Partnership Spotlight: Orr Academy & Lillstreet

Ingenuity is home to the Creative Schools Fund which provides grants to increase access to the arts for Chicago Public Schools students. Thanks to the generosity of private donors, this year 141 schools each received a grant to collaborate with a community arts partner for an innovative, teacher-designed project that directly impacted students and offered more opportunities to experience the arts.

Located in West Garfield Park on Chicago’s West Side, Orr Academy High School serves 386 students, of whom 100% are students of color and 95% are low-income. Orr received a Creative Schools Fund grant to partner with Lillstreet Art Center to provide 11^th and 12^th grade students with guidance in photography composition, lighting, editing and production techniques. As a result of this partnership, students used their photos to create a gallery-style exhibition and a photographic book.

An Ingenuity reviewer who saw the partnership in action reported, “The school hasn’t had a yearbook in several years, so not only are these kids learning photo and Photoshop and layout skills, they are also creating some powerful works that will be showcased around the building and in an art yearbook. We must continue this work!”

This partnership is just one example of the meaningful impact of the arts in the lives of CPS students, and the positive change that Ingenuity is advancing across the school district. Please consider making a gift to Ingenuity today to help support this important work and change the lives of Chicago students.