Today we’d like to introduce you to Jane Back.
Hi Jane, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
We began as a group of volunteers in Sharon Township with a love of the arts and a mindset of community service. Our volunteers are made up of business owners, teachers, engineers, care-givers, and parents, retired professionals, and students. We began by hosting some music events in the small town of Sharon and doing outreach with local organizations that needed help. As a reading teacher, Jane Back, worked with students who may have struggled with reading but were very creative and artistic. She was quite aware of learning differences and that music and art could bring healing and joy to people of all ages who were going through hardship. She established Access the Arts in 2018 and it was certified by the State of Ohio as a non-profit. It is organized exclusively for charitable and educational purposes under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Our primary purpose is to provide opportunities that unite the community and offer a platform for those who would like to share their talents to inspire others in all art forms. We strive to provide an exposure to the arts and interactive opportunities for children, older adults and those with special needs, and to promote appreciation for and education in the fine and performing arts for people of all ages. We are funded by grants, corporate donations and contributions from private donors.
Our name says it all…“Access the Arts – Create. Connect. Inspire.” We CREATE opportunities for people of all ages, races, cultures and economic backgrounds to come together and celebrate the arts through gatherings, concerts and classes. We CONNECT musicians, actors, singers, speakers, dancers, and artists to groups that will benefit from the joy of the experience. We INSPIRE troubled youth to identify their passions and find healthy outlets for expression in art, music, and literature.
Since that October day in 2018, our group of 5 people has grown to over 30 people who are board members, instructors, volunteers, and artist advisors. We are now giving free classes in music, art, and dance in ten locations throughout Medina County. They include the Medina County Home, the Medina Juvenile Detention Center, the Lodi Family Center, Cups Collective, Hope Recovery Community, AC Passage Day Center, Integrated Community Solutions, The Society of Medina, the Medina Center for Older Adults, and Windfall Industries. We also offer digital art classes to all of these locations. In the summer, we hold an arts camp for kids in grades 1 – 5, and digital arts camp for grades 6 – 12, during which kids will get exposure to dance, music, 2D and 3D art. After camp is finished, they display their art and perform in the Medina Square for their families.
Besides all of the outreach programs we do, AtA hosts free Music in the Circle concerts through the summer in the Sharon Center Gazebo, concerts in the Medina Square, and a large music and art festival each summer called the Strawberry Arts Fest. This large event includes strawberry shortcake, over 80 artist vendors, food trucks, musical performances all day, and a large evening concert in the Medina Square. This year is will be on Sunday, June 28 from 11a – 8pm. All of our outdoor summer events are free to the community.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Covid was the biggest struggle, but we managed to continue our programming with virtual classes, and masked events. At the juvenile detention center, we held art classes, ukulele classes and a book club by Zoom for the youth while they were masked and spread apart. Holding in-person classes for special needs adults was difficult because you need to get close enough to help with tasks, but we needed to keep them and our volunteers safe. Our volunteers helped at food pantries, sang Christmas carols at a distance, held sing-alongs while participants were 6-feet apart. At times we had to cancel activities because Covid had spiked at the Medina County Home. This was a real hardship on the residents because they counted on our enrichment programs for their social/emotional wellness. Likewise, many of our clients were experiencing mental health issues and trauma, and this hampered our ability to offer art and music therapy.
In the past 2 years, we have put more of our resources toward digital art with Procreate on i-Pads that we have purchased. We are now looking at purchasing Chromebooks for Google Drawing classes. We are also beginning to teach 3 – D printing classes at the Detention Center and Lodi Family Center. These specialized technology-based creative fields require specific knowledge and funds to purchase equipment. This is one of our biggest hurdles we are facing now. But we feel it is very important to provide training in skills that can open up opportunities to creative careers with technology. A direction toward better careers for our participants will lead to job success and a break in the cycle of poverty as well.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am a teacher of language arts, but a lover of all of the arts. As a high school teacher in Wadsworth City Schools in my early days, I taught reading, writing, American and English literature to student of all levels from remedial freshman to AP Senior literature students. I was a speech and debate coach and director of high school plays.
I tried to incorporate creativity and the arts in all of my classes because the common denominator with students of all abilities is that creative expression helps them have better mental health. Students that struggle with academics often feel like a square peg in a round hole as they are forced into the mainstream mode of thinking in school. They are often right-brained problem solvers or creative musicians or artists. I found that allowing them to find their passion makes a more balanced, successful, and happy individual. Unfortunately many families can’t afford to help their children find their passion, and that is where Access the Arts come in.
I left teaching to run a couple of businesses for several years. My husband and I ran a construction business and sold horse supplies. At the same time, I raised 3 children and spent a couple of decades dedicated to helping them find their passion and at the same time remembering to serve others. Soon, I learned that teaching was really my calling, so I went back to teaching, but this time working with struggling readers at the elementary level in Highland Local Schools. Besides raising self-sufficient and happy children, I am most proud of the connections that I make with my students, both at school and in Access the Arts. I feel that while I am not the most creative artist or musician, I am the connector piece in most organizations that make things happen. I know how to communicate diplomatically and bring people together. In school and in community service, I believe collaboration is the best way to get big things accomplished and to serve more people. I am proud of the growth that Access the Arts has had in the past 8 years while I have still been teaching full time. This has all been possible because of the many volunteers and paid instructors that are the grass-roots foundation of AtA. And I have enjoyed bringing them together and growing that spark of inspiration in others.
What do you like and dislike about the city?
If you mean our small town of Sharon Township? I love that it is small, very safe, and most people know each other, and generously take care of each other.
My least favorite thing is that it is so small that it is hard to have a community identity. We strive to have events and programs that can unite the community, but often residents will go to Medina or Wadsworth for arts entertainment. That is why our programming reaches all over Medina County. We go where there are greater numbers of people who want to participate, and also where there is more need.
Pricing:
- At times we will charge a fee for classes from those who can pay, but always offer scholarships to anyone in need.
- We accept donations of any amount to further our cause.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://AccessTheArts.net
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/accessthearts/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AccessTheArtsInc
