The Community Arts Network of Oneonta Summer Arts Program kicks off next week with a new writing program for teens and expanded gallery space.
CANO Executive Director Hope Von Stengel said that the program is nine weeks of arts programming for kids ages 6-10 and seven weeks of arts and writing programming for teens ages 11-17.
She said the new writing program for teens covers one week of fiction and one week of poetry.
Von Stengel said that CANO has several scholarships available to pay for the program’s tuition. She said that these scholarships are meant to ensure that the program is accessible for families who can’t afford it but would still like to register. The funding is from the Oneonta Elks Club and an anonymous donor.
Summer program coordinator and instructor Chelly Lisenby said that instructors create their own curriculums.
“The instructors that we have are really great at what they teach,” she said. “This year with our teachers, we have enough of a collection of different things for kids to choose from, so it makes it really fun.”
Lisenby is scheduled to teach a program called Imagination Stations, where her students work with mixed media. She said that students registered for week one can contribute to a mural in the Bronski Oneonta Orthodontics window on Main Street.
They plan to use tie-dye for Week 5, and Week 6 is called “Nature and Art,” which is meant to inspire kids to use natural materials and repurpose them.
“I’m really into recycling materials, so a lot of what we’ll be doing is in the nature around us,” she said.
Lisenby said that the combination of younger and older participants helps them learn from each other and feel inspired.
“They’re taking things home that they’re really proud of, and to be able to do that pretty much every day is amazing,” she said. “We’ve had the same kids for years, and they love it.”
Von Stengel said that the program has been around for about 10 years. Assistants who help with the program are typically high school students between ages 15-18.
“I’ll run across adults in the community, and they have said to me ‘I took the summer arts program,’ or they were an assistant for the summer arts program, and it’s amazing how fondly they recall their time here,” she said.
Von Stengel said that this is the first year they plan to utilize two of the gallery spaces at CANO to display the work from the program. The free, public art exhibition is scheduled to begin on July 25.
“I just want them to feel like they can think outside of the box and learn how to deal with life creatively,” she said. “Self-expression is so important, and I feel like that’s what a lot of the kids get out of it. It’s almost like therapy for them.”
Currently, the program is weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Von Stengel said that CANO hopes to make it a full-day program next summer.
“We’re really excited about being able to offer this next year, so we’ll probably start asking for sponsors soon,” she said.
The program often has 40 to 60 attendees, with 10 to 11 students per class. Program tuition ranges from $100 to $200 weekly.
Registration is ongoing, with some weeks of the program available and others at full capacity. To register a child in the program or for information on scholarships, contact Von Stengel at admin@canoneonta.org.