East Austin residents and students have a new free place to explore local Black history and learn digital storytelling. Nonprofit E4 Youth opened the WOW Heritage Center at Pathways at Rosewood Courts on Oct. 18.
The details
The WOW, or What Once Was, Heritage Center is E4 Youth’s first permanent home after 18 years of programming, founder and CEO Carl Settles said in an email.
The heritage center is in the welcome facility at Pathways at Rosewood Courts, and E4 Youth developed it in partnership with the Austin Housing Authority, Settles said. It sits in East Austin’s African American Cultural Heritage District, on land that was once Emancipation Park, according to the nonprofit.
The center is open Tuesday-Thursday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. and admission is free, according to Settles. Upcoming public events are listed on its calendar.
An attendee reads aloud during the WOW Heritage Center’s grand opening Oct. 18. (Jonathan Porter/E4 Youth)What students should know
E4 Youth works with five area high schools through its Get Creative! program, Settles said. He said the nonprofit will also host field trips and digital storytelling workshops at the center for nearby schools, including Kealing Middle School and Blackshear Elementary School.
Funding the project
E4 Youth’s funding typically comes from individual donors, foundations, corporate partners, the city of Austin’s Arts, Culture, Music and Entertainment division, the Texas Commission on the Arts and the Texas Historical Commission, Settles said.
E4 Youth does not currently receive funding from Austin ISD or Travis County, according to Settles.
“We have a warm relationship with Travis County and look forward to partnering with the county in the future,” Settles said.