In early 2011, the Jamaica Youth Initiative—a working group of governmental, nonprofit and private institutions in a bustling neighborhood in Southern Queens—convened to discuss an important matter affecting their community: disengaged and idle youth. At the end of every school day, thousands of youth crowd the streets of downtown Jamaica, where after school activities are in demand. Partners for Livable Communities (Partners) views this demand as a rare opportunity to focus positive attention on the assets available to and within this youth population. With support from the Hearst Foundation, Partners  is currently collaborating the Youth Initiative, the Greater Jamaica Development Corporation, and the Cultural Development Corporation to develop a framework of goals and recommendations that will expand arts-based after school opportunities. Ultimately, the goal is to provide programming that will enrich the lives of these youth, provide them with meaningful experiences, and assist them in obtaining employment.

Using the Arts to Set an Agenda

Downtown Jamaica suffers from unemployment and high foreclosure rates. At the same time, many of its public spaces are underutilized. Under these circumstances, arts and cultural resources provide an opportunity to activate the spaces with new partnerships and networks between local private, public and nonprofit resources. More importantly, this also provides opportunities for the youth to get involved through art-based afterschool activities that improve physical spaces and help to change the perception of Jamaica’s youth from a liability to a valuable resource.

Since the project began, surveys with members of the Youth Initiative and direct input from 120 high school students have paved the way for a draft framework of neighborhood-wide goals for integrating arts into afterschool programs for these students. Defined by short- and long-term action steps, these goals include: activating underutilized private and public spaces as productive gathering points for youth; increasing opportunities for funding; and increasing arts-related internships and job training opportunities for high school students.

For more information, contact Jessica Scheuerman, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it