The City of Boise Arts and History and Library departments, in partnership with the Treasure Valley Institute of Children's Arts (TrICA ), announce a new format for the city'sFREEArts for Kids program.

The program for 2009-2010 will offer two components:

1.  Arts for Kids - RE-ART Library Sessions, November 2009 through May 2010

RE-ART programs will be offered once a month at the four Boise Public Libraries. The sessions will emphasize cross-pollination of arts and culture disciplines and encourage children to find art in unexpected places.

November sessions:

Play and dance to your own beat!Join Ben and Rachel Pursley at all four Boise Public Library branches for a high energy, interactive program of African drumming and dance. The programs are scheduled for Saturday and Sunday, November 14 and 15:

• 1:00 p.m., Saturday, November 14-the Library! at Collister, located at 4724 W. State St. in the Collister Shopping Center.
• 3:00 p.m., Saturday, November 14-the Library! at Cole & Ustick, located at North Cole & Ustick Road in the Library Plaza.
• 1:00 p.m., Sunday, November 15-Main Library Hayes Auditorium, located at 715 S. Capitol Boulevard in downtown Boise.
• 3:00 p.m., Sunday, November 15-the Library! at Hillcrest, located in the Hillcrest Shopping Center at Orchard Street and Overland Road.

For details and upcoming RE-ART library session schedules, call 384-4200 or check www.boiseartsandhistory.org - or - www.boisepubliclibrary.org.

2.  Arts for Kids -The Portal on the Grove Plaza- May 2010

This large-scale finale will be held on the Grove Plaza in late May. Children will enter "the portal" into a magical environment where they can tap into their creative nature through a variety of arts activities.

Arts for Kids programs encourage children to explore and embrace art in new contexts, inspiring creative minds and encouraging critical thinking to help our children connect with the world and with each other. The program goal is to help Boise's children live richer, fuller lives through their participation in the arts.

The Arts for Kids program has continually evolved since its inception in 1990. Department of Arts & History, Library, and TrICA staff developed this new program model in response to current economic conditions and a recognition that offering more free, synthesized children's arts and culture opportunities into Boise's neighborhoods is one way we can help strengthen our community. The City of Boise and its partners are committed to creating efficient and effective programming through pooling resources and working with each other to streamline programming throughout the city. The new Arts for Kids program is one step toward laying a foundation for coordinated citywide efforts and future collaborations with community partners.

Arts for Kids would not be possible without generous support from the City of Boise and OfficeMax® Boise Community Fund. Other contributors for the downtown event on the Grove Plaza include Capital City Development Corporation, Downtown Boise Association, and Oppenheimer Development Corporation.