About the Nonprofit
Visit Our Website
CircEsteem's mission is to unite youth across all backgrounds and identities by fostering self-esteem and mutual respect through the practice and performance of circus arts. We work closely with the Chicago Public School system to provide after-school programs combined with homework help in neighborhoods where extra-curricular activities are scarce.
CircEsteem serves many neighborhoods that experience 35% or higher of the firearm gun violence in Chicago. Youth in these communities need and want options for extracurricular activities that will allow them to safely socialize, gain personal development and other skills, and build community. Developmentally, team activities such as circus arts are vital tools to building lasting relationships and dedication to the community within a supportive environment that encourages positive life choices, social-emotional development, leadership skills, and overcoming everyday fears. CircEsteem provides a safe space within neighborhood schools that connects youth to caring adults who encourage academic success and positive life decisions. Adult mentors represent youths’ racial identities to support self-esteem and belonging. When youth see individuals from their racial identity achieving success in various fields, they can envision themselves in similar positions and set higher goals for their own future.
Social Circus methodology is an intervention method using circus arts to impact social change through nurturing self-esteem, trust in others, creativity, and physical strength and ability. This project includes in-depth paid professional development for instructors on the best practices of social circus as a vehicle for social-emotional learning and involves BIPOC adult mentors that address the need for representation in role models.
CircEsteem instructors work in Chicago Public Schools, providing one-on-one tutoring and homework help paired with physical education via circus skills such as the gym wheel, tumbling, juggling, trapeze skills, balancing acts, etc. Access to these programs increases academic success, reduces youth violence, and promotes a healthy and active lifestyle. CircEsteem’s social circus methodology promotes radical acceptance, firmly believing that youth of all abilities, physical strength, body shape, background, and identity can find a place of belonging within the circus arts. Circus skills are taught through a curriculum that is molded for each community, acknowledging their unique needs.
