COMMON MAPS
Map version new-york activity top-down
Main site Contact
Menu
↑ parent activity group ·
research dossier

COMMUNITY-WORD PROJECT INC
NEW YORK, NY · EIN 134114145 · Form 990 · FY2024 · NTEE B022 · Education · Medium ($1M-$10M) · communitywordproject.org
revenue
$2.1M
expenses
$1.7M
net assets
$1.2M
employees
61
volunteers
45
program ratio
71%
mission · from form 990

COMMUNITY-WORD PROJECT TEACHES PROFESSIONAL ARTISTS TO BECOME TEACHING ARTIST TO USE THEIR CREATIVE PROCESS AND ARTISTRY TO DELIVER MULTI-DISCIPLINARY ARTS-EDUCATION RESIDENCIES IN TITLE I PUBLIC SCHOOLS IN NEW YORK CITY. CREATIVE LESSONS ARE ALWAYS INTEGRATED WITH THE CLASSROOM CURRICULUM IN PARTNERSHIP WITH CLASSROOM TEACHERS AND SCHOOL ADMINSTRATORS.

profile · synthesized from sources

Community-Word Project trains professional artists to become teaching artists through multi-month programs that integrate social justice, creative process, and classroom pedagogy. The organization delivers arts-integrated residencies in Title I public schools, libraries, and community centers across New York City, partnering with classroom teachers to support student voice and creative expression. It also offers customized training and professional development for teaching artists in NYC and other regions like Rochester, NY.

irs program accomplishments · form 990 part iii · fy2024

What they reported doing

  1. #1 primary $320K
    TEACHING ARTIST PROJECT (TAP):TAP PROVIDES PROFESSIONAL ARTISTS WITH COMPREHENSIVE, SKILLS-TRAINING SEMINARS INCORPORATING CREATIVE AND MULTI-MODAL ACTIVITIES AND ON-THE-JOB INTERNSHIPS TO PROVIDE STUDENTS WITH THE QUALIFIED TEACHING ARTISTS THEY NEED TO MEET THEIR INDIVIDUAL NEEDS AND EXCEED CITY- AND STATE-MANDATED LEARNING STANDARDS.TAP LEADS THE TAP COHORT, A GROUP OF 20 ARTS-IN-EDUCATION ORGANIZATIONSPROVIDING ARTS ENGAGEMENT FOR YOUTH AND ADULTS, AS WELL AS PROFESSIONALDEVELOPMENT FOR THE TEACHING ARTIST FIELD LOCALLY AND NATIONALLY.
  2. #2 $95K
    PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT CWP HOLDS PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT SEMINARS AND WORKSHOPS TO SERVE NEW AND ADVANCED TEACHING ARTISTS.
named programs · 6 · from sources

What they call their work

Summer Institute
Three-day intensive workshop for teaching artists with at least two years of experience, focused on deepening teaching artistry and social justice practices.
TAP Alliance
Collaborative network that organizes workshops and builds community among teaching artists, educators, and cultural organizations.
TAP Custom Training
Customized professional development programs offered to external organizations based on TAP’s methodology.
Teaching Artist Institute of Rochester (TAIR)
Multi-day intensive workshop for emerging and advanced teaching artists in Rochester, NY, offering tracks in Teaching Artistry 101 and Leadership in Teaching Artistry, with stipends for participants.
Teaching Artist Project (TAP) Signature Program
8-month comprehensive training and internship program for working artists that includes experiential workshops, social justice pedagogy, classroom management, and in-school internships in New York City.
Youth Arts Residencies
Arts-integrated programs in NYC Title I schools, libraries, and community centers where professional artists co-teach with classroom teachers using a 6:1 student-to-teacher ratio.
activities · 5 groups

