Letters of Inquiry are now closed for the Fall 2015 grant cycle for all program areas. Our thanks to all applicants.
Grantee Spotlight – Christopher House
Christopher House began in 1906 as a settlement house to help immigrants adjust to life in the U.S. Over the last century, our program has evolved to meet the needs of Chicago’s low-income population. Currently, Christopher House serves more than 5,000 individuals annually through four centers throughout Chicago’s North and West Sides: Uptown, Logan Square, Avondale, and Belmont Cragin. Our newest center in Belmont Cragin, which opened in August 2013, offers our full range of schools to this high need community, where there is a critical shortage of early childhood and parenting programs, and the vast majority of public schools are on academic probation. This new site is also home to Christopher House’s first elementary school, which will educate students from birth through eighth grade.
Christopher House provides a continuum of high-quality schools serving infant, preschool, elementary, high school, as well as support services that create stable, self-sufficient families. Our centers are nationally renowned and have earned the highest ratings in the City of Chicago. High standards, high expectations, data-driven outcomes, and a commitment to continuous quality improvement for students, families, and our staff are the driving force behind all of our work.
Christopher House’s programs are grouped into four “schools:”
- Christopher House Infant School and Pre-School prepares children, ages 6-weeks to 5 years old, for school, stimulates cognitive growth, and develops emotional intelligence
- Christopher House Elementary School builds educational continuity from pre-school through elementary school and empowers achievement and perseverance in all students.
- Christopher House After-School drives students, ages 6 to 18 years old, to develop healthy behaviors, explore new opportunities, achieve academic excellence, and succeed in post-secondary education.
- Christopher House Parent School, including our Family Support Services, offers education and support to help parents provide a safe, self-sufficient, and nurturing home environment conducive to educational success.
The investment from The Paul M. Angell Family Foundation will allow Christopher House’s family of schools to continue to grow and to support each child’s educational development through both academic rigor in the classroom, social work and parent education.
Grantee Spotlight – Single Carrot Theatre
Ensemble
Single Carrot Theatre (SCT) was founded in 2005 by a group of students at the University of Colorado, Boulder. The ensemble theatre company takes its name from a quote by the painter Paul Cezanne: “The day is coming, when a single carrot, freshly observed, will set off a revolution.” In 2007, after considering 50 American cities from which to launch their revolution, Single Carrot Theatre voted to move to Baltimore, Maryland.
The troupe has been something of a pioneer of ensemble theatre in Baltimore – when the company arrived in Charm City in 2007, its organizational structure set it apart from other area theatres. At the theatre’s core is the ensemble – a governing body of artists who are actively involved in strategic decision-making, long-term planning, and new policy creation. Today, there are more than ten companies in Baltimore that, like Single Carrot, function under the ensemble model.
Three productions, left to right, “Milk Milk Lemonade,” “Murder Ink,” and “The Apocalypse Comes At 6PM”
Over the last eight years, SCT has staged 65 productions; introduced audiences to playwrights from Russia, Bulgaria, China, Puerto Rico, and the Czech Republic; and entertained and trained more than 10,000 young people. The theatre produces at least one new play or devised work each season, in addition to pursuing socially significant material and embracing technical design that reflects a commitment to uncharted artistic territory. A review of Charles Mee’s Utopia Parkway, which the troupe is presenting through late April 2015, describes the scenic design as “a child’s graffiti-filled urban playground complete with mini skateboarding ramps…[that] doubles as a ritual circle, with incense burning center stage and chants to a dying civilization.” The production is “very much in the style of rough theatre, street theatre, agitprop — a community, if you will, performing an ancient tale for a hungry-for-answers audience” (DC Metro Theatre Arts).
Utopia Parkway
Single Carrot’s work onstage is complemented by educational programming that provides children and teens with unique opportunities to enrich their academic and artistic aspirations. Offerings range from weekend workshops and a summer High School Conservatory to student matinees, in-class visits with actors and artists, and a touring assembly program. Beginning in April 2015, SCT will be in-residence at nearby Margaret Brent Elementary/Middle School to bring 45 minutes of theatre and arts instruction to all grade levels each day. As each class works toward a performance, instructors will spend considerable time building an ensemble within each class.
High School Conservatory
Single Carrot didn’t have the space to simultaneously run artistic and education programs until last year, when it moved to an impressive, custom-built facility. With a grant from the Paul M. Angell Family Foundation, SCT has been able to offer more programming and improved amenities without raising ticket prices or adjusting the number of scholarships it makes available. Single Carrot believes the arts should be a right, not a privilege. The Foundation is pleased to bring the company closer to making that ideal a reality.
Grantee Spotlight: Asociacion Interamericana para la Defensa del Ambiente (AIDA)
Since 1998, AIDA has used the law to protect the environment, primarily in Latin America.
Attorneys from and in Latin America bring regional knowledge and expertise in international law to communities and organizations working to solve environmental problems. [Read more…]
Fall 2014 Grants Awarded – Accepting LOIs
The Foundation is pleased to announce that it awarded over 4 million dollars in grants for the Fall 2014 cycle. Details on each award is available now by searching the database in the GRANTS page.
We are also open for LOIs for the Spring 2015 cycle. Interested applicants should click the FOR APPLICANTS link in the navigation bar and select HOW TO APPLY.
Grantee Spotlight: Haymarket Opera Company
In our first Grantee Spotlight, we are pleased to feature Chicago’s Haymarket Opera Company. [Read more…]
