The landscape for today’s pre-teens and early teens is defined by unique pressures. As they navigate a post-pandemic world, increasing academic demands, and the pervasive influence of social media, threats to mental well-being—including isolation and stress—are on the rise. Against this backdrop, the structured, expressive, and relationship-rich environment of high-quality arts programs offers a critical infrastructure for their development.
High-quality youth arts programs do more than provide safe spaces for emotional expression and belonging. Research shows they cultivate “well-becoming”, opening pathways to future opportunities and relationships that last a lifetime. These transformative benefits emerge through structured skill-building, opportunities to create meaningful artwork that centers youth interests, practice toward mastery, opportunities for recognition from families and the broader community, and—critically—developmental relationships fostered by artist mentors and trusted peer communities.
Research from The Wallace Foundation codified key practices for high quality arts programs into 10 Principles for High-Quality Arts Programs, developed in partnership with community arts organizations, youth participants, and youth development experts. More recent studies highlight how culturally centered, community‑based arts organizations deepen this impact by grounding creative practice in youth culture and heritage, allowing young people to explore identity and meaning in affirming ways.
The 10 Principles for High-Quality Arts Programs
- Professional Artists as Instructors: Programs are led by practicing artists, compensated fairly, and supported in their professional growth.
- Executive Commitment: Leaders make a public, sustained commitment to high-quality arts programming.
- Dedicated, Inspiring Spaces: Arts programs take place in welcoming environments that affirm the value of art and artists.
- Culture of High Expectations: Programs respect creative expression and affirm youth participants as artists.
- Culminating Events: Programs conclude with high-quality showcases for real audiences.
- Positive Relationships: Adult mentors and peers foster belonging and acceptance.
- Youth Voice and Leadership: Participants actively shape programs and take on meaningful leadership roles.
- Hands-On Skill Building: Programs emphasize skill development using current equipment and technology.
- Stakeholder Engagement: Programs build networks of support for youth and the arts.
- Safe Spaces: Programs provide physically and emotionally safe environments.
The Challenge of Access
Despite their benefits, community-based youth arts organizations may not be accessible to all. Many are neighborhood-based, limiting participation for youth outside the area who face transportation barriers. Program fees can also restrict access for families with fewer resources. And for youth unfamiliar with the art forms offered, these barriers may discourage exploration altogether.
As a result, too few young people experience the rich developmental opportunities that high-quality arts provide. One solution is to elevate the quality of arts programming within low cost, multipurpose out-of-school time (OST) programs in under-resourced communities. These organizations can expose more young people who might not otherwise have access to art programs to creative opportunities, cultivate sparks of interest, and connect them to community-based arts organizations as their interest and skills grow.
Expanding Equity and Access: Infusing Arts into Traditional Youth-Serving Organizations
To explore how this can be done, we conducted a 10-year study of the Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) with funding from The Wallace Foundation. The study examined whether BGCA could elevate the quality of its arts programming in their local sites.
Using the 10 Principles for high quality arts programs as a guide, BGCA developed the Youth Arts Initiative (YAI) to integrate high-quality arts into a multipurpose OST setting. Through YAI, BGCA tested whether these principles could be implemented in several of their local sites: multipurpose OST programs located in underserved communities. The research found that they could—but not without challenges. Tensions arose from differing priorities and realities between multipurpose OST programs and community-based arts organizations from which the principles were partially derived.
Yet, despite these challenges, the arts programs engaged middle school youth in powerful ways. Many participants reported little interest in other activities offered at the site, such as sports, academics, leadership and health, prior to YAI. Once involved in high-quality arts programming, they attended more frequently and stayed longer than peers not enrolled in arts programs. Importantly, many had little prior exposure to their chosen art form, but through YAI they developed a “spark” that motivated continued artistic participation and exploration.
Looking Ahead
This blog post launches a series of mini-briefs, in which we will explore each of the 10 Principles in depth, examining why it’s important and offering strategies to implement the principle in a multipurpose OST program.
By elevating arts programming in traditional multipurpose organizations, OST systems can expand equity and access, engage middle school youth, and ignite sparks that last a lifetime.
Stay tuned for the next post in the series!
Keeping the Spark Alive: Building Systems That Support High-Quality Youth Arts Programs
Throughout this mini-brief series, we have explored ten principles that help multipurpose out-of-school (OST) time organizations build and sustain high-quality arts programs. Drawing on lessons from Raising the Barre, Designing for Engagement, and Setting the Stage, we examined what quality looks like in practice, the challenges organizations face in achieving it, and strategies for overcoming those challenges.
One finding stands out across these mini-briefs: high-quality arts experiences matter because they are often the spark that draws young people into deeper engagement. That spark may be a particular art form, an inspiring teaching artist, a welcoming community, or the chance to explore something entirely new. Many youth in our research discovered interests and talents they did not know they had. What kept them engaged was not just the activity, but the relationships, opportunities for mastery, and sense of belonging that high-quality arts programs fostered.
Access to High-quality Arts Experiences Remains Uneven
Community-based youth arts organizations play an essential role in providing high-quality arts experiences. Their artistic expertise and deep connections to local arts communities make them invaluable resources for young people. However, many of these organizations operate on a relatively small scale, and participation fees may place programs out of reach for some families. Multipurpose OST organizations, by contrast, often provide free or low-cost programming and serve large numbers of youth through afterschool and summer programs. As a result, these organizations are uniquely positioned to expand access to high-quality arts experiences for young people who might not otherwise have the opportunity to participate.
This unique positioning is the central premise behind the mini-brief series. Simply offering arts activities is not enough. Multipurpose OST organizations can elevate the quality of their arts programs by investing in the ten principles we explored—from leadership commitment and professional teaching artists to authentic artistic experiences and opportunities for youth performance and recognition.
But our research also points to an important reality: organizations cannot make this shift alone.
High-quality Arts Programming Requires Systems-level Support
Out-of-school time intermediaries can help build the infrastructure that organizations need to succeed by:
- Connecting multipurpose youth-serving organizations with community-based arts providers, teaching artists, and arts education programs;
- Forging partnerships with colleges and universities that are preparing emerging artists and educators;
- Identifying opportunities for collaboration with media organizations, technology companies, arts supply businesses, and arts funders; and
- Helping organizations access performance venues, exhibition spaces, and other community resources that elevate young people’s artistic work.
These intermediary organizations can bridge gaps, coordinate resources, and strengthen connections between the OST and local arts ecosystems in ways that no single organization can accomplish on its own.
Funders Have a Critical Role to Play
One of the clearest lessons from our research is that quality costs money. High-quality arts programs require professional teaching artists, specialized equipment and supplies, appropriate spaces, and opportunities for youth to share their work publicly. These investments distinguish high-quality arts programs from basic arts-and-crafts activities, and they are essential to achieving the outcomes communities value for young people.
If we believe that all young people deserve opportunities to explore their creativity, develop their talents, and experience the engagement that high-quality arts programs provide, then we must invest not only in individual programs but in the systems that support them.
The ten principles provide a roadmap for organizations seeking to improve the quality of their arts programming. The next step is ensuring that communities, intermediaries, and funders create the conditions that allow those principles to thrive.
We invite you to access the full mini-brief series, Actionable Strategies for Actionable Out-of-School Time Arts Programs, by visiting www.researchforaction.org or www.maieval.com. In addition, if you would like to share your experience in funding, building, and sustaining youth arts programming, we invite you to reach out to RFA and MAI. The authors, Tracey Hartmann and Wendy McClanahan, can be reached at thartmann@researchforaction.org and wmcclanahan@maieval.com.
