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Home > Programs > Dallas > Advocate Profile
An Interview with Giselle
Antoni, Executive Director of
Big Thought, Dallas, Texas
Big Thought is considered by many to be a national model for arts education. What is the secret to your success?
We've done a lot of things. But, what's permeated everything that we've done is this very transparent, very inclusive kind of community partnership. Using that as a method for building programs is key to getting a program that is sustainable, can be implemented well, and can really leverage what already exists to make the biggest impact for kids. This is at the core of everything we do. Listen
At the end of the day, what is the impact of Big Thought in the Dallas community? What have you done that is unique?
I think the partnership has allowed our
community to really dream about designing and doing programming
in the arts that impacts every child in our city, not just some
children, which is extremely important.
Can you share a story about a child that you've impacted that stands out in your mind?
I’ll tell you the story of Danny. Danny was sent to us because he was in trouble with the law. In an interview at the end of his first year with us he said, 'Art is my drug of choice. This is the thing that I do that makes me feel good about myself and makes me believe that I can do anything.' Listen
Dallas has a large and growing Spanish-speaking population. Is this changing the way that you are constructing your programs? How does that demographic influence your programs?
It absolutely influences us and in particular the staff that we hire. We recruit Spanish-speaking artists. Everything that we do is in Spanish and English. Listen
Click here for more with Giselle Antoni.
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