What they do

  • Community-Engaged Public Art Projects 2 activities
    • College and career exposure through arts and technology
      Operates CWP 2.0, an 8-month program for NYC public high school students that combines interactive public art creation, technology engagement, leadership in curriculum design, and networking events, resulting in increased student valuation of careers in the arts and technology fields.
    • Student creative expression and public art projects
      Facilitates culminating student performances, public exhibitions of visual arts, and community-based art projects such as murals, including a 2021 community mural at Soundview Library created with youth and adults aged 8–26.
  • Community Art Education Workshops 1 activity
    • Arts education programming in NYC public schools
      Provides interdisciplinary arts-integrated curriculum to over 2,200 public school students annually through residencies in 22–26 Title I schools across all five boroughs of New York City, incorporating writing, visual arts, and performance to support creative expression and academic development.
  • Student Progress Assessment & Program Evaluation 1 activity
    • Program evaluation and assessment in arts education
      Conducts ongoing comprehensive evaluations of student progress, program effectiveness, and school partner needs as part of its arts education initiatives to inform continuous improvement.
  • Arts Education Professional Development 1 activity
    • Teaching artist training and professional development
      Offers multi-tiered capacity-building programs for teaching artists, including an 8-month internship program, a three-day Summer Institute, and specialized tracks through the Teaching Artist Institute of Rochester, serving emerging and experienced artists with training in social justice, social-emotional learning, and arts-in-education pedagogy.
  • Uncategorized 1 activity
    • Virtual global art-making events
      Hosted World Art-Making Day as a virtual event on July 19, 2023, engaging participants globally in art-making activities.
financials · form 990 · fy2024
revenue
Total revenue$2.07M
Contributions & grants$1.75M85%
Program service revenue$312K15%
Investment income$3K0%
Other revenue$0
expenses
Total expenses$1.73M
Program expenses71%
Admin / overhead17%
Fundraising12%
Salaries & benefits$1.37M
Grants paid out$0
Largest expense lineCompensation
balance sheet
Total assets$1.33M
Cash$574K
Investments$0
Liabilities$128K
Net assets$1.20M
Liquid reserves4.0 mo
6 years on record · 2019–2024 · YoY revenue +40.3%
leadership · form 990 part vii · fy2024

Who runs it

paid leadership · 1
NameTitleHours/wkCompensation
MICHELE KOTLER EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR 45 $162K
board members · 20
  • ALEX PERRY — MEMBER
  • ANDREW HO — MEMBER
  • CAITLIN POTRATZ METCALF — MEMBER
  • COLLEEN LIMA — MEMBER
  • DAVID WOLFE — MEMBER
  • DEEPAK SHRIVASTAVA — MEMBER
  • JASON LYNCH — MEMBER
  • JESSICA HOGUE — MEMBER
  • JOAN SAPINSLEY — TREASURER
  • JOSH KLEINBAUM — MEMBER
  • JUSTIN MACKE — BOARD CO-CHAIR
  • LORI BULLOCK — MEMBER
  • MARCUS RIBIERO — MEMBER
  • MARJORIE MCCARTHY — SECRETARY
  • MICHAEL CRUZ — MEMBER
  • MONICA CHEN — MEMBER
  • OLIVIA KENT — MEMBER
  • ROSSANA IONESCU — MEMBER
  • THERESA DOOLEY-BOLLMAN — MEMBER
  • TRACEY BEY JOHNSON — BOARD CO-CHAIR
relationships · 45

