The Classroom Reimagined: Lessons from Arts and Scraps with Ang Adamaik

In this episode of the Kindling Project podcast, Melissa Halpin speaks with Ange Adamaik, the executive director of Arts and Scraps, an organization dedicated to transforming everyday scraps into educational tools and creative opportunities for children. They discuss the dual mission of Arts and Scraps, which includes a community store for creative materials and educational programs that teach STEM through creativity. Ang emphasizes the importance of imagination in sustainability and the need for accessibility in STEM education, particularly for underserved communities. The conversation also touches on leadership challenges, the significance of self-care, and the future aspirations of Arts and Scraps.

Get inspired!

https://www.artsandscraps.org/

https://www.instagram.com/artsandscraps/

https://www.facebook.com/ArtsAndScrapsDetroit/

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoGYcyLcHUT8JqyzXkbtY1w

Listen to the full episode:

• Transcript

  Melissa Halpin (00:11)
  Welcome back to the Kindling Project podcast, where we spotlight creative thinkers, builders, and visionaries who are lighting their own fire and inspiring others to do the same. Today's guest leads an organization that turns everyday scraps into powerful sparks of learning and imagination. Please welcome Ange Adamaik the executive director of Arts and Scraps in Detroit.
  
  Ang (00:36)
  Thanks so much for having me.
  
  Melissa Halpin (00:37)
  Thanks for being here. I'm excited to talk to you today. Yeah, I think I told you this in our last call or our last meeting. I worked with Arts and Scraps at my very first museum position in Detroit a million years ago, like more than 20 years ago.
  
  Ang (00:40)
  Yeah.
  
  Well, it's funny because you told me that story and I actually retold that story to someone at the Science Center recently. And we're building like a whole new partnership with them and it was cool to be able to say like all these points that, you know, arts and scraps and them have connected. So.
  
  Melissa Halpin (01:00)
  Yeah!
  
  Yeah.
  
  Yeah, I spent a decade in museums and science centers and children's museums. And we really, at the time, I was the exhibit developer of the early childhood gallery. And so we really built the exhibits around programming. And so we worked carefully with you guys to come up with like age appropriate, like under five things, which is not that easy.
  
  Ang (01:25)
  So cool.
  
  Yes. Correct.
  
  Yes.
  
  Melissa Halpin (01:35)
  Yes, so you know all about it.
  
  So if someone's unfamiliar with Arts and Scraps, what is the first thing you want them to know about the organization?
  
  Ang (01:44)
  So I usually describe arts and scraps as kind of a two-part mission. ⁓ It is all part of one mission, but there's kind of two main parts that we reach the community. The first is that we have our Detroit community store that is on the far east side of Detroit. And it's kind of like a thrift store for creative materials. So everything from your very traditional things like paint and canvases or fabric and sewing notions all the way to industrial scraps.
  
  Melissa Halpin (01:49)
  Mm.
  
  Thank
  
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Ang (02:12)
  from 200 different businesses all over Metro Detroit. And then the second part of what we do is we have educational programs that go out into the neighborhoods and we work with kids all over and we teach science, technology, engineering, and math through creativity. So those are kind of the two main pieces of what we do. And it's interesting because most people meet arts and scraps.
  
  Melissa Halpin (02:27)
  Mm.
  
  Ang (02:34)
  like through one of those two lenses and sometimes don't even know about the other side of what we do.
  
  Melissa Halpin (02:41)
  Right,
  
  I can see that. You guys take what many consider trash and turn it into educational treasure. So what's the power in creative reuse?
  
  Ang (02:52)
  Gosh, well one thing that's interesting is being arts and scraps over our 36 years now. ⁓ It's interesting because art folks often feel like we're not arty enough.
  
  Melissa Halpin (02:59)
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Ang (03:04)
  ⁓
  
  like environmental folks feel like we're not green enough, ⁓ education folks feel like we're not education enough, but the reality is when you mix those three things together, you actually strengthen all three. ⁓ And so we have been doing research lately on like the effects of learning through play, which is well documented, well researched, but also play with recycled materials and reuse materials. There's this magic that we see in the classroom. ⁓
  
  Melissa Halpin (03:08)
  Ugh.
  
