MANCHESTER, NH – New Hampshire Institute of Art will celebrate a significant fundraising milestone, having transformed the historic St. Anne Church in Manchester’s center city into a youth arts education lab.
The St. Anne Church building was originally gifted to NHIA in 2009 by Brady Sullivan Properties. The Institute was subsequently awarded $367,250 in Community Development Finance Authority (CDFA) tax credits, which have now been sold to generous businesses including Brady Sullivan Properties and Eastern Bank. Proceeds from the sale of those tax credits will provide a significant portion of the total project budget of over $600,000 to transform the long dormant church into a vibrant youth arts education lab serving the surrounding community.
“This represents an exciting new chapter in the history of the New Hampshire Institute of Art. The opening of our Youth Arts Education Lab in summer 2016 will allow the Institute to partner with the Manchester School District like never before to deliver an array of art education activities.” said Kent Devereaux, NHIA’s president.
“It is extremely gratifying to see this vision become a reality thanks to the passionate support of local businesses, donors, students, faculty and volunteers who recognize the value that art can play in transforming young lives. The research is clear: low-income students who are highly engaged in the arts are more than twice as likely as their peers with low arts involvement to pursue college and earn a Bachelor’s degree,” Devereaux said.
The New Hampshire Institute of Art currently partners with the Manchester Boys & Girls Club and the Bring IT! program to provide free afterschool arts programs to K-12 children; classes are taught by Institute students pursuing Master of Arts in Art Education degrees. Once opened, the Youth Arts Education Lab at St. Anne Church will house this innovative program, and more.
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