Community Spotlight: YAYA — Tuition-Free Arts & Entrepreneurship for NOLA Youth
- Joseph Crown
- Sep 16
- 2 min read
Another local effort aligned with Crown Legacy’s mission to keep value, credit, and opportunity with the communities we serve.
Just Say YAYA supports YAYA’s tuition-free arts and entrepreneurship training programs for local youth.
Why We’re Highlighting YAYA
Crown Legacy and YAYA share core goals: community-rooted creativity, equitable access to skills, and pathways into the creative economy for young people. YAYA (Young Aspirations/Young Artists) has a long track record of empowering local youth through free arts education, entrepreneurship training, and workforce development—work that complements our own storytelling and poetry fellowships by growing the next generation of culture bearers right here in New Orleans.
Save the Date: Just Say YAYA — A Taste of What’s To Come
When: Friday, November 7, 2025
Time: 6–7 pm
Patron Party · 7–10 pm
Celebration
Where: YAYA Arts Center, 3322 LaSalle St., New Orleans, LA 70115
Tickets: yayainc.org/just-say-yaya-2025
Attire: Bold, colorful, and artsy
Goal: $100,000 raised to power youth programs and spaces
What to expect: Immersive art, local chefs, music, storytelling, and artwork by YAYA youth & alumni (available for sale)
Where Your Support Goes
Proceeds from Just Say YAYA fuel:
A Tech & Entrepreneurship Lab (digital skills for tomorrow’s creative entrepreneurs)
The YAYA Artist Fund (direct support for youth artists)
Studio and building upgrades to keep spaces safe, vibrant, and open to more students
How This Aligns with Crown Legacy
Shared purpose: Both organizations invest in creative skill-building that stays with community—from YAYA’s youth training to Crown Legacy’s Storyteller & Poetry Fellows (2026).
Creative economy pipeline: YAYA equips teens with portfolio, production, and entrepreneurship skills; Crown Legacy spotlights emerging writers and poets—together strengthening a lifelong pathway from early arts engagement to professional creative practice.
Culture, preserved and paid forward: The work nurtures young voices who will become the next historians, makers, technologists, and storytellers of New Orleans.
Ways to Participate
Attend the event (bring friends!): yayainc.org/just-say-yaya-2025
Sponsor or donate: Help YAYA reach the $100,000 goal for youth labs, the Artist Fund, and studio support.
Spread the word: Share the event with your network; personal invitations make the biggest difference.
Follow & amplify: Tag and follow @yayaartscenter; highlight student art, chefs, and performers leading up to Nov 7.
Quick-Copy Caption (for your socials)
Just Say YAYA is back on Nov 7 at the YAYA Arts Center! Art, food, music, and youth entrepreneurship—all to power tuition-free arts programs. Grab tickets: yayainc.org/just-say-yaya-2025. Let’s help YAYA raise $100K for labs, artist funds, and studios that keep NOLA creativity thriving. 🎨🎶🍴 #JustSayYAYA
In Closing
Crown Legacy is proud to uplift partners whose work keeps creativity local and opens doors for the next generation. If you care about arts access, youth opportunity, and a resilient creative economy, Just Say YAYA is a night (and a mission) worth backing.
Joseph Santiago,
Executive Director, Crown Legacy Program
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