My Nonprofit Reviews
kim-freitas
Review for Art in Action, Redwood City, CA, USA
Art in Action is an extremely well researched and well designed program that follows a progressive and curriculum linked exploration of art history and art theory. Students get a broad exposure to various mediums and hands on art projects that are well scaled to their development and limited class time. All the lessons are well tested and are obviously honed and perfected to work well and be extremely accessible to kids and parents. I've been involved as a docent for 5 years at various schools. Students love the program, parents get an immense amount of satisfaction at being in the classroom teaching and supporting something that kids respond to and teachers love coordinating the projects to social studies or language arts. The program is growing yet retains the intense passion of the founders and early staff members.
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I've personally experienced the results of this organization in...
watching my children and others enjoy making art and feel knowledgeable to really observe and talk about art in museums
If I had to make changes to this organization, I would...
continue the expansion of online content, continue recruiting new schools to use the programs so the funding can be leveraged to make this a core part of most California schools offerings
What I've enjoyed the most about my experience with this nonprofit is...
How beautifully it harnesses the natural energy of parents to really do something profoundly positive in the classroom
The kinds of staff and volunteers that I met were...
Universally professional and outstanding teachers, in particular, Betsy Hallaby.
If this organization had 10 million bucks, it could...
Roll out this program to disadvantaged schools that are not aware of the program or are unable to fund the program. I have taken left over supplies to educational non-profits in disadvantaged youth programs and the kids really dive in.
Ways to make it better...
our schools and district could support Art in Action even more fully
In my opinion, the biggest challenges facing this organization are...
budget cuts facing California schools, shortening school year or school day which squeezes out any topics not considered No-Child-Left-Behind relevant.
One thing I'd also say is that...
Art in Action has been changing a lot in the last year or so and is striving to use new media to expand its reach. This is an enormous investment but the right direction
How frequently have you been involved with the organization?
About every month
When was your last experience with this nonprofit?
2010
