School of Arts and Culture at MHP

The School of Arts and Culture at MHP is the long-term operator of the Mexican Heritage Plaza, a six-acre facility owned by the city of San Jose. The organization is a vibrant arts and culture center, rooted in the largely Mexican American Mayfair neighborhood, that provides visual and performing arts classes, performances, and community events for more than 60,000 people each year. It also provides leadership development, fiscal sponsorship, and professional training to approximately 100 East San Jose artists and cultural leaders each year. This grant will support the school’s adaptation planning and implementation, advancing the Performing Arts Program’s Communities strategy.

The Multicultural Arts Leadership Institute (MALI) is a program of the School of Arts and Culture at Mexican Heritage Plaza in San Jose. The program, now in its seventh year, is designed to identify and train future and emerging arts leaders of color in Silicon Valley, and equip them to successfully participate in community forums, initiatives, and taskforces, both to address specific community issues, and as advocates for a strong and healthy multicultural arts community. The MALI program, which includes seminars, site visits, an annual forum, and a mini-grant program, is building a network of arts leaders among its graduates. A renewal grant would continue to build on that cohort, adding new students and creating opportunities for collaboration and community impact.