Foluke Cultural Arts Center Inc

Foluké Cultural Arts Center, Centrals ONLY arts center, is committed to making performing arts and arts education available to all, particularly those who live in “underserved” areas.  The programming of Foluké is family oriented with focus on at-risk children and youth.  The goal is to provide positive alternatives to negative behaviors by instilling discipline, self-pride and boosting self-confidence through self-expression and self-discovery.  Foluké Cultural Arts offers instruction and exposure to the performing and visual arts, and arts education for all ages, regardless of race, religious affiliation or economic background.  The vision of Foluké Cultural Arts is to provide arts services to the greater Cleveland area with a special commitment to the Central ‘Promise’ Neighborhood, with a goal to utilize the arts to serve as a catalyst for academic achievement, socio-economic development and community pride.

Foluke Cultural Arts, a Black Founded and Black run Non-profit organization not only works to level the playing field for the youth it services in the Central Neighborhood, but it employs teaching artists that represent the targeted population. The teaching artist staff at Foluke Cultural Arts have been allowed experiences, opportunities, and exposures that may not have been available to them through other organizations. Our staff is 42% Latinx, and 58% African American of which 66% are male. The male representation helps our population see males of color as positive role models.

FolukeArts mission is performing arts and arts education accessible to all, particularly those who live in "underserved" areas of Cleveland Ohio. The vision is to provide arts services to the greater Cleveland Ohio area with focus on the Central Promise' Neighborhood. Founded in 2002, FolukéArts evolved from a faith-based initiative and is based an area regarded as one of the poorest neighborhoods in the nation concentrated in large pockets of public housing. The targeted population is young, black, and poor with families dominated by single mothers, living at or below the poverty level.

Foluke Cultural Arts a Cleveland Central Promise Partner/Stakeholder, is part of a collective impact initiative at work to transform the educational and developmental outcomes of the children in Cleveland's Central Promise Neighborhood. Foluke Cultural Arts is also on the Central Promise Advisory Board actively participating in the planning of the Sisters of Charity Health Campus near St. Vincent Charity Hospital. Foluke Cultural Arts is also a member of the National Guild for Community Arts Education, and part of the Creative Aging Institute initiative that is also part of the National Guild.

Future expansion of Foluke Cultural Arts offerings would include families, adults, seniors, and the disabled. We will be working with agencies that service the Central Promise neighborhood regarding recruitment and engagement.