  Yeah.
  
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Ang (03:33)
  By fourth or fifth grade, most people decide if they're creative or not, if they can do science and math or not, et cetera. They call it the fourth grade slump in reading. But it's really kind of true across the board. And part of that is just like social pressures. ⁓ But if you can imagine, and you may even remember this, a lot of adults do, there's some point where someone told you you weren't creative. Like you couldn't paint or you couldn't draw or you couldn't whatever it was, right? And that kind of set in your mind, I'm not.
  
  Melissa Halpin (03:41)
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Right.
  
  Ang (04:00)
  creative in this way, right? But no one's ever been told that they can't make an insect out of recycled materials.
  
  Melissa Halpin (04:01)
  Right.
  
  Right,
  
  right.
  
  Ang (04:07)
  And so
  
  there's this openness that happens with kids and adults because it's completely new. The materials are completely unfamiliar to them. And so it kind of opens their brain about how they can be creative and express themselves and think through the science concepts that we're presenting to them. ⁓ I think it really can open kids' brains. we use inquiry-based and project-based learning.
  
  Melissa Halpin (04:11)
  Right.
  
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Ang (04:29)
  But taking it that step deeper with these different materials that really have them problem solve and have to communicate how they're problem solving, I do think it deepens that learning. So it's actually something there's only like one study about from like 2013. So it's something we want to look into more to really look at. Because we see it all the time with kids in the classroom, but there's not really research on that part of it.
  
  Melissa Halpin (04:51)
  Yeah,
  
  mean, like I said, it was early 2000s. I fought the same battle trying to explain there was such a push in the early 2000s. Everything was STEM. Everything was STEM. I mean, we hadn't even had the term STEAM yet. And explaining to educators and to funders that were science-based, like tech funders and stuff, that
  
  Ang (05:08)
  Yep.
  
  Melissa Halpin (05:18)
  Art and play is science for early learners and that exploration is part of the scientific process. And I remember having that conversation over and over again because some folks on the board or some folks on the committees felt like it's arts and crafts, not arts and clients.
  
  Ang (05:21)
  Yes. Yes.
  
  Right.
  
  Right. Yeah, that is something
  
  that we are constantly trying to combat. Like, yeah, forgive my language, but, you know, people will also often call it arts and crap instead of arts and scraps. And it's like, I hear that. I hear where you're coming from. But actually, the reverse is true. There's this inherent value in letting kids solve problems with something that has no
  
  Melissa Halpin (05:47)
  ⁓ I hate that for you guys.
  
  Ang (05:58)
  value attached to it so they feel extra free to play and experiment and ⁓ and really there's no one saying like well you didn't put the cap on the marker correctly or whatever right those things that we have to do to take care of our things when it's already trash it doesn't matter so
  
  Melissa Halpin (06:02)
  Right, right, right.
  
  Yeah, yeah, yeah. Well,
  
  and another thought that I had about it, it's been a long time since I was developing learning exhibits, is that this, now that I've raised kids too, because back then I didn't have kids, but now I have teenagers and I've watched them go through our education system. And to me, the whole focus on measurement and there's always a right or wrong answer is really actually pretty anti-science.
  
  Ang (06:40)
  Yes.
  
  Melissa Halpin (06:41)
  Right, the scientific
  
  process is about exploring and testing hypotheses and making mistakes is part of the process. And I saw this a lot with my kids. One of my kids is, I would say, more typically math and science oriented. And the other is like myself, like more creative, more airy fairy, more all her subjects are sort of interconnected. And for my son, who tends to be more
  
  The measurement that we have in our school system now is really aligned with how he likes to study and learn. He wants to know what the answer is. He wants to memorize all the right answers. He wants to get 100 % on the test. And then at certain points in his educational experience, when there was sort of an open-ended problem, like build a roller coaster and test whether or not it's going to work, he absolutely just was allergic to failure.
  
