Our mission is to empower urban young people, ages 13 to 19, through arts and educational programs to develop the knowledge, skills, and confidence to succeed in school, the workplace, and in life. Founded in 1985, CityKids has offered high-quality arts experiences to underserved young people. Gradually and organically we enriched programs, adding leadership and community service opportunities, and needed educational support, career, and mental health services to support youth development into adulthood. Today, CityKids engages more than 800 young people annually through free after-school, in-school, weekend, and summer programs and reaches tens of thousands each year through our performances, multi-media productions, and workshops that are created, designed, and produced by our young people.