After School Matters, a landmark Chicago based nonprofit after school program, has a similar innovative approach to impacting the lives of youth through safe, engaging after school activities focused on exploration, discovery and mentorship.  ICG, in partnership with ASM, offers 14-18-year-old Chicago youth the opportunity to explore 3-D art through the glass medium....

The mission of Communities In Schools of Chicago is to surround students with a community of support, empowering them to stay in school and achieve in life.  CIS works by connecting schools with needed programs and services. ICG offers schools in the Communities in Schools network a variety of customized field trip offerings which encompass four hands-on learning modules: Glass Blowing, Flame-Working, Fused Glass, and Art Education: STEAM in Glass....

Inspired by NYC’s recent successes with innovative interventions, Cook County’s Juvenile Probation Center (JPC), has made a commitment to shift their narrative and approach.  Rather than defining youth by their worst mistakes and approaching their job as ‘surveillance’, JPC is focusing on building trust and focusing on their youth’s strengths. JPC’s ultimate goal  is shifting youth out of unhealthy patterns....

One of ICG’s longest and most creative partnerships, Chicago Youth Centers has helped ICG envision and grow its blended model:  A combination of in-classroom and in-studio programming. In 2017, supported by Bernzomatic’s Find Your Fire Grant, ICG and CYC offered a STEAM based program entitled ‘Broadening Young Minds Through Creative Recycling Project.’...

In the Spring 2017, ICG was thrilled to developed a new community partnership with Embarc.  The Embarc students from Chicago Academy, an AUSL school, had an opportunity to engage in individual and group based glass fusing projects and experience glass blowing and flame working at Ignite Glass Studios’ state of the art glass education studio.  Embarc’s goal is to drive student success with long-term social and cultural exposure. Through the transformative power of these journeys, they awaken students to the possibilities of their potential by dissolving the borders of the city and in their minds. …

KIPP Chicago schools is a network of college prep charter schools offering high-quality education to Chicago students.  Their mission is to empower students with the knowledge, skills, and character traits necessary to succeed in top-quality high schools and universities and to have a positive impact in their communities.  KIPP Ascend Middle School is located in North Lawndale.  ICG offers KIPP Ascend a unique tool to engage and develop youth creatively and holistically.  Building upon its first two years of programming with KIPP Ascend in Spring 2018, ICG continued its partnership with KIPP offering both in-studio and in-classroom glass art experiences including glass blowing, fused glass and flame working. ...