  Ang (07:12)
  Yes.
  
  Melissa Halpin (07:30)
  because his whole mindset was based on getting 100 % and knowing all the answers. And I do think that more holistic learning, more hands-on learning, more experiential learning is good for the arts and the sciences.
  
  Ang (07:30)
  Yeah.
  
  I tell, so I give this example all the time, but it's easiest to understand Arts and Scraps curriculum and also to your point, how it works with different kids when I talk about one of our curriculum and my favorite is our Space and Alien kit. So with that one we talk about what makes a planet a planet versus a star, moon, whatever else is up there. Super typical lesson for second through fourth grade and then we have the kids create a new planet. They have to imagine a new planet.
  
  Melissa Halpin (08:01)
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Ang (08:14)
  They have to decide what characteristics their planet will have. If they're younger, maybe they only do one to three characteristics. If they're older, they do, you know, maybe up to 10. It really depends on the class.
  
  Melissa Halpin (08:17)
  Mm.
  
  Ang (08:24)
  but we get to meet kids where they are. So if a kid's super analytical, like your son, then they may say, all right, well, my planet's, you know, closest sun, so it's going to have a lot of gravity and maybe it's a gaseous planet. So, you know, maybe my alien, cause they will make an alien based on the characteristics of their planet. So their, their alien may have no bones at all and you know, have shiny skin to reflect the heat of the sun. And they feel like, yeah, I got it right. Right. But I'm like you. And it sounds like your other child is,
  
  is
  
  like us and would say, my planet is best hair day, everyday planet, and it's gonna have cool, colorful hair. But what's cool is that it arts and scraps instead of having to say like, no, you did it wrong, which is what you would get in a lot of science experiences. We say, that's awesome. Let's make your planet match your alien. So, you know, is it a water planet? Why is its hair curly? Maybe it has really a lot of humidity. If it's colorful hair, what's making its hair colorful? Is it eating something different? Is it interacting?
  
  Melissa Halpin (08:54)
  Yeah. Yeah.
  
  Yeah, exactly.
  
  Yeah, yeah, yeah.
  
  Yeah,
  
  yeah, yeah.
  
  Ang (09:23)
  with the
  
  error differently. So kind of going back into those scientific concepts so that that creative child is brought to the middle as well. So we can meet kids where they are and bring them to the middle where they can feel successful. Because honestly the most important thing we're teaching them is problem solving, critical thinking, communication, teamwork, and...
  
  Melissa Halpin (09:42)
  Yeah.
  
  Ang (09:43)
  That's the exact skills you're talking about. We don't get to prioritize those as much as I know teachers would like to. ⁓ And that is really what you need in STEM jobs. You have to be able to problem solve, not memorize facts. And so you don't ever have to memorize facts. But we all live with the whole world's knowledge in our pockets at this point. And so it's more important that you can problem solve.
  
  Melissa Halpin (09:49)
  Right.
  
  Yeah.
  
  I
  
  agree with that. absolutely, if I was queen for a day, I would definitely start with the education system. And that's really what I love about Arts and Scraps. And on the environmental side, we're living in such a time of overconsumption. What role do you think imagination plays in sustainability?
  
  Ang (10:15)
  Hahaha
  
  Well, there's a couple different things. One, being able to use creative reuse materials, not only does that remove the existing item from the landfill,
  
  Melissa Halpin (10:37)
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Ang (10:37)
  it may still end up there someday, right? But it gives it at least a second life. And the other side of that math is that it removes the item that would have been created to be used, right? And so you're not creating the new thing because you're reusing the old. So there's the actual environmental factor. But then I think additionally,
  
  Melissa Halpin (10:40)
  Right. ⁓
  
  right.
  
  Ang (10:56)
  You know, some of the world's biggest problems, especially around climate change are being thought through, are being changed by kids, by youth. You know, the most successful project to remove the garbage patch in the Pacific Ocean, that project was started by a person that was 16 at the time. And now they're in their 20s. But no one else has been able to attack that problem like he has been able to, right? Like, know, the Greta...
  
