Dear Kids Creative: Ellen Sachs

This letter was sent by Kids Creative alum Ellen Sachs when we asked her to reflect on her time working with us. Ellie participated in Create-A-Play as a child, became a counselor and an assistant teacher with Kids Creative Summer Camp and now attends the University of Michigan in their highly competitive Theatre Directing program. Here's what she has to say:

Dear Kids Creative,

As you know, I worked at Kids Creative during my last two summers of High School, first as an intern then as an assistant teacher. The gratitude and sense of accomplishment I feel when reflecting on my last two summers in nearly inexpressible, as I feel I’ve grown a lot. I came to Kids Creative as a 17 year old interested in theater, child development, and fostering a great environment for a city summer arts camp. But I came unsure of myself—Would I fit in well with a team of other counselors, assistant teachers, and a head teacher? Would I be able to lead and inspire a group of incredibly diverse and amazingly creative kids? What about conflict resolution with the kids? Upon the completion of my second summer with kids creative, I can honestly say I left a different person. Instead of being nervous when I saw a huge challenge (like organizing 15 kids for a subway ride, or helping a child with stage fright overcome their fear, or a spat between two friends) I would get excited and find a creative way to figure it out. I left Kids Creative feeling a huge sense of accomplishment in the fact that I had helped a group of kids realize their artistic vision and implement it. I felt confident in myself as a leader. I felt confident in myself as a person because I knew that by the end of my two summers at Kids Creative my peers and campers respected me.

While Kids Creative gave me a huge foundation for where I am now, and a sense of personal pride, Kids Creative also helped me tremendously with college. For one, over my two summers I spoke Spanish so much that when I arrived on University of Michigan’s campus for orientation and was told to take a language placement test, I placed out of the theatre school’s requirement and the over all university’s requirement. Thanks to Kids Creative, I have an extra 8 credits on my transcript just from speaking with students and parents in Spanish. I’m a directing for theatre major at University of Michigan, and at the beginning of the year in a forum I had to share with my class my last directing experience. Jaws dropped as a I told a story about 20 kids from all over Manhattan writing their own play that featured mermaids, police men, and super heroes that united on a quest for truth and goodness. I explained how the campers often seemed as diverse as their characters, and how beautiful it was to me that the campers were able to find the subtext in the play, and perhaps their own lives, in that there is always power in truth and good always trumps evil. Also, when applying to college one of my essays was about kids creative and when asked about it in interviews, colleges always seemed very impressed by the company and my accomplishments. Due to Kids Creative- I’m more organized, focused, a better director, more compassionate, and more invested in the arts. I’m not exactly sure what the future holds, but I know I will definitely continue to study theater. I’m also planning on double majoring in Sociology and I feel much of my interest in the subject came from my summers at Kids Creative and my interactions with diverse families, staff and campers. And glowing at the top of my resume, under Work Experience reads this:

“-Kids Creative,2009, 2010 Initially worked as an Intern and was ultimately promoted to Assistant Teacher at an NYC arts camp for children. Gained leadership skills through maintaining a peaceful culture in a diverse classroom while teaching, art, theatre, and creative writing classes. Matured artistically by directing student’s final performance in ’10. Improved interpersonal skills by navigating socio-economic and cultural differences with families and refined Spanish-speaking skills to a conversational level. Learned to problem solve creatively and quickly. (NYC)”

To really understand that little blurb on my resume, or some of the points I’ve mentioned in this letter, I’d have to talk for hours. I’d go on, and on, and on, about all of the amazing experiences I’ve had with Kids Creative, because they have truly shaped me into the person I am today – and for that, I’m eternally grateful.

All the best,

Ellie