In honor of our 20 years of providing a safe space for young people to engage in transformative creative work while connecting with a loving community of peers and adult mentors, we have launched our 20-year anniversary fundraising campaign!

A group of major donors and funders have come together to support this special campaign with a generous match. Thanks to them, every dollar of the $200,000 we are working to raise through this campaign now through December 20, 2025 will be matched 100%, bringing us to a campaign total of $400,000! 

$400,000 will ensure we close the year in a strong position and start 2026 with the infrastructure and support to continue delivering high-impact, high-quality programs. It will preserve current staffing and program levels, allow us to continue leasing our program spaces that serve increasing numbers of onsite students, and help insulate transcenDANCE from the impact of government funding cuts for the next year.

Since our humble beginnings, transcenDANCE has grown into a nationally recognized model for creative youth development. What started as a small performance group of 12 young people in those early years has grown immensely.

We currently reach more than 1,800 students per year between our onsite programming and school partnerships. We offer year-round dance and performance, leadership development, mental health support, and long-term mentorship. An amazing total of 98% of our CREATE graduates go on to pursue college or career programs.

We exist to ensure youth from San Diego's most marginalized communities thrive, connect with their creativity, and envision and achieve bold futures.

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As we look back on our origin story and early years, we would like to recognize Danah H. Fayman for being the original donor and supporter who made it possible for the dream of transcenDANCE to become a reality. Danah is always in our collective heart and we are excited to lift up her spirit through this campaign. Read about Danah's impact here.