Summer Job Training for Youth: Eradicating Racism Through Theater Arts https://grants.dudleytdoughertyfoundation.org/proposals-2020/summer-job-training-for-youth-eradicating-racism-through-theater-arts https://grants.dudleytdoughertyfoundation.org/@@site-logo/sitelogo-75x75.png

Summer Job Training for Youth: Eradicating Racism Through Theater Arts

Additional Information
Used for	Black Ensemble Theater hires interns from low-income communities in Chicago to participate in our paid, summer internship program. The funds will help pay for our interns’ stipends.
Benefits	The money will benefit the world in that this program gives an opportunity to low-income students of Chicago to study Theater Arts and prepare them to get a job within this particular field and/or the general job market. We are helping to give these students the resources they need in order to graduate from high school and kickstart their career.
Proposal Description	Description of Summer Job Training for Youth: According to Chicago Public Schools, only 78% of its students graduated from high school in 2019. Despite the increase in graduation rates over the past 5 years, The University of Chicago Consortium on School Research (CSR) estimates only 18% of 2016’s ninth-graders in Chicago Public Schools will earn a bachelor’s degree by 2026, seven years after their anticipated high school graduation in 2019. The Summer Job Training for Youth Program is an eight-week employment opportunity starting at 8AM and ending at 2PM for young adults ages 14-21 to serve as paid interns at the Black Ensemble Theater. The program is designed to strengthen job readiness skills through the arts and introduce interns to employment opportunities in theater beyond performing on stage and preparing them for the general job market. Chicago’s inner-city youth face unprecedented levels of racism, poverty, violence, and lack of employment opportunities. The program gives a safe place and positive structure to the days when school is not in session, serving as an alternative to the daily exposure of the crime and violence that pervades their neighborhoods. The revenue that they receive lessens the burden of poverty and teaches them fiscal responsibility and the value of hard work. Furthermore, levels of self-confidence and self-respect are improved, and constructive conflict resolution skills are mastered. At the beginning of the program each student is assigned a mentor who works directly with them throughout the duration of the program and closely monitors their progress. Interns learn the critical skills necessary to prepare for employment on both sides of professional theater including acting, screen play writing and development, set building, lighting, costume design, and stage management. Associate Director Kylah Frye and our four staff teachers observed the interns’ development and progress toward the established outcomes while working with the interns on a daily basis throughout the duration of the program. Professional skill development is also an essential component of the program. In addition to learning the hard skills necessary for working backstage, such as lighting and sound design, students also learned soft skills needed for success in any industry including resume development, interviewing, positive conflict resolution, professionalism, responsibility, reliability, concentration, and focus. The interns follow a daily schedule designed to enhance time management skills. Script development and other group assignments reinforce critical skills such as collaboration, compromise and communication among group participants. Due to Covid-19 and restrictions set by the Illinois Governor earlier this year, Black Ensemble had to transition our Summer Job Training for Youth program from an in-house program to a virtual program. Because of this change, we had to limit the number of interns to 10 to accommodate the training it would take to launch a virtual program. Though our program was launched virtually, our objectives and goals remained the same. A benefit of switching to a remote learning program was that our interns had the opportunity to produce their film individually. Who Will Benefit: Participants who live in Chicago’s most underserved communities such as Uptown, Austin, Englewood, Little Village, and Lawndale. We target the children in these neighborhoods because they have little access to the arts and even less opportunity for employment in the arts or the general job market. Objectives and Outcomes: Objective A: Prepare interns to get a job in the Theater Arts field or general job market Outcome A: Pair each intern with a mentor who helps them develop a professional resume and identify at least five prospects for employment by the end of the program Objective B: Teach interns the type of jobs one can obtain outside of performing on stage Outcome B: All interns must be educated on and master at least one specific backstage theater skill such as set design and construction, lighting, costume design, wardrobe, or stage management. Objective C: Perform onstage at the final performance at Black Ensemble Theater Outcomes C: Interns will develop, write, produce and market their own scripts with the help of their mentor and specific classes taught during the internship Objective D: Produce a film that will be shown at the final performance and via Black Ensemble Theater’s social media channels Outcome D: Write and act in an original film written by that specific intern with the help of their mentor, other interns/ classmates, and classes taught during the internship How the Grant Money Will Be Used: Each intern gets paid $10.50 an hour to work at the Black Ensemble Theater. We will use funds from The Dudley T. Dougherty Foundation to help pay for our interns’ stipends.