Young Audiences of Virginia, Inc
To inspire and engage students IN and THROUGH the arts!
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Inequity among students across the Commonwealth of Virginia of disparate access to arts-infused learning and the participatory experiences that stimulate the mind, ignite curiosity and critical thinking, promote cultural awareness and expand understanding of academic and vocational potential.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Curriculum Plus
Our signature program, Curriculum Plus, provides high quality artistic performances for students in pre-K through 12th grade with the goal of inspiring and engaging the critical and creative thinking skills needed for academic and social success. Arts for Learning's arts-integrated curriculum reinforces what students learn in their regular classroom and exposes students to a wide variety of artistic mediums.
Take 10 digital programming
In response to Virginia's emergency stay-at-home order that shut down schools in March 2020, Arts for Learning Virginia launched Take 10 virtual learning segments. The programming consists of nearly 100 ten-minute live and recorded videos by sixteen artists on our roster, available for no cost to students and families. This engaging and interactive educational programming includes music, dance, visual, and literary arts and is designed to provide arts-integrated material for students who are distance-learning.
Rhythm and Me
Arts for Learning Virginia's Rhythm and Me residency is an adaptive dance residency program that connects students living with and without Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Students in Portsmouth Public Schools learn the basics of dance and movement, with a focus on key health concerns associated with ASD, including non-verbal communication.
Where we work
Accreditations
Young Audiences, Inc. 2015
Awards
ArtStars Award 2021
Dominion Energy
Affiliations & memberships
Young Audiences, Inc. 1955
External reviews

Photos
Videos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Hours of expertise provided
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Children and youth, Adults
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Now in its 66th year, Young Audiences of Virginia, Inc., doing business as Arts for Learning, is an independent chapter of Young Audiences, Inc., the nation’s leading arts-in-education nonprofit organ
Total number of performances
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Children and youth, Adults
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
In light of the Covid-19 challenges in 2020, Arts for Learning launched new virtual services to reach students.
Total number of classes offered
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Children and youth, Adults
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
In light of the Covid-19 challenges in 2020, Arts for Learning launched new virtual services to reach students.
Total number of audience members
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Children and youth, Adults
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
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?
Provide students and educators across the Commonwealth of Virginia an opportunity through interactive performances, workshops, and residencies given by professional artists to learn in and through the arts.
Play a vital role in shaping today’s children into future leaders and thinkers by contributing to essential components of a quality education
Offer professional development to educators to demonstrate how they can incorporate arts-infused teaching methods into core curriculum lessons.
Ensure disadvantaged students, whether due to socio-economics, family situation or physical /mental challenges, have greater access to the life-changing power of the arts.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
Develop partnerships with schools, community venues, and other cultural organizations to bring artists directly to the students both during and after school hours.
Engage professional artists of every performing, visual or literary art discipline and develop with them interactive high-quality curriculum based upon academic or character development needs expressed by educators.
Identify sources of funding to address the gap between what schools or community venues can afford and what an artist needs to earn.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
Experienced staff with a track record of successful development and delivery of innovative programming.
Assessment of artistic quality and program impact.
Engaged board of directors with a diverse set of experience to assist staff with making contacts with partners and funders.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
Southeastern Virginia has the biggest concentration of service hours and largest number of students, families and educators reached. Plan is in motion to achieve a broader geographic impact and identify new sources of funding.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization collecting feedback from the people you serve?
Electronic surveys (by email, tablet, etc.), Paper surveys, Focus groups or interviews (by phone or in person), Constituent (client or resident, etc.) advisory committees,
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve,
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With whom is the organization sharing feedback?
The people we serve, Our staff, Our board, Our funders, Our community partners,
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
It is difficult to get the people we serve to respond to requests for feedback, It is difficult to find the ongoing funding to support feedback collection, Staff find it hard to prioritize feedback collection and review due to lack of time,
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Young Audiences of Virginia, Inc
Board of directorsas of 2/15/2021
Mr. Chuck Spence
Retired Norton Capital Management, Inc.
Term: 2019 - 2022
Mr. David Snouffer
Willcox & Savage, P.C. Attorneys
Term: 2019 - 2022
Minette Cooper
Arts Advocate, Arts in Education Volunteer
Dr. Amelia Ross-Hammond
Retired Norfolk State Music Professor, former VB City Council Member
Kate Houston
VP Acctg & Financial Reporting, TowneBank
Dr. Stephen Jones
Retired Superintendent, Norfolk Public Schools
Melissa Roomsburg
Asst. Vice President, PRA Group
Dr. Michael Geller
Retired MD/Broader Focus LLC
Laura Barefoot de Graaf
SVP Real Estate, Bank of America
Beth Hazelette
Retired Education Administrator, Arts Advocate
Judy Thaler
Retired Real Estate, Arts Advocate
Rakeisha "Rae" Pearson-Benn
Media and Coordinations Coordinator, City of Virginia Beach
Linda Dennis
Retired Music Educator, Professional Musician
Carlton Hardy
Arts Advocate, Retired Army Training Specialist
Diane Gibson
Retired Education Administrator, Arts Advocate
Judy Gutterman
Retired Counselor, Arts Advocate
Erica Mitchell
Director of Contest Strategoy, EOS Surfaces
Nicole Oliver, CPA
Senior Accountant, PBMares, LLP
Jean Shackelford
Retired Music Administrator, Arts Advocate
Judith Thaler
Retired Real Estate, Arts Advocate
Dr. Vanessa Thaxton-Ward
Director, Hampton University Museum
Philip (Phil) Smith, Jr.
Senior VP, TowneBank, Chesapeake
Dr. Stephen Jones
Retired Superintendent, Community-Arts-Education Advocate
La-Neka Brown
Title 1 Specialist, Community-Arts-Education Advocate
Paige Perry
CEO & Founder Designs of the Mind Photography / Arts Advocate
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? No
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? GuideStar partnered on this section with CHANGE Philanthropy and Equity in the Center.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Sexual orientation
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 12/09/2019GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
- We ask team members to identify racial disparities in their programs and / or portfolios.
- We analyze disaggregated data and root causes of race disparities that impact the organization's programs, portfolios, and the populations served.
- We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We disaggregate data by demographics, including race, in every policy and program measured.
- We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
- We use a vetting process to identify vendors and partners that share our commitment to race equity.
- We have a promotion process that anticipates and mitigates implicit and explicit biases about people of color serving in leadership positions.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
- We measure and then disaggregate job satisfaction and retention data by race, function, level, and/or team.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.