YoungArts (previously National YoungArts Foundation and National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts, or NFAA) is an American charity established by Lin and Ted Arison to support high-school artists. The foundation is based in Miami, Florida and began in 1981.
From 1982 to 2025, YoungArts nominated candidates for consideration as U.S. Presidential Scholars in the Arts.
Leadership YoungArts’ board of trustees is chaired by Sarah Arison, granddaughter of founders Lin and Ted Arison..
Clive Chang has served as President and CEO of YoungArts since 2023.
Other programs and activities Several documentaries have been produced highlighting this program and its award recipients. In 2007, Rehearsing a Dream, produced by the Simon and Goodman Picture Company, was nominated for the Academy Award for Documentary Short Subject. An Emmy-winning documentary television series entitled YoungArts MasterClass, in which program alumni were teamed with famous mentors aired for three seasons on HBO. YoungArts developed a study guide, based on the HBO series, for high school teachers with Teachers College, Columbia University.Robin Pogrebin (October 2, 2012), Gehry to Turn Bacardi Complex Into Arts Campus New York Times
Notable alumni Abigail Barlow Amanda Gorman Talia Suskauer Jason Vieaux Hynden Walch Kerry Washington Michael Benjamin Washington Grace Weber Kehinde Wiley Vanessa Williams Anthony Wilson Finn Wittrock Tony Yazbeck Chris Young
References
External links YoungArts website Presidential Scholars Program