Leading Arts Education Organization Changes Its Name to Reflect Six Decades of Evolution.

Young Audiences of Northeast Ohio is now the Center for Arts-Inspired Learning; Mission Continues to Enrich the Lives of Children and Promote Creative Learning by Uniting Arts and EducationCleveland, OH (September 30, 2013)—In reaching its 60th year of service to the region, Young Audiences of Northeast Ohio announces a change to its identity, renaming the organization the Center for Arts-Inspired Learning to better reflect its mission, its programs today, and the services that it will provide to the region in the future.The organization’s board and staff believed that the former name of Young Audiences no longer reflected the work of the organization. This name was representative of the early decades when students were audience members at performances brought into the schools, rather than highly involved participants in connections with artists. Today, the organization immerses students in grades PreK-12 in the widest variety of arts, from visual arts to performing arts to digital arts. The students have become the artists, and this enhances learning, academic and personal growth and encourages creativity and innovative thinking, creating better thinkers and citizens who are armed with skills essential for success in the 21st century“Selecting a new name for the organization was a task that we approached with thoughtful deliberation. The rich past of our organization and the bright future ahead were carefully considered,” said Marsha Dobrzynski, executive director. “Our new name enthusiastically celebrates that today we are Northeast Ohio’s leader in the arts-centered learning that is so critically important for our children, families and communities.”The Center for Arts-Inspired Learning name articulates the breadth of programs and services today, across curriculum areas, age groups and art forms. In 2012, more than 220,000 children and adults in nearly 230 schools and organizations benefited from the 8,000 arts-integrated experiences brought to them by the Center for Arts-Inspired Learning. These programs took place in schools, libraries, juvenile justice centers, hospitals and neighborhood centers. The ArtWorks program, an arts-based job training and college readiness program, employed 220 teens to work in the arts while learning skills that successfully propel them toward college and the workforce. In addition, the organization’s professional teaching artists worked with the families of the students, creating new communities of people vested in the academic success and emotional growth of their children.Young Audiences of Northeast Ohio was one of the first regional branches of the national Young Audiences program when it incorporated in Cleveland in 1953. Moving forward, the Center for Arts-Inspired Learning will remain affiliated with the national Young Audiences organization in order to leverage its national resources and network for the interests of Northeast Ohio.“We believe that every child deserves a quality education and that education must include the arts, so while our name is changed, our mission will remain the same,” said Dobrzynski. “The Center for Arts-Inspired Learning remains steadfast in the quality of our programs, our commitment to this region and the dedication we have to making an impact on children, families and the community through arts-centered education.”About the Center for Arts-Inspired LearningThe Center for Arts-Inspired Learning (formerly Young Audiences of Northeast Ohio) enriches the lives of children and promotes creative learning by uniting arts and education. Organized in 1953, the Center for Arts-Inspired Learning is the only multi-arts resource for schools and communities in the region whose primary purpose is to make learning through the arts an essential part of young people’s education. Programs take place in public, private, and parochial schools as well as libraries, hospitals and other civic spaces, reaching nearly 220,000 young people each year. For more information visit www.arts-inspiredlearning.orgClick here to download this Press Release.