While the arts have faced cutbacks in many schools, Artivate ensures that creativity has a place to grow and flourish. Since 1995, through alliances with artists, arts organizations, museums, community-based groups, and service agencies, it has brought culturally diverse programs – in theater, dance, drawing, and singing – directly to DC-area schools and communities, including public libraries, schools, botanical gardens, museums, and theaters. Our School and Community Outreach program works with schools and other community organizations to design and plan programs. The artists included in our diverse roster have the ability to serve a wide range of audiences and offer many kinds of cultural experiences though performances and workshops or residencies. Through interactive performances, our artists at Artivate inspire audiences to see the world through the lens of different cultures. Our programs provide entertaining and educational qualities, which help audience members develop a greater awareness of self-expression and understanding of others. Our artists also offer professional development workshops. Contact us to discuss bringing one of our experienced teaching artists in to your school or business to lead one. Launched in 2000, Project Youth ArtReach (PYA) programs reach upwards of 2,500 youth per year at several sites in Maryland. Professional artists lead 16 – 18 workshops per week, including classes in ceramics, painting, mixed media, drumming, poetry, storytelling, guitar and dance. A series of workshops often culminates in youth poetry readings, donation of artwork to the community (e.g., murals installed in public places) or drumming demonstrations. PYA promotes positive youth development by providing juvenile offenders in detention, corrections, and probation settings with arts programs taught by master artists to enhance youth’s cognitive, linguistic, social, and civic development. As youth engage with a diverse group of professional artists, they acquire skills in visual, literary, and performing arts. By exploring themes of respect and values from other cultures, youth learn lessons in tolerance, problem solving, and conflict resolution.