  Melissa Halpin (11:05)
  I see that.
  
  Ang (11:25)
  girdwigs of the world are the ones that are going to change our trajectory on this. And so being able to talk to kids when they're in kindergarten, first grade, about what environmentalism is, there's a lot of topics that people kind of assume that kids aren't ready for when in fact I think actually their brains can think bigger and wider than a lot of ours can. And I mean the ideas that that kids, students come up with are incredible and they're things that we would never
  
  come up with. So you know we talk a lot in our educational programming you know I talked about being out in the neighborhoods of Detroit. Our instructors are actually really really talented at making sure that they are keeping
  
  Melissa Halpin (12:00)
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Ang (12:04)
  our concepts age appropriate, but also neighborhood appropriate. So like if we're going to talk about environmentalism and we're in the neighborhood where the incinerator used to be, we're going to talk about that. We're going to talk about, you know, activism and how that changed. We're going to talk about the concrete crusher that, you know, core cities, neighbors just took down. Like we're going to talk about what it means to be part of their community and part of solutions that are local and you know, worldwide. So, you know, we talk about it in a way that's appropriate for them.
  
  Melissa Halpin (12:13)
  Right. Right. Right.
  
  Ang (12:32)
  We talk about it in a way that empowers them and gives them information, but we answer whatever questions they have, things like that, because a lot of adults are afraid to talk to kids about these things. Partially just, you know, if you're not an educator, you don't have that same sense of what is appropriate, right? Like the, you know, child development side. But I think also we think that kids can't handle that stuff and they can. They really can. And yeah.
  
  Melissa Halpin (12:43)
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Right. Right.
  
  Right.
  
  They absolutely can.
  
  Do you think kids experience a mind shift when they realize what's possible with reusable materials?
  
  Ang (13:07)
  say not every kid, but there are definitely the kids that are like, this is my whole thing. I can't tell you how many times I meet parents, especially that will say like...
  
  Melissa Halpin (13:13)
  Yeah, yeah you are.
  
  Ang (13:18)
  We came to Arts and Scraps one time and it is my kids favorite place on the planet. Like it is just a total shift for them. There are a kid, like actually one of my nieces, even when she was like three, like wanted to save everything and reuse everything and just made art out of scraps, inventions out of scraps before, this was even before I worked at Arts and Scraps. So when I started working there, she was like, what? Yeah, exactly.
  
  Melissa Halpin (13:41)
  Perfect. Yeah, you have
  
  her dream job.
  
  Ang (13:44)
  Exactly. So there's definitely kids that it really, really connects for. But I think even outside of that, it can widen students' worldview to see the possibilities that are out there. I tell people all the time, like as adults, I think we forget.
  
  Melissa Halpin (13:57)
  Yeah.
  
  Ang (14:01)
  that there's a time where like the jobs you knew about were like nurse, police officer, teacher, like the people that you interacted with, right? But there's this whole world of jobs out there. If you had told me when I was a kid that working at Arts and Scraps existed, I would have been obsessed, but I never would have known that it existed, right? So, you know, just widening kids worldview about like, I really, I really care about the earth. I really care about nature or I really care about art or I really care. You know, there's so many intersections.
  
  connections
  
  connected to arts and scraps and learning about those and how it connects to what they're passionate about, it can really open their worldview.
  
  Melissa Halpin (14:39)
  Yeah, I love that. I love that commitment to, on one side, community relevance, but also a more global perspective. And I know you guys are also really committed to accessibility and equity. So how does Arts and Scraps bring STEAM education to underserved communities?
  
  Ang (14:47)
  Yes.
  
  Yeah.
  
  Yeah. So this is part of our very beginnings. Honestly, we were founded by Peg Upmyer. She was a teacher before she founded Arts and Scraps. And the quote she always said was, kids don't get to pick what zip code they live in. And so we're going to go everywhere. And so we have served the entire Metro Detroit area and beyond for our entire existence.
  
