Arts Learning Grant

The goal of the Creative Writing Workshop for Queer and Trans Teens is to provide a safe and supportive space for queer and trans youth to develop and share their voices through writing. The program aims to empower youth to express themselves, build writing craft skills, and foster community among queer youth from different Duluth schools. To gauge the success of this program, I will measure the following outcomes: Increase in participants' writing proficiency: Assess the improvement in writing skills through pre and post-workshop assessments, along with regular feedback. Growth in self-expression: Monitor the extent to which participants feel more comfortable and confident in sharing their stories and experiences, as measured through self-assessment surveys and group discussions. Strengthened community connections: Track the number of meaningful connections made between participants, as reported by participants in post-workshop evaluations. Pre- and post-workshop assessments: A writing sample and short paragraph statement of interest will be required of each student in order to apply and register for this program. This will help to ensure that the students are both artistically engaged and committed to co-creating a safe space for one another. This writing sample will provide a starting point to measure participants' writing skills at the outset. I will assess their growth throughout the course, looking at their writing exercises and final piece as they progress through the course. This will provide a concrete basis for skills growth measurement. Regular feedback: I will collect ongoing feedback from participants through group discussions, individual consultations, and a completion survey. This feedback will help me gauge students' growth in self-expression, craft development, and community engagement.