Contact: Tammy Lane • First Posted: Monday, October 5, 2009

Lexington’s Youth Arts Council is a brand-new outlet for students to network in the community and influence arts programming across Fayette County. 

“We can talk to people at our school and see what they’d like and what they’d be interested in,” said Chelsea Gess, a sophomore at Bryan Station High School, who was selected for the 24-member council.

Jim Clark, president and CEO of LexArts, noted at Monday’s announcement that the teens will also gain experience in program development, marketing and fundraising.

The inaugural council is made up of 19 students from Fayette County Public Schools, three from Sayre School and two from Lexington Catholic High School. Congratulations to these members representing FCPS: 

• Bryan Station High School: Lucy Arthur-Paratley, Alexie Basil and Chelsea Gess.
• Lafayette High School: Alexandra Dantchenko, Elliott Mattox, Sydney Steele, Blake Sugarman, Ellie Todd, Wood Van Meter, Adela Wilson and Jacob Yates.
• Paul Laurence Dunbar High School: Andrea Ayoroa, Josie Degler, Jillian Dunaway, Anderson Gumm, Ashley Gumm, Katie Luy and Nisha Mulay.
• Tates Creek High School: Chris Banks. 

A handful of them were at LexArts on Monday, and all were excited about the prospects. 

“I saw this as an opportunity for youth to lend their voice to support events in Lexington,” said Wood Van Meter, who is in the SCAPA program at Lafayette High School. 

Front row: Alexie Basil and Chelsea Gess of Bryan Station High School and Josie Degler of Paul Laurence Dunbar High School. Back row: Jacob Yates, Wood Van Meter and Sydney Steele, all of Lafayette High School

Fellow senior Sydney Steele agreed, adding, “It’s a great way to reach out to other schools and meet people who are interested in the arts.” 

The teens are also looking forward to helping design countywide activities that appeal to young people. And “since we know about them, we can tell our friends about it,” said Josie Degler, a junior at Paul Laurence Dunbar High School.

The students have already brainstormed potential projects, such as a sculpture scavenger hunt, a choreographers’ workshop, a culinary arts festival and a poetry slam. The council, which will meet once a month, will also produce a monthly newsletter about youth arts activities in Fayette County. 

Mayor Jim Newberry praised LexArts’ creation of a youth council, saying, “It will help us build a cadre of support for the arts for years to come.” 

The Youth Arts Council was made possible by the generosity of JP Morgan Chase, which provided funds to develop a sustainable program that responds to the needs and aspirations of Lexington’s young people. 

An advisory committee developed recruiting guidelines for the council, reviewed the 42 applications and selected two dozen students to serve the first year. The committee wanted the youth council to include as many schools as possible, broad interest in forms of art and a diversity of backgrounds.  

The advisors, which include Carolyn Waterbury-Tieman of SCAPA, will offer guidance and assistance as the youth council develops. The committee also has representatives from LexArts, the Art Museum of the University of Kentucky, the Kentucky Arts Council, the Kentucky Classical Theatre Conservatory, Partners for Youth and the Lexington Ballet.  

Did you know?

October is National Arts & Humanities Month. 

About LexArts

LexArts is a nonprofit community organization that works for the development of a strong and vibrant arts community as a means of enhancing the quality of life in central Kentucky. Major support for LexArts programs and services is provided by the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government. The Kentucky Arts Council, the state arts agency, supports LexArts with state tax dollars and federal funding from the National Endowment for the Arts.