The Gilda and Henry Block School of the Arts at 92nd Street Y is dedicated to producing high quality programs in the visual arts, music and dance that foster both creative and responsive engagement to challenge the mind and body. Implicit within its mission is a commitment to excellence, which guarantees that all individuals, regardless of background, are served with the highest professional standards. It supports 92Y's mission as a Jewish Institution by offering classes, workshops, performances and exhibitions that cultivate knowledge of Jewish heritage and Jewish values through the arts.
The Gilda and Henry Block School of the Arts serves a broad-based constituency — from young children to senior adults and from budding amateurs to professional artists. At all levels, instruction focuses on the teaching of specific skills, as well as the cultivation of an informed appreciation of the arts. The faculty is comprised of highly trained, professionally active artists/teachers who are devoted to sharing their knowledge and craft with students at all stages of artistic development in a nurturing and supportive environment.
The Gilda and Henry Block School of the Arts seeks to promote mutually beneficial, cooperative partnerships with other departments within 92Y, while engendering a genuine sense of community among its own constituents. The School serves the community at large through outreach programs (including programs in public and independent schools) and through extensive scholarship support for students in need.
Objectives
- To provide high quality educational experiences at all levels in Art, Music and Dance to the full spectrum of our constituency
- To serve as a national model for community-based arts education
- To help cultivate a sense of Jewish identity through the arts
- To address the artistic needs of the community at large by providing outreach programs to the public schools and scholarships for students in need
- To develop interdisciplinary projects which extend the traditional boundaries of arts education
- To support the arts in our community by providing exhibition and performance opportunities for emerging, as well as established, professional artists
- To promote creative interaction and mutual growth between the amateur and professional communities