This March, San Antonio nonprofit SAY Sí is offering area students and educators the opportunity to recognize local teachers and engage with the arts, in addition to enlisting feedback from the San Antonio community on the nonprofit’s latest efforts. (SAY Sí, 2021)

With Spring Break just around the corner, SAY Sí has partnered with the Alamo Colleges to provide community members with local and virtual resources that everyone can enjoy, including free art supplies for kids. Free art supply bags will be available for curbside pickup for parents with elementary- and middle school-aged children on a first come, first served basis this weekend; limit two bags per car. 1,250 art kits will be available for pickup from the Palo Alto College Arts Center from 4p.m. – 6p.m. on Friday, March 5, 2021, and another 1,250 art kits will be available for pickup from 10a.m. – Noon at the ACD District Support Operations building (2222 N. Alamo St.) on Saturday, March 6, 2021. Those interested in receiving an art supply bag should complete an interest form. Each kit will include a transportable bag with watercolors, markers, glue, a sketchbook, pipe cleaners, and sidewalk chalk. The community can consult SAY Sí online for additional ideas for at-home art projects.

Now through March 21, 2021, San Antonio students in grades Kinder-9 can submit original portraits of their teachers for a chance to win a $100 H-E-B gift card, (for the educator) as well as an art kit for their class (supplies for a class size of 25). A total of 10 teachers will be selected, one educator per grade level, and will be chosen by SAY Sí staff. To enter, students can visit here to fill out their application and upload an image of their original artwork, as well as explain why their teacher should be chosen. Any medium is accepted, including painting/drawing/coloring, photography, mixed media/collage, song/spoken word, written poem, sculpture, comic, digital drawing, or other creative outlets.

SAY Sí is also offering the San Antonio community an opportunity to win an H-E-B gift card by completing their community impact survey. To enter for a chance to win an H-E-B gift card, entrants must be 13 years of age or older. Four winners will be chosen on Monday, March 22, 2021; gift card amounts are valued at $10, $15, $25 or $50. 

In 2019, SAY Sí announced its relocation to the Westside of San Antonio with an all new, expanded campus. The new location, a former industrial warehouse located at 1310 S. Brazos, boasts nearly 98,000 square feet of space that will allow for the integration of three new programs into their existing offerings, including: Culinary Arts, Digital Music Composition and Journalism. SAY Sí’s diverse programming and state of the art technology and resources make the arts program one of the best in the world. While currently closed for in-person programs and community visits during construction, SAY Sí continues to offer virtual programs and resources to encourage participation in the arts from home.

Founded in 1994, SAY Sí is a national award-winning, art-based nonprofit youth development program located in San Antonio, Texas. The goal of the organization is to provide San Antonio area students in grades 6-12 with the opportunity to develop artistic and social skills in preparation for higher educational advancement and career building. SAY Sí programs serve over 200 students from all of San Antonio’s school districts – in addition to serving 4,000 youth in community programs. SAY Sí’s unique approach to education has placed the organization on the national stage, with recognition as one of the top out-of-school-time organizations in the country by The Wallace Foundation, as well as serving as one of seven international youth arts organizations chosen to receive an inaugural Creative Catalyst Award by Adobe Project 1324 in 2016.