869
VSA Arts of New Jersey
FORMER NAME
Very Special Arts of New Jersey
ADDRESS
703 Jersey Ave.
New Brunswick, NJ 08901
PHONE
732-745-3885 - Karen Singer
732-745-3913 -TTY
INTERNET ADDRESS
ADMINISTRATOR
Vanessa Young, Executive Director
CONTACT NAME
Karen Singer
DESCRIPTION
VSA arts of New Jersey is a part of the international VSA arts
network, an affiliate of the John F. Kennedy Center for the
Performing Arts in Washington, DC, and the national
coordinating agency for individuals with disabilities. VSA/NJ
promotes the creative power of people with disabilities through
the development and support of model and inclusive cultural,
educational and recreational programs and services. In addition
to its regular programming, VSA/NJ works with schools and
other organizations to develop and design arts programming
that meets the specific needs of their students and is in
alignment with their curricula. VSA/NJ also serves as a resource
for school administrators and educators on issues of the arts
and disabilities and is a member of the NJ Arts Access Task
Force, which provides training and technical assistance to the
cultural community as it implements structural and
programmatic changes, develops programs that include people
with disabilities, and engages in sensitivity training.
PROGRAMS
Theater Programs: 1) Unlimited Potential Theater Company
(UPTCo.): inclusive theater company offering training,
workshops and performance opportunities; 2) Storyteller
Players: theater workshops and performance opportunities for
adults with developmental disabilities culminating in an annual
performance each spring.
Parent/Child Workshops in the Arts for Children with Autism:
family-oriented arts programming designed to introduce
children with autism to the arts and to enhance behavioral,
cognitive and motor skills.
Art Achievement Awards: Statewide program that recognizes
young people with disabilities who dispay outstanding
achivement in the arts and educators and administrators who
develop and support model arts programs.
Art Par Excellence: touring exhibit of art by young people with
disabilities held on a biennial basis at corporations, museums
and cultural venues.
Mercer County Arts Institute: weekly after-school workshops in
visual art, music, drama and acting for students with disabilities.
Leadership Training/Resource & Referral Service: technical
assistance, presentations and workshops by and for individuals
with disabilities and services for artists with disabilities.
FOUNDED
1978
SUBJECTS
Art
Disabilities Services
Drama and Theater
Music
LAST UPDATED
2/08