Dear Friends of East Bay Center,
After almost two years of virtual instruction, our students are finally back at the Center for group classes. We we are so excited to hear the sounds of laughter, music and learning filling our building once again! We do have a number of safety measures in place in light of the ongoing pandemic. All students (over 5 years old), staff, and faculty must have the COVID-19 vaccine and wear a mask at all times inside the building. In addition, we are limiting class sizes to allow for social distancing, taking temperatures at the door, and using an air filtration system within the building, among other precautions. The health and safety of our community remains a high priority! It is a wonderful feeling to be able to gather at our site once again.
February is Black History Month and the Center is celebrating by highlighting Black artists and educating our community about the artistic traditions of the African Diaspora and contributions of Black artists throughout history. In the West Contra Costa Unified School District schools we are doing a number of assemblies and workshops focused on Black History Month, including one at King Elementary School in partnership with the Mafanikio program (more about the program below) and an assembly/workshop with Middle College High School. Black history and Black artists' artistic traditions are an intrinsic part of the Center's story, and Richmond's story, and we will honor that legacy this month and year-round.
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Pictured above: scenes from our first day back of in-person group classes at the Center. |
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Celebrating Black History Through Art |
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Enjoy this selection of performances and educational pieces from East Bay Center's archives to celebrate the range of Black artists and Black artistic tradition in our community. |
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Last year's Black History Month assembly, hosted by Howard Wiley and featuring many East Bay Center faculty artists.
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Clips from Second Line, a Concert for Peace and the Richmond Second Line Procession, a New Orleans-style Second Line Procession led by the East Bay Center for the Performing Arts Jazz Band. Music composed by Howard Wiley. |
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A spoken word piece about the ways racism is ingrained in our society, performed by Young Artist Diploma Program student Salihah. |
"Agbekor." Choreographed by CK Ladzekpo, excerpt from Konyifafa (2011).
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Center staff Kwesi and Kwaku teach us some West African drumming and dance basics and what the art forms mean to them. |
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Legendary Jazz Bassist Marcus Shelby performs alongside members of East Bay Center's Richmond Jazz Collective in 2016.
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Program Highlight:
The Mafanikio Academic Coaching Program
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Since 2016, East Bay Center for the Performing Arts has supported WCCUSD’s Mafanikio program, aiming to empower African-American students in the district through culturally responsive arts enrichment. Mafanikio (Mafaninkio means achievement in Swahili) is an academic coaching and mentoring program where students participate in a culture of high academic and behavioral expectations, working on skills to be college and career ready. Students also learn about growth mindsets, Black history, and cultural pride. This year, the Center is offering classes to four different Mafanikio school sites in West African Music and Dance, Afro-Peruvian Music and Dance, and Hip Hop. |
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Now Accepting Applications for the Young Artist Diploma Program!
The Young Artist Diploma Program provides up to six years of tuition-free intensive study of performing arts, designed to give students a critical set of skills they will be able to use in college and beyond.
Due to limited space, the Center will prioritize applicants who are entering the 7th and 8th grades in the fall. However, high school students who are a good match for the program are encouraged to apply and will be accepted as space becomes available.
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Join our team! East Bay Center is looking to hire a full-time Registrar. This person will be the first point of contact for Center families and faculty. Bilingual fluency in English and Spanish is strongly preferred.
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Like our work? Let us know by leaving a review on Great Nonprofits or Yelp! This can help others in the community who would benefit from our services find us and learn more about us. We appreciate your support!
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Buy East Bay Center a gift! Check out our Amazon Wishlist, where we recently added many items that are useful to the Center's programs and operations. |
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East Bay Center is grateful for the support of:
Anonymous Foundation, Anonymous Fund of the East Bay Community Foundation, Bandcamp Inc., Berklee City Music Network, Louis L. Borick Foundation, California Arts Council, The California Endowment, Chamberlin Education Foundation, City of Richmond, Clif Family Foundation, Contra Costa County CDBG Program, S.H. Cowell Foundation, Crankstart, Crescent Porter Hale Foundation, D’Addario Foundation, Dale Fund of the SF Foundation, John Derning Fund of the SF Foundation, Dodge & Cox, ELMA Music Foundation, Equity Community Builders, Farella Braun + Martel LLP, Fenwick Family Foundation, Fullerton Family Foundation of the Marin Community Foundation, Bill Graham Foundation of the Jewish Community Federation, Hellman Foundation, William & Flora Hewlett Foundation, Interactive Resources, JP Morgan Chase & Co., Kaiser Permanente, Koret Foundation, The Kresge Foundation, Richard & Emily Levin Foundation, Levin Richmond Terminal Corp, Lewis Prize for Music, Littler Mendelson Foundation, Mechanics Bank, Meyer Sound Laboratories, Moca Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, Overaa Construction, Pacific Harmony Foundation, Richmond Foundation for Children & Youth, San Francisco Foundation, Irene S. Scully Family Fund of the Marin Community Foundation, Sequoia Trust of the SF Foundation, Morris Stulsaft Foundation, Tencue, Travis Credit Union, Wayne & Gladys Valley Foundation, Wareham Development, Wells Fargo Bank, Bernard E. & Alba Witkin Charitable Foundation, Zalec Familian & Lilian Levinson Foundation, Zellerbach Family Foundation, and Corporate Employee Gift Programs at Adobe, AT&T, Autodesk, Bank of America, Chevron, Clorox, Dolby, GE, Kaiser, LPL Investors, Oracle, PG&E, Semantec, UPS, Wells Fargo, Verisk, Walt Disney and City, State, Federal employees.
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