Writers Room was launched in 2014 with the Dornsife Center for Neighborhood Partnerships, Drexel’s urban extension center developed in partnership with the West Philadelphia community. Writers Room lives within the intersection of arts, design, and humanities programs. Its members are artists, adolescents, architects, the aging, and activists who together leverage the arts to spark social cohesion, neighborhood stability, and economic mobility.
In partnership with Philadelphia civic and cultural organizations, our rich calendar includes side-by-side classes, visiting writers, cultural events, and monthly writing workshops that are co-created with the community, enabling Writers Room to serve as the connective tissue between the university, community organizations, and our neighbors.
In concert with faculty from the School of Education, Writers Room has received funding from AmeriCorps and from the National Science Foundation to support community-driven participatory action research on issues surrounding displacement, gentrification, and the effect of public arts programming and education on civic innovation. Writers Room is unique among community arts programs because the involvement and institutional investment of Drexel allows it to operationalize the co-created solutions its programs engender.
AmeriCorps VISTA activities will include:
- Community assessment;
- Work to expand/strengthen partnerships/networks;
- Outreach (ensuring programs are relevant to potential participants);
- Performance measurement;
- Support for program development and delivery;
- Assistance with volunteer recruitment and management.
- Other duties as assigned
This position will impact the community and fulfill anti-poverty goals by helping to develop campus-community efforts in the area of Housing and Eviction Prevention and mutually beneficial partnerships between the campus and community organizations, and foster the VISTA as a professional/emerging leader in the fields of comprehensive community development and civic engagement.