Director of the Green Street Arts Center Ricardo Morris spoke to the WSA Sunday about recent changes at the Center. The University has raised more than $5 million in total to create, open and maintain Green Street, located in the beleaguered North End neighborhood of Middletown.
Morris stressed the fact that the concept behind the Center was not for an elite institution to impose a program to “culture” the neighborhood. In fact, representatives met with North End residents and received input that an arts center would be a fitting means of helping the neighborhood.
Since opening on Jan. 5, the Center has provided a daily after-school arts program for local children, mainly for those within walking distance. Classes are also given during the day starting at 9 a.m., some of which cater to parents and adults, such as videography, dance, acting and even West African drumming.
The central focus of Morris’ presentation was the progress and effect of the Arts Center since it opened last month, as well as its sustained connection to the Wesleyan community. Fifty Wesleyan students showed up for the Center’s orientation day, far more than Morris had expected, he said. And currently, approximately 20-30 students work in the after-school program each day.
The connection between the Center and Wesleyan is very strong according to Morris, which is no surprise considering that Wesleyan still owns the Center and is paying all its expenses in order to keep it afloat. Once the Center achieves profitability, however, it will apply to become an independent organization. According to Morris, the link that has been forged between the Center and the University is stronger than money. He said hehopes that Wesleyan students to continue and even increase their involvement in the years to come.
Since opening, the Center has not met with complete success. The Center is only at 25 percent of its student capacity and some of the courses even had to close due to low enrollment. Morris attributed this to the odd mid-year timing of the program’s launch and expects a better turnout come fall.
Though $150 for photography classes may seem out of place in the North End, Morris said that money should never be an issue in attending the programs. The cost of the classes is on a sliding scale based on income; some families pay as little as $45 for 20 weeks of classes, according to Morris.
“No one will ever be turned away due to the inability to pay,” Morris said.
As what he calls “the most distressed area of Middletown,” the North End has a median yearly income of $15,000-$19,000 for a family of four.
Minor changes and positive improvements can be seen around the North End area, however, as police have been positioned on foot to patrol the streets around the Center at all times of the day. A loitering law has now been more aggressively enforced in the neighborhood due to the increased number of students walking through the area.
Morris noted that people living in close proximity to the Center have painted their houses or otherwise improved their property.
“People are attempting to improve the general appearance of the neighborhood,” Morris said.
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