Summary
Organization name
Mirror Image Arts
other names
Mirror Image Arts
2008
Tax id (EIN)
71-1050517
Category
Education, Youth Development
Organization Size
Medium Organization
Address
6470 Carr StArvada, CO 80004
Denver County, CO, US
The gift of belonging starts with one trusted adult. Having one consistent trusted adult in a young person's life can drastically change their future. At Mirror Image Arts we are disrupting the school to prison pipeline utilizing Restorative Theatre©. Through Restorative Theatre©, we imagine and create spaces of belonging, where every child feels valued, seen, and heard. Your gift of any amount will expand access for kids to more trusted adults through MIA. Early giving for Colorado Gives Day begins on November 1st. Thank you for your support!
Testimonials
"Theatre group helped me open up to different things. It's like it helped me unmask my emotions from my past. It helped me to see that not everything has to be bad. All you have to do is just say yes and." Youth Participant
"I feel like this program helped me think about people in a whole new way."
--5th grader, Crown Pointe Academy
"Mirror Image Arts has given the students here at The Bridge Project the ability to personally relate to each other and trusted adults through a group that is unique and fun. They have been able to open up and discuss issues that are relevant in their lives and communities in a space that is emotionally safe, and ultimately they leave each class feeling heard. The lessons that are learned in Mirror Image Arts through theater and drama have moved out of the classroom and are being used across our entire learning platform, changing the way that our students communicate with each other and creating a positive emotional climate at our site. We cannot recommend MIA enough, and the bullying prevention that they have done at our site has created the groundwork for many years of success with bully prevention and intervention."
--Shannon Hea, MSW, Site Director, The Bridge Project
"The Mirror Image Arts portion of our staff training day was the most voted for "thing we should do again next time." Nearly all participants felt this was so valuable that they'd do it again."
--Chandra Jones, STEM Program Administrator, Denver Public Library
Mission
Mirror Image Arts' mission is to disrupt the school to prison pipeline through Restorative Theatre©. Our Passion and Purpose is to imagine and create collective liberation for all.
Background Statement
2020 and Beyond: As needs change, so too does our programming. In early 2020, strategic planning identified and added a new focus to our work: to disrupt the school-to-prison pipeline. The pipeline is a charged and complicated issue, but we found it affecting youth everywhere we operated. That is, not just in the juvenile detention centers but also in the schools and communities we serve.
In short, ensuring “safe” schools through 1. Zero Tolerance Policies, and 2. increased police presence in public schools have led to minor infractions being treated as criminal offenses. The result is drastic, exclusionary punishment ranging from detention to incarceration. Once students have been affected, they are often trapped.
Many of these children have learning disabilities or histories of poverty, abuse, or neglect and would benefit from additional educational and counseling services. Instead, they are isolated, punished, and pushed out.
Through studies of the issue and consultation with lead researchers in the field, we have learned that Mirror Image Arts can have a real impact. SEL and theatre can create safe, honest spaces where youth can build and maintain positive relationships with adults and their peers. They can process their challenges and trauma and work toward healing.
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Organization Data
Arvada, CO 80004