Mayor Rahm Emanuel and the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) designated 2018 as the “Year of Creative Youth.” This will represent an over $2 million investment by the City of Chicago, and will include a Creative Youth Festival across the Millennium Park Campus, performance opportunities for teens at city festivals and partner events, cultural grants and convenings for youth arts organizations and a marketing campaign among other events. Mayor Emanuel established continued investments for art and cultural affairs in the 2018 budget. The Creative Youth Festival will take place across the Millennium Park Campus on September 22, 2018. The event will showcase teen artists in dance, theatre, music, spoken word, the visual arts and more. DCASE will collaborate with Chicago Public Schools and Ingenuity, Chicago Park District, Chicago Public Library, the Department of Family and Support Services and other city departments to engage Chicago’s youth and youth arts organizations. As part of the Year of Creative Youth, the city will work with After School Matters, Chicago Children’s Theatre, Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestras, Free Spirit Media, Marwen, SkyArt, Urban Gateways, Yollocalli Arts Reach-National Museum of Mexican Art and Young Chicago Authors and other organizations to inspire the next generation of artists. A $1.8 million investment will support the new Creative Youth Festival, expanding of existing City of Chicago cultural programming that engages youth, performance stipends for teens at City of Chicago festivals and partner events, convenings for arts educators and young artists and a marketing campaign. For more information about the Year of Creative Youth, visit cityofchicago.org/yocy.