Young Creative Agency

In 2010 YCA founder Alberta Wright, who had been raised in an arts household, was dismayed to see that the public charter school where she taught had no arts offerings. One day she saw a student walking to the discipline office who was known for getting kicked out of class almost every day and missing  most others for court dates or unexcused absences. He was wearing a hand-stenciled sweatshirt with an extremely creative and relatively well-executed design. She stopped him to chat about this--had he done it all by himself? Yes. Did he already have the supplies at home or did he have to go  get them? Had to get them. The amount of planning, critical and creative thinking that had gone into creating taking this design from idea to execution belied a much more motivated young person than was ever revealed in class. That ignited Wright's decision to create a place where underserved New Orleans youth could have a safe space to learn skills in the creative economy that would prepare them for the growing tech job market locally and nationally, connect them with mentors who could nurture and push their learning process, and business leaders who could invest monetarily in their products and personally in their success.

Services 

> Foundational education in design principles and design thinking with an experienced Art Educator

> One-on-one instruction in the Adobe Creative Suite from an experienced, professional design mentor

> Student participation in real work for real clients-- past clients include New Orleans Film Society, Propeller Incubator, and Pagoda Café

Impact

“If I never joined YCA my passion for art would have lessened and I wouldn’t have been able to meet people who helped me with the growth of my art.” Diamond George, 16, aspiring video game concept artist

"Overall I am quite pleased with this flyer and think it is both creative and appropriate for the educational field as well as very professional and polished. Nicely done." Andre Feigler, client, Founder of Enriched Schools

“[YCA has] helped me to experience a different lifestyle of art. A way to actually make a living doing something you love.” Clyde Garnett, 15, aspiring illustrator and musician

“We fulfilled our mission of community engagement while also receiving a high-quality design product. We want to work with YCA again!”

Skye MacDonald, Development Coordinator New Orleans Film Society

» 8 teens served, 1 mentor, 4 clients, 100% of which want to work with us again

» 10 clients in the pipeline before any formal marketing

» 96% of students reported improvement in time-management skills

» 100% of students improved in Adobe Photoshop or Illustrator