Fine Arts for Children and Teens - FACT Santa Fe

FACT emphasizes bringing arts-learning opportunities to under served areas. Nearly 80% of the students we serve are considered at-risk, and many come from some of northern New Mexico's lowest-income and highest-crime neighborhoods. Because we believe access to art is transformative, 90% of our programs are free to all participants, and we are always finding new ways of introducing more young people to the power of art.

Fine Arts for Children & Teens is built on the belief that the power of art can transform lives. Founded in 1990 by Juliet Myers and Rosanne Kadis, FACT began by providing art workshops for Girls Inc.'s public-school latchkey program and offering Saturday morning community art classes. Within three years, FACT brought classes to Santa Fe public schools and opened a studio in Santa Fe's Railyard District for year-round programming.

By 1995, FACT was reaching students ages 8 to 18 and collaborating with Partners in Education to provide art workshops for area schools. Our innovative six-part teaching method was refined as we initiated ARTreach programs in selected Santa Fe public elementary schools and began formally training instructors and public-school teachers.

In 1998, we moved to our current location in the ARTbarn at the Pink Church Art Center and expanded programming across northern New Mexico reaching more than 2,500 students a year, and in 2012 added a second Community Studio in Santa Fe at the Zona del Sol Youth and Family Center on the Southside. FACT continues to receive local, state, and national recognition and support for its work in the arts and art education.

FACT provides innovative visual-arts classes to young people ages 5 to 18 at our ARTbarn Community Studio, Zona del Sol Community Studio, and through public schools and community partnerships. Our award-winning approach is simple: We adapt consistently structured classes to specific community needs. Built on context, language, demonstrations, artmaking, critiques, and exhibits, our teaching method gives our classes a solid foundation and instills youth with confidence in their abilities.

We make artmaking even more relevant to our students by responding to their communities, whether that means displaying art vocabulary words in Spanish or leading field trips to local museums and exhibits with a particular multicultural emphasis.

At public schools, our programs integrate art lessons with each institution's curriculum; using New Mexico State Standards and Benchmarks as a guide, we design each class to meet the developmental needs of specific age groups. To broaden students' understanding of art, culture, and community, FACT also maintains links beyond the classroom.

Fine Arts for Children & Teens (FACT) is an award-winning Santa Fe, New Mexico-based nonprofit organization that provides innovative visual-arts classes to young people ages five to 18 in northern New Mexico.

FACT provides visual-arts classes to young people ages five to 18 at our ARTbarn Community Studio, Zona del Sol Community Studio and through public school and community outreach programs. We offer artmaking classes to all children and teens, regardless of financial circumstances, and emphasize bringing these opportunities to underserved, at-risk youth who otherwise might not have access to arts learning. FACT's professional development workshops help teachers integrate art into their classrooms.

FACT offers artmaking classes at our ARTbarn Community Studio, Zona del Sol Community Studio, in the public schools, and through community outreach programs. We are always making art at our year-round ARTbarn and Zona del Sol programs for young people ages five to 18. During the academic year, we bring arts learning to public elementary schools through in-school ARTreach and after-school ARTclub, and we provide additional professional development for teachers through our ARTteach program. We also collaborate with a variety of community partners.

View our current calendar of events and programs

FACT programs are open to the public at our ARTbarn Community Studio and Zona del Sol Community Studio, where we offer year-round visual-arts classes to young people ages five to 18. We welcome all students with an interest in art to these fee-based classes, and we find a way to include everyone, regardless of financial circumstances. We also offer artmaking classes to the public through some of our community partners.

View our current calendar of events and programs

FACT inspires young people to take pride in making their own creative choices. Students learn positive communication, problem solving, literacy, and lifelong learning skills through making art. Research* shows that involvement in the arts improves academic performance; enhances cooperation skills; decreases delinquency; demands that young people take a high level of responsibility for risks and consequences; and narrows the education gaps between at-risk youth and their less-troubled counterparts, with the most dramatic results found among students with low socioeconomic status.

Champions of Change, Impact of the Arts, 1999,
Arts Education Partnership and others

FACT brings visual-arts classes into the public schools and works with classroom teachers to positively integrate art into their academic curricula. Our instructors go into schools to provide hands-on ARTreach lessons for children and ARTteach training workshops for teachers. We give educators access to resources, materials, lesson plans, and the arts-education experience of our staff.

We also bring kids to school: Attendance records from our partnership schools indicate lower absenteeism among students participating in FACT programs.

ARTbarn and Zona del Sol classes are open to the public year-round. Take a look at our calendar (View our current calendar of events and programs), then contact FACT by phone or e-mail, or come visit us. You can access ARTbarn and Zona del Sol registration and scholarship forms below.

The cost of all ARTbarn and Zona del Sol Community Studio classes is sliding scale based on family size and income. No child will be turned away based on a family's inability to pay. Need-based scholarships are flexible and determined on a case-by-case basis.

Our bottom line is that we welcome all young people with an interest in art, and we find a way to include all students, regardless of their financial circumstances.

FACT offices and ARTbarn Community Studio
1516 Pacheco Street, Santa Fe, NM
Part of the Pink Church Arts Center, we're located on Pacheco Street between San Mateo and Alta Vista. Our ARTbarn Community Studio is the building in the back with the big blue doors.

Zona del Sol Community Studio
Our Zona del Sol Community Studio is a part of the Zona del Sol Youth and Family Center, located on the Southside of town, at the corner of Jaguar Drive and Country Club Road. It is just across the street from the Southside Public Library. We share the building with Earth Care - our studio is located on the end of the building closest to the parking lot.

Mailing Address
Fine Arts for Children & Teens (FACT)
Post Office Box 22363
Santa Fe, NM 87502

Phone, Fax & E-mail
phone: 505 992 2787
fax: 505 992 2772
Email Us

If you're interested in having FACT at your or your child's school, speak with your principal about partnering with us.

There are many ways to partner with FACT. From making in-kind donations to funding classes, and from volunteering time to spreading the word about our programs, each contribution has a long-lasting impact on northern New Mexico's youth.

To donate time, money, and/or materials, fill out our In-Kind Donation Form or Volunteer Questionnaire, or contact us now:
(505) 992 2787
Email Us

Support young artists by attending one of FACT's many exhibits (check our calendar for details). You also can get involved with our biannual fund raisers. In Spring we celebrate our birthday at Santacafé with a silent auction of children's artwork and plenty of wine and hors d'oeuvres.