Dear friends,

I recently made the difficult decision to discontinue 7ARTS. I realized that quality was suffering as I juggled a full-time job and directing the program. I felt I needed to step back and reflect on the kind of impact I wanted to have in the long-term.

7ARTS has been one of my greatest experiences. It's been a blessing to work with the talented and passionate teenagers who have participated in the program over the years. The artists and writers that have voluntarily nurtured and mentored our students over the last four years have been an inspiration to me.

While it is with great sadness that I announce this decision I have other exciting news. I recently accepted the Executive Director position at New Urban Arts, a community arts studio for high school students in Providence RI. I will begin on February 4th and will relocate to Rhode Island sometime in late January.

I worked at New Urban Arts as an artist mentor to local teenagers while I was an undergraduate at the Rhode Island School of Design and their program model was my inspiration for launching 7ARTS in Queens. Their founder and former Executive Director, Tyler Denmead, inspired me to dream big and mentored me as I learned what it took to launch and manage a nonprofit organization. It's an honor to be asked to succeed him. While I'm incredibly sad to leave my friends and family New York, this is an incredible opportunity for me to advocate for the importance of creative opportunities in the lives of all young people, not just a privileged few.

Click here to learn more about New Urban Arts.

Here is an article announcing my hire in the Providence Journal, the local daily newspaper.

Thank you all for everything.

My best,

Jason Yoon