An interdisciplinary arts program running this summer at the School of Dramatic Art and funded by the Windsor Endowment for the Arts is dedicated to providing individual attention and support to high-needs youth aged 14 to 17.

Program coordinator Meaghen Quinn, a drama instructor, says that Changing the Odds: Community Transformation through the Arts offers specialized programming by local artists, members of the Enactus business student group, and drama in education and community students Melissa Stewart and Joseph Tuccitto.

“Participants experience the joy of expressing themselves artistically in a safe and welcoming space, where acceptance and mentorship is central,” says drama professor Tina Pugliese, program lead.

The youngsters will make a presentation of their shared experiences at the program’s conclusion. Admission to the show, on the theme “Our Time, Our Voices: Hopes, Fears, Dreams and Secrets,” is free and open to the public. It will take place Friday, August 15, at 7:30 p.m. in the Hatch Studio Theatre, Jackman Dramatic Art Centre.

Besides the drama school, the Changing the Odds partnership includes the Enactus club at the Odette School of Business, the Windsor Essex Children’s Aid Society and the Sandwich Teen Action Group.