El Museo del Barrio
1230 5th AvenueNew YorkNY10029
212-831-7272212-831-7927

Program: The Caring Program Year Started: 1990 Focus: Visual Arts & Humanities Youth Served: 30 Ages: 8-11 Budget: $10,000 For 25 years, El Museo del Barrio has worked to preserve and interpret Latin-American cultural heritage for New York City residents. Changing demographics necessitated a shift in the kinds of programs offered by El Museo to meet the needs of New York City's Latino and African-American communities. Six years ago, El Museo began offering its constituents The Caring Program, which Columbia UniversityĖs Child Psychiatry Department created as a way to relieve stress in young patients. The Program provides collective art-making experiences and technical skills development to improve childrenĖs attitudes and self-image. The classes promote development of ethnic pride, problem solving and social involvement. In 10-week sessions throughout the school year, an artist-in-residence and a Columbia University mental health professional work together at El Museo to encourage children to examine the different social issues affecting their lives and to discuss mechanisms for coping with these problems. The artists transport the children from school to El Museo, where they work for 2 1/2 hours. Through art workshops, participants learn about the work of artists such as Frida Kahlo and Fernando Botero and explore issues such as the relationship of ecological survival to urban survival. At the end of the sessions, students' work is displayed at El Museo and at the University.