the closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic, programs and projects began to shift. While shutting down in-person programs cut deeply into Foluke’s mission, this time also allowed for the development of strategic repositioning and the opportunity to engage partners and consultants in creating a new path forward that would continue to support Foluke’s families and allow the organization to grow in new ways. The termination of the lease at 2234 East 55th Street, and relocation to Friendly Inn, allowed Foluké to substantially reduce operating costs, while simultaneously reinforcing a key partnership with the team at Friendly Inn and still allowing the organization to maintain dedicated space as a base for responsive programming to serve families struggling through the shift in services that accompanied the pandemic. In its Friendly Inn location, Foluke provides out of school programming to over 50 students and families each week, including visual and performing arts, music and more. This space also allows Foluke to continue to create and produce the virtual programs that have provided connection, content, and creativity for families throughout the pandemic. Strategically, this site partnership also anchors a new vision for Foluke, in which the organization will grow back to scale not through a single campus but through targeted, scattered-site programs at multiple locations in key places around Central. While continuing to operate out of the base at Friendly Inn, Foluke will be working to build out programmatic partnerships over the next three years at two or more additional locations, in collaboration with CMSD, CMHA, Cleveland Public Library and other community partners. Most recently Foluke Cultural Arts was awarded a Challenge America Grant from the National Endowment for the Arts to create a Creative Aging initiative for underserved seniors. Foluké Cultural Arts Center’s long-term vision is to champion the potential for a Central Arts Campus by first strategically realigning programs and services and increasing partnerships to host multiple sites to best serve the residents throughout the Central neighborhood. To successfully execute the project, staff team building has begun, board development is in process and strategic capacity building work continues around fund development, organizational advancement, core mission-driven initiatives and essential community relationships. To allow the Executive Director to focus on organizational development and capacity building while growing the mission, two positions for the staff team will be added: Program Manager and Administrative Assistant. Additionally, consultants for strategic planning and fund development are being engaged, as well as a Social Media Marketing Coordinator and Arts Instructors to be hired as needed under contract. The Program Manager will oversee existing programs as well as program expansion. The Administrative Assistant will provide office support and serve as a Registration Coordinator, who handles student enrollment and tracking for attendance at classes and events. The Social Media Marketing Coordinator will guide the digital footprint to increase the outreach and awareness of the programs and assure the public acknowledgment of funders.