  Melissa Halpin (15:08)
  and
  
  Mm-mm. Right.
  
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Ang (15:23)
  But the other thing that a friend told me later on, Susanna Goodman, we were talking about, you know, like different organizations competing for funding and things like that and... ⁓
  
  Melissa Halpin (15:34)
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Ang (15:34)
  She said, you know, the reality is we're never going to run out of kids to serve. We're just not, we're never going to run out of kids to serve. And so really we focus on how can we get to as many kids as possible? ⁓ And so we have often had most of our existence, our whole existence had an earned income model as well as a grant model. so essentially what that means for non nonprofit folks is that there's some places that
  
  Melissa Halpin (15:38)
  Right.
  
  Mm.
  
  Ang (16:02)
  we go that were paid to be there and there's some places that we go that if they can't pay then we write a grant to be there. ⁓ And so we've always had the focus of making sure that
  
  Melissa Halpin (16:04)
  Right.
  
  Right.
  
  Ang (16:13)
  we are creating accessibility as much as possible, whether that's how we're reaching those students, like going out into the neighborhoods, right? When the transportation budgets died in the 90s, we started the scrap mobile program and started going out into the neighborhoods and doing the educational programs out there. And we're still doing that today because that has not improved since the 90s. ⁓ And so, but now what we're realizing is that there's also a need for what,
  
  Melissa Halpin (16:29)
  Mm-hmm.
  
  No, it really hasn't.
  
  Ang (16:41)
  the
  
  term that has been coined is third spaces, spaces that you can go and do something and not have to spend any money. And so now Arts and Scraps is building programming at Arts and Scraps so that we can have a space where people can come and just hang out and make stuff together and they can bring stuff from home if they want. They can obviously shop the store if they would like to, which is incredibly inexpensive, but also if they want to bring their own stuff, they can do that as well and you don't have to purchase anything. So
  
  Melissa Halpin (16:45)
  Right.
  
  Ang (17:11)
  Even our store, our prices have always been below our costs. Making sure that it's as accessible as possible for someone to try a new experience, try a new hobby, or build a business. mean, there's so many people that build entire small businesses out of what they get at Arts and Scraps. So, yeah. Yeah.
  
  Melissa Halpin (17:16)
  Right.
  
  Really? I love that.
  
  Yeah. And entrepreneurship is something I see younger and younger kids having an interest in. And the way that our economy is going, that almost everybody I know is a gig worker and self-employed, even if they're employed. Yeah, that's interesting. Yeah. I hadn't been aware of that. What are some of the barriers you see families or educators facing?
  
  Ang (17:39)
  Yes.
  
  Yep.
  
  Yeah.
  
  Well, I think we already talked about some of them. The educational system is not, know, our educational system in the United States is one of the last that's built how it's built, right? It was built in the 50s and most education systems around the world have moved on from this system for many different reasons and we're still in it. And I do think that,
  
  Melissa Halpin (17:59)
  Yeah. Yeah.
  
  right.
  
  Right.
  
  Ang (18:19)
  That is a barrier because one, it's a barrier for those kids, but I also think it's a barrier because a lot of educational systems don't understand arts and scraps and what we're doing in our educational philosophy. Not all, we work with lots and lots of people that do get it, but I do think it is a barrier that arts and crap, you know, theory of like you're kind of making crappy crafts with kids, ⁓ instead of seeing it for the education that it is.
  
  Melissa Halpin (18:30)
  Right.
  
  Right.
  
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Right?
  
  Ang (18:46)
  can be difficult. have had funders every year that I've been in this job tell me, well, I mean, you're just not really education. And I'm like, come to one of our classes and I bet you you'll learn something.
  
  Melissa Halpin (18:56)
  Yeah. Wow.
  
  It's interesting. It's interesting for me to hear that because like I said back when I worked with Peg in, I don't know, 2000 to 2002 maybe, I was being told the same thing, that it's not science, that it's not education. And I just remember thinking, what do want a four-year-old to do? What is it exactly? Yeah.
  
