Cleveland Center For The Arts-Inspired Learning Awarded Grant

Press release from Knorr-Bremse Global Care North America:

Nov. 5, 2021

As many as 180 at-risk high school students in Northeast Ohio will get the opportunity to explore specific disciplines in the arts – and earn a stipend for the experience – over the coming year. And it’s all made possible by ArtWorks, an exploratory arts education and paid co-op program offered by the Center for Arts-Inspired Learning (CAL), based in Cleveland.

The award-winning program, which is focused on providing arts education and career readiness training to underprivileged area students, has also earned the admiration and support of Knorr-Bremse Global Care North America (KBGCNA). In October, the foundation awarded the center a grant of $50,000, following up on the $30,000 grant KBGCNA awarded to the program in 2020.

KBGCNA is an independent organization operating as the North American arm of a global nonprofit organization – Knorr-Bremse Global Care. The foundation’s investments are centered in the surrounding communities of Munich, Germany-based Knorr-Bremse’s three largest North American companies: Avon, Ohio-based Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems LLC; Westminster, Maryland-based Knorr Brake Company; and Watertown, New York-based New York Air Brake LLC.

“On behalf of Knorr-Bremse Global Care North America, we are proud to support the Center for Arts-Inspired Learning and its ArtWorks program for at-risk youth in Cleveland and surrounding communities, for the second year in a row,” said Maria Gutierrez, president of KBGCNA and director of corporate responsibility and sustainability at Bendix. “The ArtWorks program provides access to job training and arts enrichment for students who might not have the time, resources, or ability to access them any other way. The paid internships help ease some of the financial burdens that low-income families often face. For these reasons, the ArtWorks program is incredibly deserving of KBGCNA’s support.”

Anthony Ania, assistant general counsel at Bendix, serves as project champion for the grant, helping to facilitate the foundation’s support.

A Paid Co-Op in Arts Education and Career Readiness

ArtWorks, CAL’s longest running program, is a college- and career-readiness paid apprenticeship program focusing on arts education and workforce development. Founded by CAL patron Deborah Ratner and recently retired CAL Executive Director Marsha Dobrzynski in 2008, the program is geared toward at-risk high school students in grades 10 through 12.

Students enrolled in the ArtWorks program – referred to as apprentices – train under the guidance of master teaching artists, who mentor them in a specific art form while also helping them to develop skills in time management, professional communication, problem-solving, and critical thinking. Apprentices also participate in workshops that focus on financial literacy, resumé writing, financial aid applications, and interview skills.

Among the objectives of the program is addressing racial inequities in education and workforce development programs. To that end, over two-thirds of its apprentices each year are African American or Hispanic and residents of the City of Cleveland, and more than 50% are from low-income families. ArtWorks also strives to break the cycle of poverty by providing skills and opportunities for young adults to have meaningful careers and lives. The paid apprenticeship is designed to help remove some of the barriers that would otherwise prevent students from participating in the co-op and also takes some of the financial burden off of families.

Opening the Doors to Arts and Careers

This year’s KBGCNA grant will help CAL to cover the cost of the stipends awarded to each student apprentice accepted into the program, along with a number of other developmental costs and high-quality supplies that are essential to the program.

For its part, CAL’s leadership team says the grant is vital for allowing the organization to maintain the level of success it has had over the years and to continue to attract a growing number of students.

Sheffia Dooley, CEO and president of CAL, says the program goes beyond arts education, with its paid format focusing on both the arts and workforce development.

“What stands out about ArtWorks is that so many different art forms are offered. It gives young people options before they have to jump into a career path or commit wholly to it,” Dooley said.

And Jessica Kanelos, senior director of institutional giving at CAL, says the grant support is contributing to the program’s mission to ignite student learning, creativity, and success through the arts. “We can’t do this without our partners and our donors, so it embodies all of that for us,” she said.

The $50,000 grant from KBGCNA will assist CAL in enrolling up to 180 apprentices in its ArtWorks program during its fall, spring, and summer sessions. During each eight-week session, apprentices are enrolled in one of several co-ops focusing on a specific discipline in the arts, such as hip-hop, emceeing, script writing, visual arts, fashion design, and more. The co-ops comprise about 10-12 apprentices each and are led by master teaching artists who mentor the students both in the artistic discipline and in a variety of job and career readiness skills. Each session ends with a culminating event called ArtWorks Live, when apprentices showcase the work they’ve done and share the stories behind their work.

“The stipend is such an integral part of the program’s success,” Kanelos added. “They are receiving real-world job experience and benefits from the work they’re putting in, and it elevates the program and also helps our apprentices envision what their future can look like.”

Making a Connection

CAL initially heard about the KBGCNA grant program through project champion Anthony Ania at Bendix, who is a CAL board member and a KBGCNA officer. He has always been impressed with CAL’s mission and programming and its unique approach of teaching workforce skills through the arts.

“Using the arts to educate children is something that’s always been near and dear to my heart,” Ania said. “This program opens doors for these young adults, and it’s well beyond arts education. It teaches them confidence, it brings them together, and it gives them the skills they need to succeed later in life, whether that’s in the arts, or whether that’s anything else that they might decide to do.”

This press release was produced by Knorr-Bremse Global Care North America. The views expressed here are the author's own.