A beautiful anonymous Article about Project S.O.A.R. HERE
 Selma Elementary School's Project S.O.A.R. Class of 2011
   Artist Patty Sue Jones taught a Cultural Crafts workshop. Pictured here are students with their completed African masks
HOLLYWOOD ARTS COUNCIL’S
PROJECT SOAR
(Students Overcoming All Risks) PURPOSE
Project S.O.A.R. (Students Overcoming
All Risks) is a Hollywood Arts Council after-school and in-class art
program which serves approximately 2,000 school children in eight (8)
of the Hollywood area Title 1 elementary schools. Workshops are offered
in various arts disciplines, e.g. ceramics, photography, painting,
cultural arts, dance and creative drama. Each workshop is free and
consists of 4 two-hour sessions (one per week for four weeks). HAC
contracts professional artists to instruct the workshops, then
coordinates the curriculum and scheduling with school administration
and purchases all supplies for the workshops.
Project S.O.A.R was created to provide a
motivating influence and positive reinforcement through arts classes,
allowing children to gain a deeper understanding of their own and other
cultures as well as a chance to develop skills for self-expression, a
key ingredient for positive self-esteem. Project S.O.A.R. allows these
inner-city youth, whose needs and concerns are often ignored, the
opportunity to discover the power of the arts and their own potential
for creative expression.
NEED
Project S.O.A.R. addresses the need for
both after-school and arts programming by providing year-round
programming to public schools in the Los Angeles Unified School
District, which currently have little or no arts programming, due to
budget cuts and lack of funding.
Project S.O.A.R. workshops encourage the
development of positive social behaviors by emphasizing patience,
cooperation, written and oral communication, exploring imagination,
creativity and storytelling. Many of our artist’s come from a variety
of ethnic backgrounds (Asian, Hispanic, African, Italian, Ethiopian,
etc.) and speak multiple languages, thereby enabling the children to
relate to them through cultural similarities, which further enriches
the learning experience.
POPULATION
Project S.O.A.R. serves approximately
2,000 children each year. The majority of students served by Project
S.O.A.R. live in under-served areas of Council District 13 and 4 of
greater Hollywood, which is a part of the City of Los Angeles in Los
Angeles County. The Hollywood Arts Council serves two constituencies: the Hollywood community--a district of the city of Los
Angeles, distinct from “Hollywood” the industry--and the artists and
arts organizations who presently work here. With a total population of
approximately 250,000, Hollywood consists of a broad socio-economic and
cultural spectrum that includes the entertainment industry, and both
affluent and struggling neighborhoods. The “flats” of Hollywood is a
mixture of entertainment industry business and multiple family
dwellings and home to a rich diversity of cultures. All elementary,
middle and secondary schools in the greater Hollywood area are “Title
1” and are designated “at-risk.” The participating schools are of a
lower socio-economic status indicated by an average of 91% of the
children in the eight (8) participating schools receiving free or
reduced-cost lunches; an income-based city program. |
Multimedia workshop taught by artist Gayle Gale
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Just some of many workshops we provide:
- Improv/ Theatre
- Paper Mache
- Origami
- Mosaics
- Mixed Media
- Puppetry
- Cultural Crafts
- Drawing
- Painting
- Photography
- Dance
- And more!
|
 Project SOAR 2010-2011 School Year Ethnic Breakdown: Project SOAR schools vs.Global State Statistics
|
Ethnicity
|
Grant Elementary
|
Selma
Avenue
|
Cheremoya
|
Los Feliz Elementary
|
Santa
Monica Community Charter
|
|
State Average
|
|
Hispanic or Latino
|
69%
|
87%
|
55%
|
51%
|
89%
|
70%
|
49%
|
|
White/Armenian
|
20%
|
7%
|
33%
|
37%
|
4%
|
20%
|
28%
|
|
African American
|
4%
|
2%
|
6%
|
5%
|
3%
|
4%
|
3%
|
|
Filipino
|
3%
|
1%
|
2%
|
4%
|
2%
|
2%
|
7%
|
|
Asian
|
3%
|
1%
|
2%
|
3%
|
1%
|
2%
|
3%
|
|
Multiple or No Response
|
1%
|
1%
|
1%
|
0%
|
1%
|
1%
|
8%
|
|
American or Alaska
Native
|
0%
|
1%
|
1%
|
0%
|
0
|
1%
|
2%
|
|
|
| 2,672 Students |
Percentage |
Number |
| Hispanic or Latino |
75% |
1871 |
| White |
15% |
534 |
| African American |
4% |
107 |
| Filipino |
2% |
53 |
| Asian |
2% |
53 |
| Multiple or No Response |
1% |
27 |
| American or Alaska Native |
1% |
27 |
The
direct population Project S.O.A.R. serves is comprised of the 2,672
students enrolled in five (5) inner-city Title 1 elementary schools.
The public elementary school population of the participating schools in
Hollywood averages 75% Hispanic, 15% White/Armenian, 4% Filipino, 2%
Asian, 2% African-American, 1 % Pacific Islander and 1% Alaskan; as per
data provided by the Los Angeles Unified School District.
EVALUATION
Evaluation forms are given to school
administrators and students at the completion of each 4-week workshop
session. Students complete anonymous evaluation forms that give them
the opportunity to “grade” their art workshop instructor. Artists,
artist assistants, and coordinators, i.e. school administrators, also
complete an evaluation form. This evaluation aids in determining
workshop effectiveness and artist's ability to lead the students
through each project. Examples of the fields listed on the
administrators form include: "Workshop project accomplished, Benefits
to students, Demonstrated mastery of subject, Made the subject matter
meaningful through use of examples and applications, etc. Observation
questions where written response is required include: "Have you
observed any outstanding student successes?", "Did you notice any
problems?” etc.
“The activities were interesting and
stimulating. Even the students who are normally reluctant to
participate in extra activities were deeply involved.” – Maria McGuire, Vine Street Elementary
Evaluations measure whether objectives
are being met and guide HAC to refine the workshops by making changes
where necessary. The evaluations also give the artists the constructive
feedback in terms of what was most effective and what might need to be
adjusted or added.
Workshop sizes are limited to 25
students so that each child receives personalized attention from both
the artist and artist assistant. Project S.O.A.R. also nurtures and
supports professional artists in the community by providing
opportunities to teach, to show students examples of their own work,
and to serve as role models to the children. |
|