  Ang (19:19)
  And we've come a long way, we really have. We've
  
  been part of lot of different STEM groups and pipelines and all the things. We're currently part of a STEM collaborative group through the Kapoor Foundation that's really pushing ⁓ computer science and STEM education. And it's been wonderful to be part of that group and be part of that movement. ⁓ So we've definitely moved a long way, a long, long way. ⁓ But there's definitely still room to grow.
  
  Melissa Halpin (19:32)
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Right.
  
  Ang (19:46)
  So I think part of it is just, know, like FIRST Robotics is an amazing program, ⁓ but it's also really expensive, right? And so I think programs like that tend to limit adults' brains about what STEM has to look like ⁓ in order for it to really be education.
  
  Melissa Halpin (19:52)
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Yeah, There's an accessibility issue.
  
  Mm. Right, right.
  
  Ang (20:05)
  But the reality is to me that kids need to experience those early successes, that K through six, to really feel like they can be successful and still choose STEM when they get into middle school and high school.
  
  Melissa Halpin (20:11)
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Ang (20:18)
  Anyway, I think the other ⁓ major barrier that everybody's going to hit is our current administration changing all of the funding systems that support nonprofits, especially education, environmentalism, art. They're all getting hit right now. And while we don't even have federal funding, you know, we talked earlier about how we're half grants and half earned income. Both of those are being affected right now through the partners that we work with.
  
  Melissa Halpin (20:18)
  with you on this.
  
  Yes.
  
  Ang (20:43)
  and
  
  then how that funding travels down into arts and scraps. And so it's gonna become more and more important for foundations and individual donors to invest in the nonprofits that you wanna see on the other end of these four years. Not to like go political or anything, but... ⁓
  
  Melissa Halpin (20:58)
  Yeah. Well.
  
  No, no, no, no. In my
  
  current role, I have a design agency. I don't know if you're aware of that. And I have some large foundation fund clients. And they're scrambling, right? They're scrambling to address this because the money trickles down in the whole nonprofit ecosystem. And they're looking at, we going to have to divert funds to legal expenses? if we've made a five-year
  
  Ang (21:13)
  Yes.
  
  Melissa Halpin (21:27)
  investment into a grant partner with 10-year expectations, what happens if half of their funding disappears for the second half of this outcome that we're looking for? So I'm very closely associated with these questions and conversations right now. Not being in a nonprofit, but being a service provider to them. And it's heartbreaking. And it's stressful.
  
  Ang (21:41)
  Yeah.
  
  Yeah.
  
  Yeah. Yeah.
  
  Melissa Halpin (21:54)
  you know, not to get too political, but just really, really feels insane. It feels like so counterintuitive that it's hard for me some days to reconcile what the goal is.
  
  Ang (21:58)
  Yes.
  
  Yeah.
  
  Well, and we're at the just the very beginning. So I don't even think we're feeling the real effects yet. ⁓ But even foundations. Right.
  
  Melissa Halpin (22:08)
  I know. No, no, we're just scrambling from the conversations and the threats.
  
  What about when the actual implementation? Although there are a bunch of lawsuits already. Yeah. Yeah.
  
  Ang (22:19)
  Yep. So I know, I know. Yeah, but
  
  foundations are already and corporations actually, because we we do have corporate founded corporate money that comes to arts and scraps as well. They're already saying like, we're going to continue with our current partners like we had some relationships that were starting. They're like, well, we're going to try and support our current found nonprofits. So we're not going to start any new relationships until we know what this looks like. And it's like
  
  Melissa Halpin (22:41)
  first.
  
  Yeah.
  
  ⁓
  
  Ang (22:46)
  That's, we're not going
  
  to know what it looks like y'all.
  
  Melissa Halpin (22:48)
  Well,
  
  so now we're kind of getting into the challenges of leadership. And I think maybe for the Kinley Project community, that's one of the interesting things about you as a guest is that I think that you are in a leadership position that a lot of people might envy or they might want to be inspired by, whether it's finding an organization they fit in or starting an organization.
  
  Ang (22:52)
  Yeah.
  
