Launches Parent Power for Cultural Equity Project in Partnership with Lumumba Akinwole-Bandele and the Bed-Stuy Early Childhood Development Center
Ahmed Yearwood Named Board Chair & Cathy Elkies Vice Chair
New York, NY – Cool Culture, the New York City-based social justice organization, is celebrating its 25th anniversary of providing access to more than one million families of color and families experiencing poverty to New York’s vast cultural resources, institutions, and communities.
As part of its milestone celebration, the organization has introduced an exciting new initiative conceived by Executive Director Candice Anderson in response to historic disparities in arts and cultural funding, and led by Arts and Cultural Strategist, Robyne Walker-Murphy. The initiative continues its mission of fostering cultural equity and engagement. Cool Culture’s Parent Power for Cultural Equity Project, funded by the New York Community Trust and the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, is designed to provide families with the knowledge and resources to navigate and influence complex civic systems. The initiative harnesses the arts to build connections across cultures, preserve cultural heritage, and strengthen community advocacy while creating spaces for cultural celebration and joy.
To launch the project, Cool Culture collaborated with Lumumba Akinwole-Bandele as the first speaker in a planned series, alongside one of Cool Culture's educational partners, the Bed-Stuy Early Childhood Development Center. This effort reinforces the organization's commitment to grassroots organizing as a key force in advancing cultural equity and addressing systemic challenges.
Cool Culture also announced new 25th-anniversary leadership updates, with Ahmed Yearwood, a long-time board member, stepping into the role of Board Chair and Cathy Elkies as Vice Chair.
“Since our founding, Cool Culture has been committed to ensuring that families from marginalized communities have the resources they need to thrive,” Candice Anderson, Cool Culture’s Executive Director said. “Our work over the past 25 years and in partnership with our families, our museums, our educational and civic institutions, is key to ensuring that New York City remains a place where all cultures and backgrounds are appreciated and acknowledged. With Ahmed and Cathy at the helm, we will continue to strengthen our network and community of families actively engaged in NYC’s cultural richness, while making sure that cultural institutions throughout New York City become spaces where all families feel welcomed and valued.”
Yearwood stated, “This new role is both a privilege and a tremendous responsibility—one that I embrace with gratitude and enthusiasm.” Elkies added, “I am consistently inspired by the way children and their families connect with arts and cultural experiences, and I’m thrilled to support Cool Culture in this capacity.”
Cool Culture’s 25th anniversary milestone year marks both a celebration of past achievements and a renewed commitment to building a more just and vibrant cultural community in New York City.
The signature Cool Culture Family Access Program partners with 90 cultural institutions and more than 450 early childhood programs across all New York City’s five boroughs. The Cool Culture Family Pass—distributed through its Family Access Program network of public schools and early childhood centers—opens the door for over 50,000 families of color and those experiencing poverty to freely explore museums, festivals, and cultural activities without financial barriers. Through neighborhood Cool Culture Clubs, the organization supports families to organize trips to museums in their community and across NYC, create art exhibits in their schools, while expanding cultural access, fostering individual and collective agency and a sense of belonging.
Throughout 2025, Cool Culture will further commemorate this milestone by supporting families and educators in co-creating enriching cultural experiences for children, encouraging cultural institutions to embrace more equitable practices, and inviting community members to participate through volunteering, special events, and neighborhood initiatives.For more information, visit coolculture.org.
About Cool Culture
Cool Culture is a social justice organization led by and for people of color. For 25 years, Cool Culture has worked to ensure that families of color and other historically marginalized families facing poverty in New York City have access to the cultural resources necessary to thrive. Through joyful cultural experiences, artistic expression, and collective advocacy, Cool Culture partners with schools, early childhood centers and cultural institutions to open doors to marginalized communities, encourage families to preserve their cultural heritage, and influence the systems shaping their lives and communities.
As part of its milestone celebration, the organization has introduced an exciting new initiative conceived by Executive Director Candice Anderson in response to historic disparities in arts and cultural funding, and led by Arts and Cultural Strategist, Robyne Walker-Murphy. The initiative continues its mission of fostering cultural equity and engagement. Cool Culture’s Parent Power for Cultural Equity Project, funded by the New York Community Trust and the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, is designed to provide families with the knowledge and resources to navigate and influence complex civic systems. The initiative harnesses the arts to build connections across cultures, preserve cultural heritage, and strengthen community advocacy while creating spaces for cultural celebration and joy.
To launch the project, Cool Culture collaborated with Lumumba Akinwole-Bandele as the first speaker in a planned series, alongside one of Cool Culture's educational partners, the Bed-Stuy Early Childhood Development Center. This effort reinforces the organization's commitment to grassroots organizing as a key force in advancing cultural equity and addressing systemic challenges.
Cool Culture also announced new 25th-anniversary leadership updates, with Ahmed Yearwood, a long-time board member, stepping into the role of Board Chair and Cathy Elkies as Vice Chair.
“Since our founding, Cool Culture has been committed to ensuring that families from marginalized communities have the resources they need to thrive,” Candice Anderson, Cool Culture’s Executive Director said. “Our work over the past 25 years and in partnership with our families, our museums, our educational and civic institutions, is key to ensuring that New York City remains a place where all cultures and backgrounds are appreciated and acknowledged. With Ahmed and Cathy at the helm, we will continue to strengthen our network and community of families actively engaged in NYC’s cultural richness, while making sure that cultural institutions throughout New York City become spaces where all families feel welcomed and valued.”
Yearwood stated, “This new role is both a privilege and a tremendous responsibility—one that I embrace with gratitude and enthusiasm.” Elkies added, “I am consistently inspired by the way children and their families connect with arts and cultural experiences, and I’m thrilled to support Cool Culture in this capacity.”
Cool Culture’s 25th anniversary milestone year marks both a celebration of past achievements and a renewed commitment to building a more just and vibrant cultural community in New York City.
The signature Cool Culture Family Access Program partners with 90 cultural institutions and more than 450 early childhood programs across all New York City’s five boroughs. The Cool Culture Family Pass—distributed through its Family Access Program network of public schools and early childhood centers—opens the door for over 50,000 families of color and those experiencing poverty to freely explore museums, festivals, and cultural activities without financial barriers. Through neighborhood Cool Culture Clubs, the organization supports families to organize trips to museums in their community and across NYC, create art exhibits in their schools, while expanding cultural access, fostering individual and collective agency and a sense of belonging.
Throughout 2025, Cool Culture will further commemorate this milestone by supporting families and educators in co-creating enriching cultural experiences for children, encouraging cultural institutions to embrace more equitable practices, and inviting community members to participate through volunteering, special events, and neighborhood initiatives.For more information, visit coolculture.org.
About Cool Culture
Cool Culture is a social justice organization led by and for people of color. For 25 years, Cool Culture has worked to ensure that families of color and other historically marginalized families facing poverty in New York City have access to the cultural resources necessary to thrive. Through joyful cultural experiences, artistic expression, and collective advocacy, Cool Culture partners with schools, early childhood centers and cultural institutions to open doors to marginalized communities, encourage families to preserve their cultural heritage, and influence the systems shaping their lives and communities.
Media Contacts:
media@coolculture.org
ayofemi@itseleventhirtysix.com
media@coolculture.org
ayofemi@itseleventhirtysix.com