VIRAL EMPOWERMENT
“We’re in the business of changing lives, not providing an education,” explains Showrank. “If you want real work skills and something tangible—if you want training—come here.”

These are the ideas that are being translated to local communities and new centers modeled after Manchester Bidwell; they are springing up everywhere, and they have early track records to rival the impressive numbers of MBC.

Bayview Hunters Point Center for Arts and Technology in San Francisco (BAYCAT) has the “three e’s”: educate, empower, employ. The opening page of the website offers tangible evidence that clearly they are doing something right: “In the Bayview Hunters Point community, where 50 percent of children live in poverty … where 36 percent of adults are without a high school diploma … 100 percent of BAYCAT students have stayed in school this year … and 100 percent of BAYCAT seniors have enrolled in post-secondary education.” All are implementing the MBC model for beautiful spaces, access to fine and performing arts, and quality training.

The Cincinnati Arts and Technology Center, which opened in the fall of 2003, has plans to increase at-risk teen enrollment to 400 students by the 2007/2008 academic year. The newly opened West Michigan Center for Arts and Technology (WMCAT) in Grand Rapids, Mich., is already building important relationships with local medical centers and is working toward closing the digital divide in West Michigan communities. WMCAT has 96 ninthgraders enrolled in its photography and digital arts program with an 80-percent success rate for the first semester of the 2005/2006 academic year. All are applying the tried-and-true ideas put forth by Strickland’s model: Treat people well, give them the tools they need to succeed, take away the excuses, create a safe, beautiful environment for them, and they will thrive. What remains to be seen is whether the replication efforts in all three cities will have the same long-term impact on the communities they serve that MBC has.

DESIGN INFLUENCES BEHAVIOR
Showrank tells a story about a guy who wondered how and why, in the middle of one of the worst neighborhoods in the country, the MBC campus has never been tagged, burgled, vandalized; why has there never been violence; why have they never had to call the police. He says, “There are two kinds of people in the world: poor and not poor. The only thing wrong with these people is that they don’t have anything, and they don’t have a way out of a dead-end life. We give them something tangible to hold on to. These are the same kids who get into fights at school, who skip class, who drop out … we nurture and mentor them, and as they see themselves accomplishing more and more, their self-respect grows, and in turn they respect us as an organization.” MBC and its affiliates are finding ways to fix the system that produces the massively powerful energy that sometimes manifests as anger, and turning it into award-winning music, horticultural and culinary degrees, and scholarships for young potters. It’s magic.

Or not. Maybe it’s the result of putting into practice the MBC philosophy that says there’s nothing wrong with individuals—but there is something wrong with the system that produces angry, disenfranchised youth and underemployed, dissatisfied adults.

A small group of people are building a radically different culture —instead of a culture of disenfranchisement and lack, they are creating a culture of personal responsibility and empowerment. As Strickland says, “This is not a poverty program; we are in the business of saving lives.” Witness the power of good design.

BRINGING IT HOME
Strickland has taken Manchester to new heights by breathing life into a disenfranchised population; now he is helping other communities nationwide translate the success of MCG and the Bidwell Training Center to fill their own community needs. Should you wish to inquire about replication of the Manchester Bidwell model for your own community, please contact Georgina Gutierrez, director of Replication for MBC at 412.323.4000.

Want more?
Manchester Bidwell Corporation | Bidwell Training Center
Manchester Craftsmen’s Guild | Bayview Hunters Point Center for Arts and Technology
Cincinnati Arts and Technology Center | West Michigan Center for Arts and Technology