IACSC

Mission

The Pratt Initiative for Arts, Community and Social Change (IACSC) seeks to encourage and support students, staff and faculty to use the power of the arts to further social change. To achieve this goal we will structure opportunities for cross-disciplinary collaboration among various communities at Pratt--academic departments, student organizations, and artistic disciplines-- and simultaneously work with community organizations and individual artists, both locally and nationally.  

History and Approach 

IACSC promotes social change through community engagement and a multidimensional approach to the arts. We link Pratt Institute’s broad range of academic, professional and arts programs with the long history of the Pratt Center for Community Development’s existing relationships and trust with communities.   

Since its inception in 2005, IACSC has developed a dialogue among faculty, staff, community organizations, and individual artists. Highlights of this work include:

• A combined undergraduate/graduate course entitled, Arts, Culture, and Community Development, which links students in multiple fields and disciplines with community organizations. 
• The Urban Artists and Social Change speaker series which promoted a campus and community dialogue about art and social change. 
• A conference and exhibition which involved local and national artists and arts organizations through the 2006 Art in Contested Spaces exhibition and Art in the Contested City conference.   

We will continue to harness the resources of Pratt Institute to cultivate interest, advocate discourse and create opportunities that ignite action and raise awareness of the arts as a catalyst for social change.

Who We Are

Initiative Chairs

Heather Lewis, Brynna Tucker

Participants

Vic Alonzo, Caron Atlas, Lisha Bai, Nick Battis, Jim Costanzo, Janelle Farris, Rebecca Hernandez, Ann Messner, Uzma Rizv,i Monica Shay, Amy Brook Snider, Ayse Yonder

Student Liaisons

Anusha Venkataraman

Departments

Department list coming soon.

Community Partners

Community Partners coming soon.