IF has recently trained youth leadership teams in using IF’s small group discussion method for Youth Creativity Summits in New York and D.C. Loree Goffigon is the organizer of these summits. Here we would like to share with you her wonderful description of these summits.
It’s with overwhelming excitement and appreciation that we write to share the latest on our first annual series of Youth Creativity Summits.
After kicking off in Chicago, we turned our attention to our backyard in Los Angeles. With our incomparable partner, the LAUSD Arts Education Branch, and the generosity of SCI-Arc hosting us, on March 2, 2018 we brought together over 250 teens from across the city for a full day of workshops, speakers, and performers, all exploring the many forms and facets of creative practice and the ways creativity manifests as problem solving and social action.
The day sought to bring together youth voices, interests and passions with the incredible youth development organizations delivering programs throughout the city. The Creativity Summit was not simply about cracking open our conventional definitions of creativity, but also giving students access to a community support system to harness new discoveries.
Students explored creativity through the lenses of dance, visual arts, music, cooking, civics, technology, film, photography, architecture, game design and community activism. We are so appreciative of Get Lit – Words Ignite, Inner-City Arts, LA Commons, LACMA, Las Fotos Project, SPARC, Two-Bit Circus, Versa Style, Write Girl / Bold Ink Writers, Akasa, Politicraft Inc, International Youth Peace Movement and Young Producers Group who wholeheartedly committed themselves to the vision for the summit and brought this day to life.
And we would be remiss in not highlighting the inspiring performances and presentations from Jackie Lopez, J Period, Hanna Harris, David Wynn and Joe Geiskopf, Monique Mitchell, FM Supreme, Victoria Reese and Weapons of Mass Creation, who all added a level of personal connection through their stories.
With all this energy propelling us, we look ahead to NYC and Washington DC where we are working with partners to host similar events, each driven by youth design councils and local organizations. We welcome you to attend one of the upcoming events. Now that we have a clear sense of the impact, we are also looking to expand to other cities so please let us know of the opportunities that may exist. 
We’re so excited about momentum that has already been generated and hope that through collaboration and collective impact, we can continue to grow this movement. Please check out www.youthcreativitysummit.org for more information about the upcoming summits and photos from LA and Chicago, as well as our instagram @creativity_summit.
If this has piqued your curiosity and you’d like to learn more, please get in touch. And, thanks again to everyone who made this day possible!
All best,
Loree
Loree Goffigon Community Works