Established in 2000, AFF’s In-School Lecture Series, part of the Young Adult Education Program (YAEP), integrated African films and visiting African artists and scholars into school-wide presentations and classroom workshops. Students are led in historical and cultural investigations of works produced by or about people of African heritage through guided conversations and inquiry-based lesson plans that equip them with tools for evaluating works based on discipline-specific criteria. These engagements also allow them to make connections between their own lives and those lived in different countries and cultures depicted onscreen. YAEP’s mission is to facilitate a multifaceted understanding of and appreciation for Africa and its Diaspora in New York City youth through personal experience, uniting students with important culture makers, artists, filmmakers, performers, and producers through in-school presentations of significant historic and contemporary cultural works of art, film, and performance. Some of the special guests that have participated in the program include: renowned Malian musician Salif Keita; Emmy Award-winning documentary filmmaker, William Greaves; African art scholar and curator, Dr. Carol Thompson; and Fode Bangoura, a prominent member of Guinea’s leading ballet company who led a hands-on drumming workshop.

If you are interested in this program or for more information, please contact us: education@africanfilmny.org