CREATIVE INTERVENTIONS

Why Creative Interventions

Since 2017, Rising Youth Theatre & the Demand to Learn campaign of the ACLU of Arizona have been working to shift the way we approach the alarming issue of student push-out by building power with young people and strengthening teacher & student relationships. We believe that a creative and relationship based practice is a major step towards changing the way young people engage with their education and the way education supports young people.

Spring 2023 Student and Teacher Cohort:  

We are partnering with a cohort of 8 students and teachers in Spring 2023 to come together in a shared space of learning, organizing, and power building to end student pushout. Our learning series will cover topics like conflict & restorative justice, trust building, power & accountability and more as we build tools and creative interventions that can be implemented in the classroom immediately.

The cohort will co-design a professional development series based on their shared learning that will be shared with schools next year. Using creative interventions in facilitation, storytelling, visual art, movement, theatre, film, and more the cohort will build community, analysis, and action through: 

• Entering into a shared space of learning, unlearning, reflection, and healing together 
• Centering community wisdom, and young people’s lived experience in building visions for ending student pushout 
• Co-designing and testing a professional development and learning exchange structure that the cohort members will bring back to their schools in the 2023-2024 school year
• Growing access to ways to build power together and plug into advocacy with the Demand to Learn campaign and community organizations doing this work 
• Creating pathways for the extended Creative Interventions community to support one another and stay connected over time. 

Logistics

This is a paid opportunity open to all young people ages 15-21 and all current adult classroom teachers, counselors, support specialists, and curriculum or behavioral coaches in the Phoenix metro valley area. We are looking for teachers that are committed to actively building with students. Black people, Indigenous people, and people of color are particularly encouraged to apply, as are LGBTQ people, womxn, people across the gender spectrum, people of all abilities, and people with creative practices training. No artistic or facilitation experience is necessary. Childcare is provided free of charge. The plan right now is for learning sessions to take place in person, though we will be flexible and ready to shift in response to the ongoing pandemic.