Kansas City Young Audiences

Kansas City Young Audiences (KCYA) unites artists and educators to collaborate on exciting programs that benefit young learners – especially those lacking equal access to arts education. It aims to engage all youth in arts, promote creativity, and inspire success in education. Founded in 1961, the organization provides arts-integrated learning through a vast array of innovative programs. As the original provider of arts education programs in the Kansas City metropolitan area, KCYA arts programs have reached more than 6 million children, providing many with their first encounter with the arts.

Today the organization’s mission is to engage all youth in the arts, promote creativity, and inspire success in education.  KCYA seeks to fulfill this mission through three signature initiatives:  Arts Partners Kansas City, Community School of the Arts (CSA), and School and Community Programs. Arts Partners, combines high quality KCYA programs with educational resources of Kansas City’s top arts organizations, allowing Districts to provide programs equitably across all their schools. CSA offers classes, camps, and performance opportunities for children ages 2-18, and is the only Kansas City program to offer classes spanning all arts disciplines in the same place simultaneously. Through KCYA’s School and Community Programs, teaching artists provide educational arts programs to children in schools, libraries, community centers, and hospitals throughout the Kansas City area.  

KCYA unites artists and educators to collaborate on exciting programs that benefit young learners – especially those lacking access to the arts.