Our Story

Our Story

We believe that art changes lives.  Read more

Mission

Art With Impact promotes mental wellness by creating space for young people to learn and connect through art and media.

Why We’re Unique

AWI is committed to a future where artists are revered as cultural icons of courage and change, enabling young people to communicate freely and fearlessly about their mental health.

We're high impact.

Our innovative, arts-based workshops reach audiences of college students and community members. Students are effectively moved to action, with 75% more likely to seek support for their wellness after engaging with our work. Since 2012 we've directly impacted over 10,000 students.

We have unique resources.

Through our annual film production program and online monthly short film competition, we expand and make available the world’s most diverse and compelling collection of short films on mental health, supporting a network of filmmakers, artists and young people in an interactive online community.

We're cost efficient.

We're about as scrappy as it gets. Being a primarily virtual organization, we have minimal overhead costs for core staff, and our contract educators are located through the country to minimize travel expenses. We engage professionals and academic institutions through sustainable partnerships and transparency of methods and outcomes.

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Our People

Rebecca Pontieri
Managing Director and Lead Educator

Rebecca (she/her) is an educator and photographer based in Colorado. She is a graduate of Washington University in St. Louis, Pace University in New York City, and Columbia University Teachers College. She was...

Mariah Scott
Movies for Mental Health Facilitator

Mariah Scott is a Life Cultivator, Storyteller and native of Milwaukee, WI. She uses the art as a tool to promote social/emotional wellness. She received her BA from DePaul University in Communications and...

Sacharja Cunningham
Wellness In Words Facilitator

Sacharja (he/they) is a cultural worker from the Lenape Land known as Brooklyn, N.Y. and currently based on the land of the same people known as Philadelphia, P.A. For undergrad, he majored in...

Morgaine Gooding-Silverwood
Our Bodies, Our Minds Facilitator

Morgaine uses she/they/he pronouns, and encourages you to mix it up! Mo is a performer, playwright and educator living in Brooklyn, Lenapehoking, with ancestral roots on the Red River by way of Chikashsha...

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Our Partners

Ontario Trillium FoundationThe mission of the Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF) is to build healthy and vibrant communities throughout Ontario by investing in community-based initiatives and strengthening the impact of Ontario’s non-profit sector.
The Charles E. Kubly FoundationThe Charles E. Kubly Foundation seeks to better the lives of those affected by depression by increasing public awareness of the disease and its devastating effects, eliminating the stigma associated with it, supporting suicide prevention programs and promoting improved access to quality mental health resources within communities.
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