Every Day Is a New Day
Every Day is a New Day
The middle school years can be a bumpy road from childhood to adolescence. This time of rapid growth and personal discovery is a both a critical juncture and excellent opportunity to harness and direct that exploding energy in positive, constructive ways.
Longtime CAW partner West Harlem Group Development Corporation (WHDC) has responded to this need with their own twist on summer youth employment programming, offering West Harlem students aged 14 and up the chance to participate in the “Arise! SYEEP” program. (The extra “E” is for “Education” and includes NYS Regents/ACT/SAT prep and community service components.
This summer, Creative Art Works engaged six SYEEP youth – who also happened to be recent graduates of Hamilton Grange Middle School – as part-time Youth Apprentices. These young artists were tasked with painting a pair of murals on the north and south entrances to their alma mater’s Jacob Schiff School Campus. The theme of the artwork, entitled Every Day is a New Day: Sunrise and Sunset, was developed through client meetings with Hamilton Grange and PS 192 staff. The team embraced the idea of welcoming students to their school and sending them home each day with positive images.