Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Students who have art in their lives do better in school – and in life – outperforming their peers by every academic and social measurement. Yet quality, diverse, standards-driven arts learning is not guaranteed as an essential component of education in MA—a national leader in education and a center of arts and culture. Lacking the respect afforded to traditional academics, arts continue to be vulnerable to budget cuts and the increasing demands of standardized testing. Young Audiences of MA (YAMA) brings meaningful arts learning opportunities directly to students who would otherwise lack access, whether due to school budget constraints, lack of proximity to cultural centers, or special needs. Our Expanded Arts Access programming focuses on those who face the greatest barriers to access including: PreK students experiencing homelessness or extreme poverty, at risk students in underserved districts and students with disabilities and chronic illnesses.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Arts For Learning (100 offerings from 135 artists)
Performance: Inspirational 45-60 minute programs for large student audiences presented by nationally and internationally recognized performing artists, and who introduce an art form, its cultural context and its ties to curriculum and learning frameworks.
WORKSHOPS: 45-60 minute hands-on classroom sessions, in which students practice an art form in a focused environment with the guidance of a teaching artist, in a small group of their peers.
RESIDENCIES: A chance to go deeper in practicing an art form, residencies consist of three or more workshop sessions, culminate in a final project and are customized to meet specific learning goals. In addition to short-term residencies, YAMA offers year-long arts residencies for schools who lack classroom teachers in a desired art form. Master Classes: A select group of YAMA professional musicians provide master-classes in instrumental music, (orchestral and band), drumming, and vocal music.
Healing Arts for Kids
This nationally recognized program provides performances, workshops and residencies for acutely and chronically ill children, physically and emotionally challenged children and other special education populations in hospitals, hospital schools and special needs schools.
Expanding Horizons Through Music
Expanding Horizons Through Music is a residency program that uses musical activities to teach crucial pre-literacy skills to homeless and impoverished children attending urban Boston preschools. The joyous process of learning music - a respite for students who suffer from early childhood trauma - results in demonstrated knowledge of phonics, letter recognition and story sequencing as well as increased social skills and comfort in a learning environment. Currently serving 155 students in 8 preschool classrooms in Dorchester, Roxbury and Jamaica Plain, this program includes:weekly classroom literacy-through-music sessions throughout the year, led by YAMA artistsinstruments provides to each classroomprofessional development for classroom teachers in incorporating music activities in their own literacy instruction engagement with students' families through events, newsletters and custom song/activity books to empower them to reinforce literacy-through-music beyond the classroom
Friday Arts At Gardner Pilot Academy
This year-long, weekly arts learning residency program brings residencies in dance, music, storytelling and theater to the entire student body of a Title I, K-8 public school in Allston, which values arts as a vital component of a holistic education but lacks classroom teachers in arts disciplines. All residencies are comprised of progressive, skill-building workshop sessions, are fully inclusive, use multiple means of engagement to reach all learners, and culminate in Showcase performances that cement learning and build community. The Friday Arts program also includes performances by professional arts ensembles to provide context and inspiration for what can be achieved through dedicated training and practice. When possible, the program also provides performance opportunities for students outside of school.
Where we work
External reviews

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Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
Young Audiences of Massachusetts (YAMA) works to ensure that students of all backgrounds, talents and special needs have access to meaningful encounters with the arts during school, that help to:
• bring curriculum vibrantly to life
• inspire imagination and develop creativity
• strengthen learning and social skills
• promote cultural understanding
• introduce students to powerful modes of self-expression
• encourage students to create, risk, explore and discover their unique potential
For schools that include arts departments, we work to supplement arts curriculum with programming that introduces students to new traditions, approaches skills or learning connections.
For schools that lack arts departments, we work to ensure that students have access to a minimum of 1of hour of direct arts instruction each week throughout the year.
