I had never done anything like this before. I did not know what it was like to get up every morning to go to work. I am using my new skills in school, in drafting classes, and in figuring out labor costs on school projects. I'm proud to live in a city that has programs like this one. Nick Kane, Mayor's Youth Employment in the Arts participant

Today the once dank, decrepit entrance to Kenosha, Wisconsin's METRA commuter rail station is a colorful walkway featuring mosaics of a train conductor and his passengers. Around town there are other improvements: 150 downtown fire hydrants painted with an outdoor theme, murals in city parks, tile mosaics at city pools. The changes result from inspiration and effort on the part of a mayor and the city's young people who adapted Chicago's Gallery 37 summer youth employment program to meet the needs of their own community.

Mayor John M. Antaramian's launched the Mayor's Youth Employment in the Arts (YEA) program by first gaining the commitment of the Kenosha Public Museum, whose director, Paula Touhey, now oversees YEA. He engaged the Student Employment Program of Kenosha Unified Schools and won the support of the Private Industry Council and such organizations as the Spanish Center, the Boys & Girls Club, the Christian Youth Foundation, the Urban League of Racine & Kenosha, and the Lincoln Neighborhood Center.

Targeting "at-risk" teens, the YEA program runs for eight weeks in the summer. Its success with the young people is credited to a low student-teacher ratio. One artist and an artist assistant supervise 10-15 students ranging in age from 15-18. The artists selected for the program must have experience working with teens and students with special needs. The artist assistants are chosen for their ability to relate well to teens. These team leaders plan and install the projects with the students at sites selected with the help of the City Parks Division and the "Keep Kenosha Beautiful" commission.

"When I first heard about the idea of creating art for the parks, I was against it," said Park Superintendent Terry Flatley. "I felt graffiti would increase. I was wrong. This program has made the parks more pleasant places to spend time."

Most importantly, it has made the participants more confident and productive. School counselor Dennis Kertz observed, "Students come to the YEA program to develop job skills. Throughout the summer, however, a wonderful thing happens. Tile by tile and brush stroke by brush stroke, they change raw materials into works of art. At the same time, the students also change. They come away with callused hands but proud faces."