In 2019, former and current Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro (CFGG) board members created an endowment to honor CFGG President Walker Sanders for his 20 years at the foundation and his work in developing the successful Steven Tanger Center for the Performing Arts. Sanders elected those proceeds from the endowment should be used to expand the experiences of GCS students who would not typically have the opportunity to see live theatre performances.
Bringing Broadway to Guilford County Students Every Year!
The Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro is partnering with Guilford County Schools to create an opportunity for eighth-grade students to visit the Tanger Performing Arts Center through a service-learning project grounded in civic engagement and service to the community.
Eighth-grade students will learn about the importance of service learning and civic engagement and create projects that reflect this learning. Projects will be showcased and evaluated in a format similar to a science fair. Projects will be selected to be recipients of the Walker Sanders Endowment Award, and students on these teams will receive tickets for an age-appropriate show at the Tanger Performing Arts Center. As the endowment grows over time, the program will be expanded to include more students and schools.
What are the goals of the program?
- To enable GCS students to access and experience world-class performances, while providing additional arts curriculum and learning opportunities.
- To drive interest in service-learning in eighth grade, as students prepare for high school and have the opportunity to pursue the service-learning cord at graduation.
- To build student knowledge of how to create strong service-learning projects.
- To engage as many classmates as possible.
- To build students’ soft skills, including developing projects, creating and delivering presentations, and working as a team.
- To engage participating students with teens and young adults in the community who participate in CFGG’s Teen Grantmaking Council and Future Fund, enabling students to learn more about philanthropy and its essential role in building community.
How does it work?
The students will participate in a service-learning project that GCS will score using the following criteria:
- Investigation: Students will work with their classes to research the prompt and learn more about how it interacts with them and their classroom community, school community, local community, and global community.
- Preparation and Planning: Students will work with their teacher to create a plan of action for their project. Students will create a project proposal that will outline their timelines, materials, audience, and other pertinent information.
- Action: The class will follow their project proposal and complete the project. Students will document the project and work together as a class.
- Reflection: Students will reflect independently and as a class on their project, their impact, and their growth.
- Demonstration: Students will share and explain their project with their schools and with the project selection panel.

“As eighth-grade students prepare to enter high school, they should have access to opportunities for civic engagement and service-learning that both lead to positive postsecondary outcomes. GCS has a longstanding history of supporting performing and visual art in conjunction with the community. Exposure to live theater is an opportunity for students to engage in life experiences outside of the traditional school program.”
— Sharon Contreras
Ways you can support this cultural endowment for youth
Donate via check
A check made out to “Endowment to Engage Youth in the Performing Arts” can be sent by mail to the Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro at:
CFGG
301 North Elm St., Suite 100
Greensboro, NC 27401
Matching gifts
Ask your employer if they have a matching gifts program. They are often dollar-for-dollar, but some companies could double or triple your original donation.
Stocks and other gifts
Gifts of stocks, securities, real estate, IRA distributions, or life insurance are accepted to support the Public Art Endowment initiative. Stock gifts should be emailed to the Community Foundation and initiated through your broker. Please include details of stock name, number of shares, and which fund to credit.
Contact UsLegacy gifts
A bequest is a flexible and impactful way to give to Public Art Endowment for generations to come. Changes can be made due to personal circumstances at any time.
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