CATS founders Lee Carter, Bill Strickland, Pierre Wevers and Bob Castellini.
Friends and supporters of Cincinnati Arts & Technology Studios gathered at Longworth Hall to celebrate the center’s successes and honor its founders.
CATS helps 400 students each year, mostly at-risk teens, earn fine arts or elective credits needed to graduate on time. On average, 93 percent of CATS students graduate and 50 percent enroll in college.
Those results, said Lee Carter, a founder, have a profound impact on the lives of young people, their future families and the community.
Carter and founders Bob Castellini and Pierre Wevers spoke to the filled lobby at Longworth Hall. Students and graduates told stories about how CATS set them on the road to success.
Bill Strickland, a CATS founder and a MacArthur Genius grant recipient, described the experiences that turned his life around, inspiring him to create Pittsburgh’s Manchester Bidwell Corp., the model for CATS and similar centers worldwide.
CATS offers five studio courses designed to meet Ohio Department of Education visual arts standards.
Click on a thumbnail below to view photo gallery from the event.
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- Bill Strickland
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- Evans Nwankwo with Charlene Smith, CATS college and career manager, and Rick Hulefeld, CATS board member
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- Board member Carol Shea, founder Bill Strickland, board member Kelly Kolar, chair Karen Bowman and CEO Clara Martin
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- Linda Bauer, Patti Massy, Cheryl Borland and board member Kelly Kolar
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- Lee Carter, a founder
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- Bill Strickland, Bob Castellini and Kay Geiger
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- Board members Bob Castellini and Pierre Wevers
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- CATS board chair Karen Bowman, Shannon Carter and Kathy Merchant
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- Kathy Merchant and Bill Strickland
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- CATS founders Lee Carter, Bill Strickland, Pierre Wevers and Bob Castellini.
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- CATS CEO Clara Martin and guest Pam McKie
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- CATS board member Peter Bergman speaks with guest Carolyn Pyle
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- CATS art instructor Scott Kelly
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