National Center For Creative Aging, 138 S Oxford St, Brooklyn, NY 11217, US

HistoryIn 1999, with support from Scenarios from the Sahel, Maura Minsky and Kristen Joiner started Scenarios USA in 2 high school classrooms, one in NYC and one in the Rio Grande Valley in South Texas. Students were asked to share their ideas & write stories about coming of age in the era of AIDS. Those stories would become Scenarios USA's first films. Scenarios USA grew from two classrooms of 50 students to engage over 100,000 students in our REAL DEAL program in our first decade. Students have responded with an outpouring of their stories - dramatic, comic, and sometimes tragic. Those stories have gone on to engage award-winning screenwriters and movie directors who have collaborated with the young writers to produce a growing library of films. The REAL DEAL films get seen by an estimated 15 - 20 million a year in classrooms with lesson plans in all 50 states; they have aired on Showtime, BET, mun2, MTV, Oxygen, NYC Media's Channel 25 and numerous cable access stations.SpecialtiesFounded in 1999, Scenarios USA is a national non-profit organization that uses writing and film to foster youth leadership, advocacy and self-expression in students across the country, with a focus on marginalized communities. Real Deal Education Professional Teaching Workshops Real Deal Common Core Aligned Curriculum Teaching Artist Program Real Deal Films Thousands of students who go through the Real Deal curriculum submit stories to the Real Deal writing contest. Stories are chosen, and the young writers are partnered with acclaimed Hollywood filmmakers to transform the stories into short films for national distribution. Showtime, bet, mtv, Mundos, hbo Real Deal Youth Leadership and Engagement Advocacy Projects Public Speaking Opportunities Youth Conferences Mentorships and Internships We believe that by valuing youth and their stories, we strengthen academic achievement, promote civic engagement and support young people in becoming engaged citizens and healthy individuals.

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