Eastern Iowa Arts Academy brings new ‘vibe’ to old Cedar Rapids school

CEDAR RAPIDS — Despite the many changes to occur at Cedar Rapids’ former Arthur Elementary School over the last year, 9-year-old Gus Keuseman was most focused on what has remained the same.

The Cedar Rapids school board in 2022 voted to decommission the school to maximize operational efficiency, and Gus — now in fourth grade — was one of the last students to walk the halls before its 2024 closure.

The district last year sold the Arthur building to the Eastern Iowa Arts Academy, a nonprofit that offers free and low-cost arts programming for all ages, and the structure has since transformed into a hub for the arts.

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Murals and artwork have been put up throughout the space, and kids have been invited to decorate their own bricks in one of the main stairwells. Classrooms once filled with desks now are homes to rows of instruments, buckets of art supplies and more.

Gus expressed excitement for that transformation during a recent visit to the former school building, but he was even more interested in the things that didn’t change: His old locker still had the same combination, and he could still point out the classrooms he sat in just last year.

But most importantly, he said, the facility still is a place for learning.

“I think it’s a really good use,” Gus said of the arts academy. “I’m glad it’s still being used sort of like a school. I think anything else would just break my heart.”

Gus and his mother, Sarah Hale Keuseman, were two of the hundreds of residents to attend a recent open house celebrating Eastern Iowa Arts Academy’s move into the former elementary school at 2630 B Ave. NE.

While some work remains as the nonprofit settles into its new location, Executive Director Heather Dewey Wagner said the transition already has increased the quality and quantity of the programs offered to area artists young and old.

“I’m really looking forward to our community coming together here as artists and musicians,” Wagner said. “We want to make sure people come here and know that they can be themselves … to create and heal through the arts.”

Programs’ popularity prompts move

Eastern Iowa Arts Academy opened in 2007 under the tutelage of music teacher David Griffin. It has since grown to offer a variety of programming for all ages ranging from art classes to music lessons, creative writing workshops and more.

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All programs are offered at a low cost, with fees from adult programs and annual memberships supporting youth scholarships. The goal is to make art accessible for all, Wagner said, regardless of socioeconomic status.

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The academy previously operated at 1841 and 1847 E Ave. NE in Cedar Rapids. That location served the academy well, Wagner said, but space grew tight as the nonprofit’s popularity grew.

“The programming was great, but we were basically crammed in there,” she said. “We just didn’t have enough room … so we had to limit our programming (and) we had to limit when and where kids could come in for lessons.”

To alleviate those concerns, academy staff began the search for a new location.

Simultaneously, the Cedar Rapids Community School District was looking to sell Arthur Elementary after the facility, alongside Garfield Elementary School, had been identified for replacement due to their age and cost of upkeep.

Students from both now attend the newly constructed Trailside Elementary School at 320 27th St. NE.

The arts academy put in a $130,000 offer for the Arthur building — which was first built in 1914 — and the sale received final board approval in June 2024. The nonprofit moved in February, and staff since have been integrating new and existing programming at the new location.

One area to see particular growth is TalkBack Studios, a recording studio where arts academy members and other local artists can come to record music, podcasts, spoken word poetry and more.

Studio director Evan Stock said students and visiting artists alike have given the studio their stamp of approval, which he credited to the extra space and the atmosphere offered by the historic building.

“Everyone who has come through to check it out … has been thrilled with it,” Stock said. “We have this big, wonderful space. We’re surrounded by century-old (architecture) … and the vibes all around are really conducive to being creative and enjoying that atmosphere.”

To further honor the building’s history, Stock said the academy is also working to transform the old Arthur cafeteria into “The Study Hall,” an events venue for concerts and other live performances.

Open house attendee Jan Aiels said she appreciated the nonprofit’s efforts to honor the building’s original use. Her two granddaughters attended Arthur Elementary, and she said she was excited to see the old space take on a new life.

“The space has been reconfigured to meet the new need, but the basic bones of it have been preserved and that history is still there,” Aiels said. “I think this is going to be such an asset for the neighborhood, for the whole city really.”

Move expands programming, reach

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The move also has allowed for the expansion of other portions of Eastern Iowa Arts Academy programs.

There now are separate spaces for adult and youth art programs, and a portion of the second floor has been earmarked for low-cost studio rentals for artists. With some of the additional space, the nonprofit will be able to launch new offerings like a community makerspace and knitting club.

One of the old classrooms has been turned into a community room with a food pantry, clothing closet and community resource board. Another has transformed into a low-sensory space designed to provide calm, focus and comfort for people with sensory processing issues.

Several rooms are dedicated for music practice, said creative director Naomi Ruckus Rose, meaning group and individual lessons can now take place simultaneously. That’s particularly useful for the nonprofit’s Rock Academy, through which the organization currently sponsors seven youth rock bands.

“We were stepping on each other’s toes constantly in our old location,” said Rose, who oversees the Rock Academy program. “This location allows us to have some breathing room and allows us to have multiple bands practicing at the same time.”

Already, the academy reaches roughly 11,000 children annually through in-house programming and community outreach efforts. Once the nonprofit is fully settled in its new location, however, Wagner expects that figure to triple over the next few years.

A portion of that growth will happen organically, she said, as the academy increases the number and frequency of its programs. However, it also will be driven by a formal partnership between the academy and the Cedar Rapids school district.

As part of its purchase agreement, Eastern Iowa Arts Academy agreed to provide the district with an additional $130,000 in programming over the next 10 years through additional courses, open studios and mentorships.

That work will complement an existing agreement with the district through which over 3,000 students already were receiving fine arts opportunities annually. Additional programming has already begun, Wagner said, and will continue to expand over time.

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Fundraising for accessibility improvements

Before the nonprofit sees maximum growth, however, Wagner said additional work and fundraising are needed to renovate the 111-year-old building.

The academy financed the initial building purchase through the sale of its former location, but the nonprofit now has launched a $2 million capital campaign to bring the space to its full potential.

Wagner said a majority of those funds would be used to make the building more accessible for people with disabilities.

Currently, the building has no elevator, so the second floor is inaccessible to people who use wheelchairs or otherwise cannot use stairs. There also are no accessible bathrooms or sinks, and accessible cabinetry is limited.

Get involved

Eastern Iowa Arts Academy offers free or low-cost arts programming for all ages. To learn more about those offerings or to contribute to the academy’s capital campaign visit easterniowaartsacademy.org.

The capital campaign would cover the remodeling needed to remedy those issues, Wagner explained, as well as purchase some accessible furniture and art supplies for use in youth and adult programming.

One way the nonprofit is working to raise those funds is through its ongoing Locker Splash event, which turns the school building’s lockers into personalized art canvases for donors to decorate however they choose.

Wagner said the event is meant to offer a fun, creative outlet for donors while also collecting funds to make the space more accessible. Already, a few sample lockers have been decorated with forest scenes, cartoon animals and more.

“We serve a very, very large group of artists with disabilities, so it’s important to us to make sure that they’re able to come to all parts of our building,” she said. “... My hope is that the (Cedar Rapids) community itself will come together and support us in that.”

Taking in the newly decorated lockers at the open house celebration, Hale Keuseman — an art teacher at the Linn-Mar Community School District — said she was excited to see her children’s former school become a dedicated creative space.

Already, she signed Gus’s older brother up for studio time with the academy, and she expressed hope that others in the community would offer similar support as the nonprofit comes into its own in its new home.

“A lot of families like ours really loved this school, so it’s so cool to see it repurposed again for something good,” she said. “I’m really excited to have a permanent home for the arts here … in a really visible place in our community.”

Comments: grace.nieland@thegazette.com