Good starting 'Community Chats' on youth art program for Putnam County

Thursday, April 3, 2014

The Putnam County Public Library hosted the second "Community Chat" out of a series of four on Tuesday night.

The goal behind Community Chat is to bring together members of the Putnam County community for an open forum discussion on arts and the youth of Putnam County.

The first meeting focused on learning from the summer research experience of students Jessica Maginity and Felicia Santiago. The pair went to Lisbon, Portugal and spawned a discussion about what is important to the community in terms of art programs, and what can be done to improve, promote, and encourage all kinds of arts for the younger population of Putnam County.

The meeting on Tuesday featured DePauw graduate Megan Alexander, currently a teaching artist for the Cincinnati Playhouse's Department of Community Engagement and Education. Alexander led the group through various exercises to help the 12 in attendance get to know each other, break down restrictive barriers and open up communication using methods taken from her background in theater.

The discussion following these exercises centered around what a youth arts center might look like including: what kinds of programs it may offer, how such an endeavor could be accessible to all of Putnam County, thoughts on organization, volunteer possibilities and discourse on whether the creation of such an institution would ultimately be a feasible endeavor.

The meetings are the product of Caroline and Tim Good of Greencastle and are open to all members of the county community regardless of profession or experience with the arts.

The first of the two remaining meetings is scheduled for Thursday, April 3 from 5:30 p.m.-7:30 p.m at the Putnam County Library and will feature Dr. Susan Russell, Assistant Professor at the School of Theatre at Pennsylvania State University.

The final Community Chat will take place on Tuesday, April 8 from 5:30 p.m.-7:30 p.m. in the Great Room of the DePauw University Prindle Institute and will feature Emily Terrel, a founding member of the West Indiana Theater Troup of the Putnam County Museum.

All sessions are free and open to the public.

Younger students with ideas about what they would like to see in a youth arts program are encouraged to participate.

Food and light refreshments are provided and all interested parties are invited to attend.

The event is funded by the Prindle Institute for Ethics and co-sponsored by the Putnam County Public Library.

For more information individuals may contact Tim Good at 658-4486 or via email at timagood[at]gmail.com.

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