July 24, 2009 :: Artists, News :: No Comments

Chicago to Tanzania and Back: Teaching artist exchange offers cultural, artistic insights

This summer, Urban Gateways has embarked on its first international artist exchange. 

UG Artist-in-Residence, Amanda Lichtenstein, traveled to a rural village in Tanzania to teach theater and creative writing. Meanwhile, Urban Gateways was thrilled to welcome Tanzanian theater artist Grace Gachocha (seen in picture on right) to Chicago, where she is instructing UG’s Art Options program alongside literary artist Maia Morgan and Digital Sound artist Shawn Wallace.  Art Options engages at-risk middle and high school students in an arts apprenticeship that culminates in a community-based arts project. 

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July 23, 2009 :: Events :: No Comments

Urban Gateways Holds Court in Target Tent

Urban Gateways staff members and teaching artists entertained throngs of children (and parents) July 13-19 as part of the Millennium Park Family Fest. 

Stationed in the Target Tent, teaching artists set up free craft tables and workshops for passersby, all focusing on the theme of Chicago neighborhoods. 

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July 23, 2009 :: Artists :: No Comments

UG Artist Shares Her Experience in Tanzania

Urban Gateways Artist-in-Residence Amanda Lichtenstein is teaching creative writing and theater to children in a rural village in Tanzania, as part of UG's first international exchange with the International Theater and Literacy Project (ITLP), a New York City-based organization founded in 2005 to provide rural African communities with youth education through theater. 

Below is an excerpt of a letter Amanda sent to the UG staff, sharing her experiences:

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July 23, 2009 :: News :: No Comments

Despite Funding Cuts, Devoted Arts Leaders Persevere

In these tough economic times, the traditional sources of funding for arts education are ebbing, but dedicated supporters are still finding ways to keep their fine arts programs afloat.

In April, Chicago Public Schools (CPS) announced that it was cutting Title I funding for fine arts, which impacted many programs including an Urban Gateways project with its non-profit partner The Fran Center. UG had spent months organizing arts programming for the nonpublic schools that the Center serves, and we were relying on the Title I funding (annually allocated for schools serving low-income areas) to support those programs.

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