Support Network for Arts-Interested Foster Youth

Access to tech and creative industry employment

Expand existing project, program, or initiative (expanding and continuing ongoing, successful work)

Many factors lead to the significant underrepresentation of former foster youth in principal roles in arts and entertainment. According to the US Dept of Health and Human Services, only half of youth who age out of the foster care system land a job that can support them by the age of 24, and the California Child Welfare Indicators Project found 44% of youth in foster care for 2+ years experienced 3 or more placements.
Cathie, HDD intern and fellowship applicant, articulates her own experience in foster care: “Growing up, I never had dreams of becoming a filmmaker. I had to work two jobs to support my family and moved a lot. I worked hard labor jobs to make money, but I was never happy. Luckily, I was accepted into film programs, which opened a door for me, but there was nowhere to go after the program ended, so the door would close behind me. I went to fun film workshops, but at the end of the day, I would wonder how I could use the skills outside the workshop. How can I land jobs?”

HDD’s Bridge Program consists of its Dr. Kerry English fellowship for transition-aged adult youth and its arts exploration-based programming for teenage youth. The program provides a pathway for youth who have experienced foster care to opportunities in the creative economy.
The Bridge Program’s teenage youth component is based at Peace4Kids’ site in Willowbrook, where HDD provides year-round arts programming for teenagers in partnership with Peace4Kids. These monthly 2-hour sessions consist of the HDD teaching artist assigned to Peace4Kids centering the teens through movement based practices before introducing a unique art form for the youth to explore that session. A guest artist introduces the second art form, sharing their stories, inspiring the youth to expand their possibilities, and teaching basic techniques. At the end of the year, the youth will create a final project using the artistic tools they acquired and present their work in a public showcase. As they reach adulthood, these youth will be eligible to apply for the Fellowship.
Twice a year, HDD opens applications for youth aging out of the foster care system to apply to be a Creative Fellow. HDD pairs each accepted fellow with a mentor in their artistic field and a supporting mentor who has experienced foster care. Over the course of four months, the fellow and mentors work towards the fellow’s artistic goal, e.g. making a film to submit for a festival. Each fellowship class culminates in a final showcase.

If successful, we will observe a greater diversity of artists, creators, and stories told through art and entertainment and see more employers understanding the value someone from an underrepresented background can contribute.
HDD aims to create a community of artists who have experienced foster care and artists passionate about uplifting youth in foster care. With a diverse network of fellowship alumni, we envision individuals and employers seeking artists to work with will contact HDD to share opportunities with fellowship alums.
We would like to collaborate with more organizations that serve foster youth, bringing a movement instructor to teach a workshop to youth in a film program, for instance. We are well acquainted with organizations that recommend youth to apply for our fellowship and hope to expand these relationships to create a growing community with shared interests and experiences, to ensure youth like Cathie have a support network to achieve their dreams.

HDD measures impact qualitatively via monthly 1-on-1 check-ins with fellows, an end of fellowship survey for fellows and mentors, and a survey distributed to teenagers and volunteers after each session at Peace4Kids.
This is the first year HDD has worked with teenagers at Peace4Kids, and the youth have already made requests regarding what they would like to learn. HDD receives more applications for the fellowship program each year, this year receiving 6x more applications than in the first year of the program (2020), indicating the demand for the program.
A recent success story is that of Myron, a 2023 fellow who wrote, directed, and filmed a biopic during his fellowship and gained an understanding of how to pursue his filmmaking dreams: “I now believe in myself and the fact that all is possible if effort and work is put into the dream. It won’t happen overnight and requires sacrifice, focusing, studying and then working it into a craft.” He was recently admitted to the LA Film School.