MOLAA to Provide Museum Tours to Inland Valley Students

Inland Valley students will now have an opportunity be exposed to contemporary Latin American and Latinx art thanks to a grant from the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians. The program aligns with the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians’ giving pillar, Inspiring Our Future Through Education, and its corresponding funding area, Supporting Community-Based Arts and Music Programming. The grant will allow underserved students from school districts in Riverside and San Bernardino counties to be transported to the Museum of Latin American Art (MOLAA) in Long Beach California where they will participate in MOLAA’s APRENDE (Learn) program.

MOLAA’s APRENDE (LEARN) program is the Museum's core arts education program and was developed to increase access to high-quality and culturally relevant Arts curriculum and experiences in the region's schools and communities. The APRENDE program ensures that schools, regardless of their budgetary constraints, are given the opportunity to experience MOLAA and enrich their students' academic experience. APRENDE reaches economically and socially disadvantaged youth and residents by providing low-cost or free onsite exhibition tours; online virtual tours; art workshops; lectures and educator training sessions; downloadable curriculum resources; and other learning experiences.

“We are honored to have partnered with the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians to provide students from Riverside and San Bernardino counties with exposure to contemporary Latin American and Latinx art,” said Lourdes I. Ramos, Ph.D., President & CEO of MOLAA. “This very special program will connect Latinx children with their cultural heritage and introduce non-Latinx youth to the rich artistic and cultural heritage of Latin America. Our goal is to provide arts and arts education for underserved students which is particularly important given the mounting public school cutbacks in arts and music programs.”

MOLAA’s onsite and virtual school tours are accompanied by a robust set of interpretive content that will expand the understanding of Latin American and Latinx art. They address issues and topics that are relevant and central to the identities and experiences of regional youth and families while also addressing global concerns.

MOLAA’s APRENDE program is particularly important now given that public schools have continued to shift instructional time and resources toward math and language and away from subjects such as art, music, foreign language, and social studies. The lack of arts education particularly impacts students of color. Research has consistently shown that access to arts education is lower in African American and Latinx communities and has been steadily declining for 30 years.

Unfortunately, public schools do not have the resources to utilize the arts to reach their neediest students. As a result, teachers must seek supplemental programming outside of the classroom setting to expose their students to instructional subjects that had once been commonplace in schools. To respond to this need, MOLAA has committed extensive resources to its APRENDE programming to ensure that youth, families, and educators have access to high-quality arts education programs. The program ensures that schools, regardless of their budgetary constraints, are given the opportunity to experience MOLAA and enrich their students' academic experience.

Inland Valley school districts interested in participating in the program should contact MOLAA at (562) 437-1689.