Exciting Announcement! ARTS Receives ‘Honorable Mention’ in the Prebys Sparx Challenge.
ARTS is thrilled to announce that we have received an “Honorable Mention” for the Prebys Sparx initiative! This is a significant moment for our organization and are honored to be alongside many other amazing organizations that are doing outstanding work in our regional impact sector.
We are always looking for ways to grow and evolve our work, and we are honored to share a video that was part of our Prebys Sparx application, highlighting our aspirations with both current and potential partners within our Community ARTS program. As Olimpia, ARTS Program Manager, states in the video below, "We know our dreams are big," and they truly are! The video communicates our ideas and goals that are continuous and ever-evolving, in response to the current and emerging needs of our young people and their families.
We are excited to continue rethinking and reimagining what we want Community ARTS to be. Our focus is on prioritizing creativity and positive mental health outcomes to support youth and their well-being in collaboration with other community-based organizations and providing youth with a safe environment of belonging where they have space to dream and explore, building the future they see for their communities.
Some key components of the program we aim to continue to expand include growing our current Master of Social Work (MSW) internship opportunities to expand our work as practicum host site for multiple MSW student interns, and support career pathways for mental health professionals from the wider South Bay. Their role with Community ARTS is to support the integration of mental health and well-being into programming, community outreach, parent mental health workshops, and connecting young people with accessible community mental health resources. Additionally, we are working to co-create a more formalized Youth Advisory Council - a platform for youth to voice their ideas, vision, and aspirations, and gain practical experience in leadership, civic engagement, and community voice through public art, community development, and leadership activities.
We are incredibly grateful to the Prebys Foundation for this opportunity and recognition, and we look forward to exploring additional partnerships and funding opportunities that will help us achieve our goals for Community ARTS and beyond. We are inspired to continue cultivating art, creativity, and well-being in National City and the wider South Bay.
A big congratulations to The VAPA Foundation for winning the ‘grand prize!’ Also are honored to be included as ‘honorable mentions’ along with Coastal Roots Farm, United Women of East Africa Support Team (UWEAST), and Youth Creating Change! Can’t wait to see all the amazing work we do together! Learn more about the Prebys Sparx challenge and the other awardees.
Thank you to all of our Sparx partnering collaborators and organizations who throughout this process who jumped right in to dream big and co-create ideas for impact with us: Art. Power. Equity., City of National City, Eyaay Ahuun Foundation, Friendly Futures, Institute for Public Strategies, Latattore Foundation, Living Coast Discovery Center, SD Art Matters, Mesa College Art Gallery, San Diego County Office of Education, San Diego State University School of Social Work, University of Southern California, School of Social Work.
About Community ARTS
Community ARTS is a creative youth development pathway that co-creates accessible, expressive art + nature experiences and practices with youth in National City and the wider South Bay. By promoting arts, culture, and nature-based experiences - Community ARTS holds space for expression, exploration, and community cohesion, cultivating a sense of belonging where youth can imagine, design, and build the future they see for themselves.
About Prebys Foundation
Prebys Foundation is the largest independent private foundation in San Diego County, a unique tri-national area encompassing communities from San Diego, Tijuana, and the Kumeyaay Nation. The foundation works to create an inclusive, equitable, and dynamic future for all San Diegans. Prebys advances excellence and shared opportunity through investments in groundbreaking institutions, ideas, and people to ensure more people in the region are financially secure, healthy, empowered, and connected.
