- Madras — Jefferson County School District’s K-5 after-school program
- Prineville — Boys & Girls Club
- La Pine — La Pine Middle School
- Sisters — SOAR recreation center
- Bend — "The Loft” teen homeless center, J Bar J Youth Services
"VanGo is literally the vehicle to provide the arts — our van is outfitted with professional arts educators and high quality art supplies going directly to where the need is greatest."
VanGo, a colorfully decorated Honda Element, is a mobile art studio with professionally trained arts instructors in the driver’s seat, arriving fully loaded with high quality art supplies and a visual arts curriculum.
Hitting the pavement in Summer 2006, VanGo continues to travel throughout Central Oregon to non-profit facilities where children gather after school and during the summer. VanGo is a visible, dynamic way to bring the arts to children and teens who do not normally have access to arts instruction, in their schools or elsewhere.
VanGo now serves as an “arts ambassador” to rural communities.
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Why is VanGo important?
Children need art as an integral part of their education, and they’re not getting it. Oregon is ranked 48th in the nation for state funding of the arts.
Most Central Oregon schools are just not getting the funding they need to provide a comprehensive arts curriculum for their students.
The arts are important for children to learn creative thinking – studies show that the integration of arts learning in academics boosts achievement. The U.S. Dept. of Education has documented that the arts provide “critical links” for students to develop thinking skills for achieving at higher levels, especially young children and students who are economically or socially disadvantaged.
We bring VanGo directly to the sites where children congregate in after-school centers and youth facilities, working with our partners to integrate arts curriculum into their programs.
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VanGo’s service to the community
VANGO IS THE REGION'S ARTS AMBASSADOR!
As the regional arts council, Arts Central serves Deschutes, Crook, and Jefferson counties, an area covering 7,800 square miles. Arts Central’s primary mission is to make the arts available to children, regardless of ability to pay.
Because families in rural towns often do not have the time or money to drive their children to a location, such as Bend, with existing arts facilities, Arts Central created a way to bring arts instruction directly to them. The VanGo project is designed to travel to small towns and youth facilities that do not have existing arts programs.
In the 2007-08 school year, on a weekly or bi-weekly basis VanGo visited :
- Jefferson County School District
- (Madras, after-school/summer “Café” program)
- Prineville Boys & Girls Club
- Deschutes County Juvenile Justice Center
- La Pine Elementary School
- Boys & Girls Club (Madras & Terrebonne)
- Meadowlark Manor (teen girls facility - Bend)
- Three Rivers Elementary School (Sunriver)
- SOAR (Sisters Organization for Activities & Recreation)
The Benefits of VanGo
Children in rural towns with limited access to professional-level arts education can now build their arts skills. VanGo provides children with opportunities to enjoy the arts in a safe, structured environment.
For youth at-risk, VanGo provides arts instruction to help support their treatment and education and introduce the joys and benefits of creating art.
The long-term project makes a significant impact on children's learning in the arts by providing a comprehensive curriculum over an extended period of time.
We strengthen our non-profit partners’ programs for a stronger support system for children in our region.
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Impact of VanGo
Children and teens are now receiving professional visual arts education, many for the first time. This is very significant for these students who live in rural, often isolated communities.
Much research proves that children receiving sustained arts education develop crucial thinking skills for achieving at higher levels. Learning art engages and strengthens fundamental cognitive skills such as spatial reasoning, problem-solving, and creative thinking. It has also been shown to nurture motivation, active engagement, disciplined attention, and persistence.
Other studies show that art has a unique way of reaching students who are disadvantaged economically and socially, thus keeping dropout rates down and students interested in experimenting and learning.
We are helping school districts meet state art requirements that they previously could not meet. VanGo follows the Oregon State Curriculum Content Standards for the Arts.
We bring expert arts instruction to children and youth who cannot pay for it or who do not have access to it. We are a true partner in that we do not compete with any other non-profit, but offer only what is not already available for the arts education of our children and youth.
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N E W in Fall 2008 !
In September we will expand our community outreach by bringing VanGo to Headstart facilities administered by NeighborImpact, a social services organization serving Central Oregon.
Reaching pre-school children provides crucial early childhood arts education to economically disadvantaged children.
We will bring VanGo to Headstart facilities in Bend, Redmond, La Pine, Prineville, and Sisters.
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History of VanGo Partnerships
All of our partners contribute substantially to the care and education of our region’s children and youth. We are honored to work with them!
VanGo had a very successful pilot year (2006-07) providing 158 free art classes to 350 underserved children and youth at nine Central Oregon sites. In our current session, we travel to eight sites, teaching 150-200 students each week. This number changes as the sites and students change.
In our pilot year, VanGo traveled to the following sites once a week (for six to 18 months) to teach a comprehensive arts curriculum:
In addition, we taught shorter sessions (three months) at the following sites:
If you are interested in helping support VanGo……..
Being a sponsor of VanGo helps to advertise your business and to show your support of arts education in our community. Your company name will be printed on VanGo, in full view as it drives throughout Central Oregon.
- Please see sponsorship opportunites to learn more donating to Arts Central.
We also happily accept any donation amount to help further our arts education work.
Call Ingrid Lustig, Education Director, at 541-382-7137 for more information on how to donate.
T H A N K Y O U!!!!
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Contact Information
Ingrid Lustig
Education Director
Arts Central at the Art Station
313 Shevlin-Hixon Dr.
Bend, OR 97759
541/382-7137
fax: 541/617-1439
Email VanGo
Application Form
VanGo Goals
- To bring arts education to children in small, rural communities that have limited or non-existent arts programming. These students will receive sustained, professional level instruction.
- To bring arts education to “youth-at-risk,” who are incarcerated or in other youth facilities.
- To strengthen partnerships within the regional community for the purpose of building access to the arts and supporting under-served children and youth.