  Yeah.
  
  Melissa Halpin (23:12)
  But tell us a little bit about how you moved into leadership and then also how you took on the mantle of a vision that was started before you got there.
  
  Ang (23:20)
  Yeah, so I like to joke.
  
  but it's pretty real that I've worked with kids since I was one. And I kind of, I've been in leadership roles most of my life, whether it's been through, you youth development programs or, you know, college, whatever, or, you know, and when I entered the working world, I entered as an associate director of blah, blah, blah. Like I've been a leader most of my life, but I had almost always been kind of the number two person, really good at like support.
  
  Melissa Halpin (23:25)
  Yeah.
  
  Okay.
  
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Right?
  
  Ang (23:51)
  Reporting someone else in their mission and their vision and things like that. Not that I can't do those things myself ⁓ But for me, it's that's where my strengths lie and it's I think what fills my cup more than anything else ⁓
  
  Melissa Halpin (23:52)
  and
  
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Ang (24:07)
  In this role, when Peg retired, we hired a new executive director and they were only with us for about a year and a half. And when they left, it was a bit unexpected. And so the board asked me to step in as the interim executive director. And then I just was asked to stay. So I joke that I accidentally became an executive director.
  
  Melissa Halpin (24:22)
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Ugh.
  
  Yeah, yeah.
  
  Ang (24:31)
  But I will say the talents that I bring to the table a lot are building the foundation of an organization, building the systems and the policies and the procedures and building relationships and building, you know, all those different pieces that the mission needs to stand on. Arts and Scraps had not really had the ability to do that when Peg was running the organization. We were so busy doing that we were not really building the foundation underneath for Arts and Scraps to
  
  Melissa Halpin (24:37)
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Yes.
  
  Ang (24:59)
  stand on. And so when I became Associate Director of Arts and Scraps and then Executive Director of Arts and Scraps, I really spent nine years doing that. And some of that work.
  
  probably sounds really boring. But it's actually super, super important. You know, we would have a sponsor in, you know, 2017, but we would have no systems to work with that sponsor, engage that sponsor, really promote them, for them to be happy that they were a sponsor and come back. We didn't have any of those systems. And so, you know, building what that looks like so that when those opportunities come along, you're ready to seize them.
  
  Melissa Halpin (25:12)
  Yeah.
  
  Yeah.
  
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Yeah.
  
  Ang (25:35)
  is really important. And so that's been a big part of my leadership. The second piece I would say is my wider vision has always been that Arts and Scraps could be a youth development program. We currently work with mostly three to 13 year olds. And I really believe that Arts and Scraps can be a youth development program for kids of all ages. ⁓
  
  Melissa Halpin (25:57)
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Ang (25:58)
  If you don't know what that means, essentially a youth development program is a place where kids learn how to be leaders through whatever lens or project or whatever you're working with. So think Mosaic Youth Theater, think 826 Michigan, think, you know, anyway, there's many, many of them. ⁓
  
  Melissa Halpin (26:17)
  Okay.
  
  Ang (26:18)
  But I do believe that Arts and Scraps has the educational chops, the community connections, the partnerships, et cetera, that we should be that already.
  
  Melissa Halpin (26:29)
  Yeah.
  
  Ang (26:30)
  And so we've been building the story behind Arts and Scraps so that people really do understand that we are education, they really do understand that we're helping the planet, you know, understanding the true value of Arts and Scraps and what we can give to kids, youth, even adults, so that there's more and more investment in Arts and Scraps, so that we grow to the size we need to be in order to start a youth development initiative. So.
  
  Melissa Halpin (26:46)
  Right.
  
  Ang (26:55)
  We've gone from when I started as the executive director of arts and scraps, we were at actually just looked at this number the other day. We were at, think, hundred and sixty thousand a year. And we're now this year we're going to hit six hundred and eighty. ⁓ So now that's over seven years, but like. That's dollars a year, so our our annual budget. So.
  
