Urban Arts Investigates AI and the Future of STEAM Education at Accelerator 2025
Redefining Learning in the Age of Automation NEW YORK, NY (October 2025) — While the headlines wonder if AI will replace skills like coding, Urban Arts knows what makes students irreplaceable: creativity and critical thinking. The national nonprofit—renowned for teaching video game design as a pathway to college and career—hosted their AI Accelerator from September […]
“The Vanishing Enigma” Honored in Congressional App Challenge
NEW YORK, NY (2025) — Urban Arts, a New York City-based nonprofit that teaches digital game design as a pathway to college and wide-ranging careers, is proud to announce that The Vanishing Enigma created by Studio Capstone team “The AristoRats” has won the 2024 Congressional App Challenge for New York’s Eighth District, hosted by Representative […]
Urban Arts to Honor Josh Feldman with NBCUniversal at 2025 Color Ball
Urban Arts, the premier national nonprofit harnessing the power of digital game design as a pathway to college and career, will honor Josh Feldman, Chief Marketing Officer, Advertising & Partnerships, of NBCUniversal, at its inspiring, high energy Color Ball gala. The event, set to take place on April 10 in New York City, will celebrate […]
There’s No Computer Science Without Creativity: Game Development as a Pathway to STEM Success
Dr. Amy Patterson of Urban Arts and Ellen Flaherty of Unity amplify the transformative impact of Computer Science (CS) through game development in a CSEdWeek OpEd (December 9-13, 2024). This piece spotlights how game design initiatives are changing the trajectory for K-12 students nationwide. Together, they showcase real student journeys—from high school to college to […]
(FREE) SUMMER CAMP ⛺️: Hot Games, Cool Kids
During the 6 weeks of our Summer Camp intensive, 100+ students learned coding, Unity engine, and other digital tools to write, make music and art, and create games. 10 Alumni Teaching Assistants worked with us this summer—folks who went through Urban Arts programming and who have been hired back to teach the next generation while […]
The Power of Play
“Play is a human need.” Click here to hear Cynthia Williams, President, #wizardsofthecoast & @Hasbro Gaming, and Philip Courtney, CEO, Urban Arts, discuss the #educational benefits of #play—in school, in college and in career. On the EdUp podcast www.edupexperience.com/PhilipAndCynthia Cynthia Williams is President of Wizards of the Coast and Hasbro Gaming. Cynthia leads strategy and […]
That Time We Won a Really Fantastic Award
Thank you to the NEA Foundation for honoring Urban Arts with the 2023 FNBO Award for Outstanding Service to Public Education. This places Urban Arts in the prestigious company of past winners the NAACP, the American Indian College Fund, Title IX advocate Billie Jean King and Sesame Street Workshop. Urban Arts CEO Philip Courtney spoke at the annual Salute to […]
Third Time’s a ($12M) Charm
Urban Arts has earned its third highly competitive $4M Education Innovation and Research (EIR) grant from the U.S. Department of Education. New York, NY—Urban Arts, an arts and technology nonprofit serving underrepresented students nationally, has earned its third highly competitive $4M Education Innovation and Research (EIR) grant from the U.S. Department of Education. This third […]
Expanding with a Pickaxe
By Philip Courtney, CEO of Urban Arts With our third USDOE EIR grant win, we’re amplifying what we do best with middle schoolers nationally. At Urban Arts, we’re really good at teaching computer science through game development to high school students from low-income communities. We get them into college with well-crafted digital portfolios and we […]