Who they work with

  • Abrons Art Center Partner — Member of the Teaching Artist Project (TAP) Alliance, collaborating on professional development for teaching artists
  • ArtWell Partner — Member of the Teaching Artist Project (TAP) Alliance, collaborating on professional development for teaching artists
  • ArtistYear Partner — Member of the Teaching Artist Project (TAP) Alliance, collaborating on professional development for teaching artists
  • Arts For All Partner — Member of the Teaching Artist Project (TAP) Alliance, collaborating on professional development for teaching artists
  • Arts Ignite Partner — Member of the Teaching Artist Project (TAP) Alliance, collaborating on professional development for teaching artists
  • Arts for All Abilities Consortium Partner — Member of the Teaching Artist Project (TAP) Alliance, collaborating on professional development for teaching artists
  • Arts in Education organizations Partner — Collaborates with Arts in Education organizations through the TAP Alliance to deliver professional development for teaching artists.
  • Bronx Envision Academy Partner — Collaborates on student creative projects including the publication "Are You Still Flickering?"
  • Bronx Envision Academy Partner — Partner school where students participate in Community-Word Project programs and events.
  • Center for Arts Education (Partnership with Children) Partner — Member of the Teaching Artist Project (TAP) Alliance, collaborating on professional development for teaching artists
  • City Lore Partner — Member of the Teaching Artist Project (TAP) Alliance, collaborating on professional development for teaching artists
  • City-As-School Partner — Collaborates on student creative projects including the publication "The Art of City Life"
  • Dedalus Foundation Partner — Member of the Teaching Artist Project (TAP) Alliance, collaborating on professional development for teaching artists
  • Dreamyard Project Partner — Member of the Teaching Artist Project (TAP) Alliance, collaborating on professional development for teaching artists
  • Flamenco Vivo Carlota Santana Partner — Member of the Teaching Artist Project (TAP) Alliance, collaborating on professional development for teaching artists
  • Georgia Tech Partner — Partner in education collaborating on the CWP 2.0 program, integrating technology and innovation into student projects.
  • In-Tech Academy Partner — Collaborates on student creative projects including the publication "Hear Me Roar!"
  • LEAP Partner — Member of the Teaching Artist Project (TAP) Alliance, collaborating on professional development for teaching artists
  • Marquis Studios Partner — Member of the Teaching Artist Project (TAP) Alliance, collaborating on professional development for teaching artists
  • NYC Council Member Antonio Reynoso Government — Funder through District 34, Brooklyn
  • NYC Council Member Costa Constantinides Government — Funder through District 22, Queens
  • NYC Council Member Fernando Cabrera Government — Funder through District 14, Bronx
  • NYC Council Member James Gennaro Government — Funder through District 24, Queens
  • NYC Council Member Ruben Diaz, Sr. Government — Funder through District 18, Bronx
  • NYC Council Member Vanessa Gibson Government — Funder through District 16, Bronx
  • NYC Department of Cultural Affairs Government — Government funder in partnership with the City Council Office of the Manhattan Borough President
  • NYC Department of Education Partner — Implied partnership through implementation of arts programs in NYC public schools.
  • Narrative4 Partner — Member of the Teaching Artist Project (TAP) Alliance, collaborating on professional development for teaching artists
  • National Dance Institute Partner — Member of the Teaching Artist Project (TAP) Alliance, collaborating on professional development for teaching artists
  • National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Government — Federal government funder
+ 15 more
strategies · 5

How they approach the work

Named approaches extracted from this org’s sources. Where others share an approach, follow it to see the full set of orgs running it.

  • Arts-Integrated, Interdisciplinary Pedagogy
    methodology: arts-integrated education
    By integrating poetry, creative writing, and multiple art forms into education, we support multimodal and experiential learning because interdisciplinary arts help students process emotions, strengthen identity, and engage more deeply with curricula.
  • Collaborative Exchange and Co-Design with Stakeholders
    methodology: collaborative_exchange
    By fostering collaboration among students, teaching artists, educators, and communities—and engaging students as co-designers—we build ownership and relational skills because mutual exchange and shared leadership enhance engagement, voice, and program relevance.
  • Collective Impact for Field-Wide Strengthening
    methodology: collective_impact
    By using collective impact models and shared professional development across organizations, we strengthen the teaching artist field because coordinated investment in training and practice improves quality, sustainability, and equity in arts education.
  • Culturally Responsive Arts Education
    methodology: culturally_responsive_art_education
    By using culturally responsive, multidisciplinary art programs, we develop and amplify the creative voices of students and artists because honoring cultural background and lived experience increases engagement, self-expression, and community relevance in learning.
  • Social Justice and Identity-Centered Artist Training
    methodology: social_justice_methodology
    By training teaching artists through a social justice lens that integrates creative process, identity, and critical reflection on power, we strengthen equitable educational practice because this approach prepares artists to address systemic inequities and model authentic, reflective expression.