Creative Acts

Creative Acts uses the power of the Arts and technology to heal trauma, build community, raise power, and center the voices of those impacted by incarceration. We do this by training a group of returned citizens in methods of trauma-informed council, theater, and VR to prepare them to build curriculum and lead as teaching artists. This grant will support the expansion of our VR ReEntry Program, offering access to tech and creative employment for current and future Alumni Lab members and mental health programming for our partners on the inside.

Creative Acts’ Art Attacks program teaches incarcerated young people the value of their voice and the importance of participating in civic engagement through voting, and connecting with and finding leadership roles in organizations that are affecting change in their communities. We use community drawn art, spoken word poetry and other artistic endeavors to engage and inspire incarcerated youth to change their narratives about who they are and the impact they have. Our pilot program showed an 86% rise in voting for participants and facilitated deep connections between our incarcerated youth and the organization March for Our Lives.