Since 2009, our teaching-artists have engaged through immersive creative arts’ mentoring projects, supporting young people who have fallen through the cracks of our education system – those in alternative education, and those who are in no kind of schooling at all. Our engagement team of a social worker, youth mentor and counsellor provide the necessary additional intensive wrap-around support for rangatahi and their whānau, paving the path back into mainstream school, into tertiary education or into employment
Through our high-engagement and arts-access programs that run throughout the year we connect up to 40 rangatahi with New Zealand artists and performers. Teaching-artists and rangatahi collaborate on works to process rangatahi life experience and explore their potential. Our projects such as Manawa Ora (a one-to-one performance based project) and Takatū (a classroom based creative arts transition program) engage through love, kindness compassion and mindfulness. We prioritise our rangatahi gaining a deeper understanding of themselves and the world in which they live.
We engage intensively – for months and, sometime, years – with our awesome rangatahi and whānau. We have strong partnerships and work cross-societally, from Otara to Ponsonby, paving a two-way street of connection and understanding across the traditional divides. This is extremely powerful; our programmes activate the social, cultural and entrepreneurial networks required for a true Super City. We’d love you to be part of the change!
