One in three families in the Brooklyn neighborhoods of Carnarsie and East Flatbush live below the poverty level, and 79% of children in these areas are born into poverty. Arrests are four times higher than the New York City average and violence-related deaths are as much as five times higher. School suspension rates and learning environment surveys indicate that the students in four new, small Title 1 (high poverty) public schools located in these neighborhoods face conflict almost daily. Before these smaller schools were created, the now-closed high schools at these campuses were the most violent in New York City. This is a legacy Urban Arts Partnership will not allow to continue.

Therefore, Urban Arts has designed the CREW (Creative Responses For An Emerging World) project. Our mission is to teach students the value of appreciating and celebrating the differences in our communities, and to warn about the dangers of intolerance. High school students enrolled in the CREW project will become active citizens and artists on campaigns for non-violence and respect in their communities, thereby enabling them to constructively resolve conflict and improve the school environment.

The pilot CREW project will reach high school students attending the schools at the Tilden and Carnarsie campuses in Brooklyn. Most of these teenagers were born into poverty, and their schools lack the resources available to many others in New York City. The larger schools previously located at these campuses were shuttered, due to prevalent instances of school violence and dismal graduation rates. In order for these new schools to not repeat history, they must provide a safe and supportive learning environment for their students.

Community member details not available yet.

Direct Impact of Your Project

15 students who participate in the CREW project will be given the tools to increase their understanding and compassion to their peers, thereby decreasing instances of school-based conflict and improving their learning environment. They will also complete arts projects inspired by the themes and goals of CREW.

Extended Impact on Your Partner Community

The CREW project will also reach an estimated 5,000 individuals throughout the schools, surrounding communities, and across the country. The students in the program will bring what they’ve learned into their home life, decreasing conflicts at home and influencing their families. In addition, the arts projects created by CREW students will be presented, with context, to their schools at-large and shared online. Projects of exemplary quality will be submitted to youth arts festivals in New York and across the country. These works will represent not only the character of the CREW project, but also each individual student’s experience with and response to violence in his or her community. Urban Arts hopes that other schools and communities will be inspired to address their own conflict issues with arts-based solutions.