Taller
Puertorriqueno 
2721 N. 5th Street
PhiladelphiaPA19133
215-423-6320215-426-5682
Program: Cultural Awareness Program (CAP)Year Started: 1974 Focus: Multidisciplinary Arts Youth Served: 510 Ages: 8-19 Budget: $160,000 Situated in the heart of Philadelphia's Latino community, Taller Puertorriqueno is a full-service community center. The Cultural Awareness Program offers a wide range of arts programming but focuses primarily on the visual arts. This Program, which runs from 2:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. every weekday, attracts children from the neighborhood who can walk to the center. For $1, students can take 90-minute classes in literature, theater, visual arts or dance. The Saturday program, which offers classes from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., serves children who cannot get to the center during the week. In the summer, a 7-week program is organized around one theme. During the year, several international artists are invited to exhibit their work at the Taller Gallery and run 1- to 2-week-long workshops for youth who are chosen from the ongoing classes. Each year 20-100 students are selected to participate in a year-long project designed to address a social issue. Projects have included an AIDS education program in the public schools, using comic books written and illustrated by Taller youth, and the creation of educational banners about AIDS. Taller has been able to pay older students who are interested in pursuing art as a career to apprentice with established artists through the Youth Artists Program. "We have had an overwhelming response from the community," says Johnny Irizarry, director of the center. "The quality of the work is excellent, and parents know that this is a safe place where their children can explore their abilities." |