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We offer free, high-quality art and academic classes after school to K-12 youth in the Shreveport-Bossier area, so that all children have the opportunity to
explore, learn, and create, under the guidance of professional teachers and
artists. While we accept youth from all backgrounds into our free After School Program, we target and recruit youth from low-income households and underperforming schools. They are at risk of falling behind their higher-income peers in school. One in three children who have spent half or more of their lives living in poverty will not graduate from high school. Children living in neighborhoods with high rates of poverty are more likely to attend schools that do not offer art and music classes. These scenarios increase the odds they will not have the education, knowledge or skills to become financially stable adults.
Renzi's After School Program mitigates the risks youth from low-income households face in several ways. One key way is our students receive one-on-one tutoring in core academic subjects -- Language Arts, Math, and Reading -- and assistance with homework, from professional teachers. 
Students can also take academic classes such as Spanish, Science, Computer Lab, and Nutrition, which give them additional knowledge and skills.
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Renzi's academic classes help at-risk
children improve their academically.
Another way is offering a wide variety of art classes taught by professional local artists, who share their creative processes, techniques and materials with their students. In the art classes, students are empowered to explore, express and activate their creativity, which increases their self-confidence and pride. They also gain knowledge and skills in the art classes that help their academic performance. Throughout each school year, the Renzi Center has served approximately 100 students; about 60 students attend our after-school classes daily. We hire certified, experienced teachers for the academic classes and professional, working artists for the art classes. Children who come to the Renzi Center shy and unsure of themselves become more outgoing and self-confident within days. Since the Renzi Center's founding in 1997, we have served hundreds of at-risk youth in the Shreveport-Bossier area. |
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