FIRST LADY LAURA BUSH PRESENTS NATIONAL AWARD TO WILMINGTON'S DREAMS CENTER
Program is Funded by the Governor's Crime Commission  

 

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The DREAMS Center of Wilmington was one of 18 arts and humanities programs across the country to receive the prestigious 2007 Coming Up Taller Award.

First Lady Laura Bush presented the award to co-founder and Executive Director Tracy Wilkes in a ceremony held Jan. 28th in the East Room of the White House.

The Governor's Crime Commission began funding DREAMS of Wilmington in 1999. The Center offers free arts education to underserved students in Wilmington.

“We're very proud that the funding has been used in this manner for such an exemplary program,” said Gwendolyn Burrell, deputy director of the Governor's Crime Commission. “They really have transformed the lives of youth in that area.”

DREAMS is dedicated to providing free daytime, after-school and summer classes in music, visual arts, literature, dance and theater to more than 500 youth each week at the organization's inner-city center, schools, recreation centers, public housing sites and a county treatment facility for adjudicated youth. The program features three major initiatives: Artists-in-Residence, Youth Entrepreneurship and Public Art.

Through classes such as African dance, drumming and mask-making, students connect with cultures around the world. Social justice theater classes offer opportunities for youth to collaborate and express themselves while exploring real-world issues. Students in public art classes expand artistic skills as they deepen their connection with the community by designing murals for a dialysis center and the Office of Juvenile Justice, as well as partnering with the city to beautify an up-and coming urban business district. Young poets and photographers can see their work displayed on city buses through a partnership with the city's transportation department.

“Society has given up on a lot of these kids,” said Associate Director Emily Colin. “When they come here, they are viewed as young people who have something to offer. They feel a sense of connection, creation, imagination, validation. DREAMS is a place where they can receive recognition by doing something meaningful and positive.”

The Coming Up Taller Awards recognize and support outstanding community arts and humanities programs that celebrate the creativity of young people, and provide them with new learning opportunities and a chance to contribute to their communities. More than 350 nominations were received in 2007.

“Arts and humanities activities have a wonderful way of enabling young people to discover their unique talents and interests while forging a path to success in school and life,” said Adair Margo, chairman of the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities. “The DREAMS Center is especially notable because it offers a creative outlet for students' energy and time. Because of that opportunity, participants are more confident, perform better in school and will grow into more active and responsible members of society.”

Coming Up Taller is an initiative of the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities (PCAH). The President's Committee partners with the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) to administer the program, which was founded in 1998.

The President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities bridges the interests of federal agencies and the private sector, supports special projects that increase participation, and helps incorporate the humanities and the arts into White House objectives. The National Endowment for the Arts is a public agency dedicated to supporting excellence in the arts, both new and established; bringing the arts to all Americans; and providing leadership in arts education. # # #

For more information please visit the following Web sites:

Dreams of Wilmington, Inc.: www.dreamswilmington.org  

Coming Up Taller: www.cominguptaller.org  

President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities: www.pcah.gov

National Endowment for the Arts: www.arts.gov

National Endowment for the Humanities: www.neh.gov

Institute of Museum and Library Services: www.imls.gov

Photo Caption:  DREAMS co-founder and Executive Director Tracy Wilkes and participant Michael Sherrod receive the 2007 Coming Up Taller award from Mrs. Laura Bush and Elizabeth Dubin, member, The President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities.
Photo by:  Steven Purcell