Thanks to a $50,000 grant, Cultural Crossroads will now be able to offer arts programs at The Farm to about 30 at risk freshmen and sophomores.
Chris Broussard, co-founder and executive director, says this grant resonates with her in a very personal way, because when she relocated to Doyline from Paris, France 50 years ago, she was a freshman in high school, a failing freshman.
“Our family’s statistics mirror those of our nation’s children,” she said during Tuesday’s Webster Parish Police Jury meeting, “with only half of our freshmen seeing their way to graduation. So this grant is about me, and it is about all the other failing freshmen who felt like me.”
Through the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Louisiana’s Foundation “Angels for Change,” Cultural Crossroads will be able to offer hope to these young minds to spark their desire for learning.
“Our goal is to reduce the number of young minds who for whatever reason have not realized their own potential or self-importance,” she said. “Our goal is to expose them to a variety of art-related experiences that we hope will help them find their sense of self-worth.”
Broussard says she decided to make the big announcement at the police jury meeting because of their staunch support of Cultural Crossroads through the years.
“We wanted to make the announcement here and the acceptance in front of you, our jurors, because years ago, when we questioned our own existence as an organization, you believed in us and supported us,” she said. “Thank you for believing in us, and now we are out to convince some 30 young people and a host of children that we believe in them.”
