The Future of The Hamilton Hill Arts Center

 53 years ago, members of the Hamilton Hill community were inspired by the Black Pride & Arts Movement. They recognized the absence of an Afro-Centric after-school program for their children and envisioned a black-led institution that could meet that need. 

Today, the Hamilton Hill Arts Center is still the ONLY black-led African American inspired arts and cultural center left standing in a community that sorely needs it. 

Historically, our programs and events have served over 10,000 children and families/yr. However, our facilities are old, no longer up to code, and have caused restrictions in our programming. We’ve been able to relocate our afterschool program to a local church but this has made it less accessible for the children and families we serve in Hamilton Hill. 

Research shows that culturally oriented programs, such as ours, have proven to be the most effective inoculation against the effects of historical and ongoing trauma therefore, we are determined not to let this stop us. 

We recently completed the Sankofa Sculpture Park, right across from our old center in the heart of Hamilton Hill, and as a next step, we’ve decided to construct a Gallery & Performance space there that can house our programs until we can completely redesign & rebuild our beloved center. We believe this can be completed by 2024. 

We've already raised $370,000 of the $1.5 million needed to develop this Gallery + Performance space... But We need your help. 

Our goal with this crowdfunding campaign is to raise $100,000 

We invite you to make a gift of: $25 | $50 | $100 | $250 | $500 | Or more 

With your support, we can re-envision the Arts Center’s future as the cornerstone of a thriving cultural hub that is the pride of Hamilton Hill and the Schenectady Community.