During the holiday break Andrew, our student in the AIM HIGH mentoring program interned with the NDI team preparing and applying to various art schools and universities. We worked with Andrew to critique his work and help him organize his portfolio focusing on specific challenges required for admission to Parsons The New School For Design and Rhode Island School of Design.

During his internship we had a visit from another Andrew– Andrew Dembitz, our Unisource rep. He told us about Marwen, an organization that educates and inspires under-served young people through the visual arts. Andrew Dembitz, who also serves on the Board of Directors for Marwen, suggested that Andrew (our mentee) apply for free art courses offered by this wonderful organization. He did apply, got in, and has been attending Marwen on Wednesday afternoons after school. Andrew’s instructor at Marwen also obtained a tuition-free place for Andrew at the School of the Art Institute’s Fall Early College Program.

Another added bonus was meeting Andrew Dembitz’s wife, Marla Bark Dembitz, at a Unisource event. Marla is a college admissions consultant and volunteered to help Andrew by reviewing his college essay. Andrew has a supportive mother and family as well as wonderful teachers and peers at Urban Prep High School to help him. Everyone who meets Andrew wants to help him! Just another nod to “ora na azu nwa” or, to translate this African proverb to English, “it takes the village to raise a child”.

Unisource Website

Marwen Organization