For hospital schools and special needs schools, we work to provide fully accessible programming to
• initiate artistic, social, cultural, and academic engagement
• facilitate creativity, imagination, empowerment, and laughter
• cultivate feelings of hope, often hidden when children are critically ill, faced with crisis, or chronic dysfunction
• provide respite from discomfort and pain
• initiate connections among children, families, artists, and staff through programs that foster education and well-being
For the most vulnerable students in our community, preschool students experiencing homelessness and extreme poverty, we work to improve kindergarten preparedness through our holistic literacy-through-music program.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
Young Audiences of Massachusetts (YAMA) seeks out the region’s best teaching and performing artists, vets, evaluates and improves their programs, and works with schools and other learning centers to bring them directly to PreK–12 grade students. Through outreach and close partnerships, we select, adapt or develop programming that meets the learning goals and special needs of each educational partner.
Our roster of 135 performing and teaching artists represents a diverse spectrum of cultures, traditions and artistic approaches. This roster includes multiple award-winners, many affiliated with educational institutions such as Berklee College of Music, New England Conservatory, Leslie University and the Museum of Fine Arts School, and many affiliated with cultural institutions such as Boston Ballet and ImprovBoston. Artists are chosen for their abilities to represent excellence in their arts genres, their abilities to clearly articulate learning goals for their programs, and for their rapport with children of all backgrounds.
Our more than 100 program offerings for PreK–12 graders include:
• inspiring performances that introduce large audiences to an art form, its cultural context and its applications to school curriculum
• hands-on workshops in which small groups of students practice an art form with the guidance of a teaching artist in a focused environment
• in-depth residencies, in which a series of progressive, skill-building workshops culminates in a final student performance or project
• Year-long partnerships, which can include: weekly classroom instruction, student performances, visiting performers, professional development, arts integration and family engagement.
Our Expanded Arts Access Programming brings adaptive arts learning to those who face the greatest barriers to arts access, yet often have the most to gain from them, including youth at risk and youth with physical and mental disabilities and challenges.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
YAMA has brought quality arts programming to Massachusetts students since 1962. We have contacts and relationships with schools and other learning centers throughout the Commonwealth. Our organization has a strong reputation in the educational community for quality, diversity of offerings, service and expertise. We work with 135 of the region’s best performing and teaching artists, and utilize their networks in recruiting new artists as needed.
Our staff has experience not only in arts administration, but also in performing, teaching, and social work. Our 9-member Board of Directors and 28 dedicated volunteers in 4 sub-committees represent a broad cross section of the education, legal, tech, business, and philanthropic communities.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
During the most recent school year, YAMA brought arts learning to 130,000 PreK–12 grade students in 350 schools/learning centers in 187 Massachusetts communities. Included in this number are 219 preschool students experiencing homelessness or extreme poverty, and 255 students learning in hospitals or special needs schools. 612 at-risk students attending schools in underserved communities received weekly arts instruction in our Year-long Residencies. In recent years, we have expanded our programming to serve residents of public housing through MassHousing’s Tenant Assistance Program. This past summer, we also offered 7 free public performances for families in Boston and Cambridge.
In recent post-performance surveys of partnering youth arts coordinators:
• 94% said our artists demonstrated mastery in their art form
• 97% said that learning take-aways were taught effectively
• 92% said that take-aways were relevant to curriculum or filled-in gaps in curriculum.
YAMA currently offers more than 100 program options in dance, music, storytelling, theater and visual arts, representing a broad spectrum of cultures, traditions and approaches. Each year, we work to recruit, adapt, and develop new programming in response to community needs and learning goals. In the year ahead, we are conducting our first formalized community needs assessment, focusing on S.T.E.A.M, media arts, and arts integration programming. Having successfully implemented year-long weekly arts-in-learning residencies at several underserved Boston public schools, we are exploring other underserved communities that may benefit from this model.
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
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Young Audiences of Massachusetts, Inc.
Board of directorsas of 11/22/2021
Ms. Caren Connelley
Winchester Foundation for Educational Excellence
Term: 2018 - 2021
David Jewett
Consultrant for Higher Education
Caren Connelly
Winchester Foundation For Educational Excellence
Salina Ferguson
Roxbury Latin School
Nancy Gittelson
Tufts Medical Center
Mark Kadar
The Newton Strategy Group
Mukesh Asarpota
Salesforce
Nickki Dawes
Center for Community-Based Learning
Sarah Idelson
Private Attorney
Lynn Song
Waltham Public Schools