  Melissa Halpin (27:05)
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Wow.
  
  people served.
  
  dollars a year. okay,
  
  so you've grown more than doubled your revenue.
  
  Ang (27:21)
  Yeah, so that's allowed us to give people full-time jobs instead of part-time jobs. When I started in 2015, Peg had never paid even herself full-time, so we had never had a full-time staff member at Arts and Scraps until 2015. I think that's one of the interesting things about Arts and Scraps. I tell people all the time, Peg used to say the one kind of regret she had was not paying herself because then she could never hire someone else to do her job.
  
  Melissa Halpin (27:37)
  Wow.
  
  Ang (27:48)
  And I think that's a big mistake that folks make when they're starting nonprofits and other endeavors is, well, my time is free. And it's like, well, that might be true.
  
  Melissa Halpin (27:48)
  Right, right, right.
  
  Right. I have news for you. This
  
  also happens to entrepreneurs.
  
  Ang (28:03)
  Exactly, yeah.
  
  So if you are not paying yourself, if you're not putting yourself into your own budget, then you're not going to be able to pass that work off, hire someone else to do that work for your mission to be able to have longevity and legacy, right? And so it actually took Peg about from 2000.
  
  Melissa Halpin (28:06)
  Yeah. Mm-hmm. Yeah.
  
  Right.
  
  Ang (28:21)
  to 2016 for her to retire because when she retired we had to replace her with two full-time people. So we had to budget in for two people to join the staff as full-time staff in order for her to leave. anyway that's just to say like think deeply about when you're doing budgeting things like that what the actual costs.
  
  Melissa Halpin (28:28)
  right.
  
  Ang (28:44)
  actual time is of your time. And I think it's really difficult for leaders to do that. We tend to be humble about, which is good in lots of ways, but like when you're budgeting, don't.
  
  Melissa Halpin (28:47)
  Right.
  
  Right.
  
  Yeah, when
  
  you're very much mission driven, it's easy to undervalue your part of making that mission happen. Yeah.
  
  Ang (29:05)
  Yes, yes,
  
  absolutely.
  
  Melissa Halpin (29:07)
  So I think that I understand and just love the mission of Arts and Scraps. Do you yourself have like a personal kindling project or mission that's outside of Arts and Scraps or adjacent to Arts and Scraps or something just for you?
  
  Ang (29:23)
  That's a good question. I would say most of my life, creativity and environmentalism have been kind of my two pillars. When I first got the job at Arts and Scrafts, I called my best friend and said, if you could pick out the perfect job for me, what would it be? And she was like, giving recycled art supplies to kids in Detroit? And I was like, yeah, I just got that job. But...
  
  Melissa Halpin (29:30)
  Mm-hmm.
  
  i love it!
  
  Ang (29:46)
  Those pillars live outside of Arts and Scraps as well. So I've been a ceramicist for most of, since college. So I love pottery. It's something that I'm excited to get back to soon. Before I worked at Arts and Scraps, I actually had five part-time jobs and one of them was selling my own pottery and teaching pottery.
  
  And then on the environmentalism side, I've been involved in a lot of different things, but I'm currently working really closely with the revamp, which is a clothing swap. And actually it's happening on April 26th. this might be, yeah, it might be already have happened by the time this comes out, but.
  
  Melissa Halpin (30:18)
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Tomorrow. I
  
  don't know if you know this, but the Kindling Project is the sponsor of revamp. Yeah, we are.
  
  Ang (30:30)
  amazing. my gosh. Well, it's so
  
  much fun. And I'm kind of doing that same kind of background work with them of like helping them build budgets and systems and things like that, ⁓ which has been really fun. It's been really fun to use those skills ⁓ with another project, another mission and solve someone else's problems.
  
  Melissa Halpin (30:40)
  Yeah.
  
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Yeah, it does really sound like
  
  that sort foundational systems and processes is your strength. So, I mean, if you have the bandwidth to share.
  
  Ang (30:57)
  Yeah, it's definitely.
  
  What'd say?
  
  Melissa Halpin (31:00)
  I said, if you have the bandwidth to share that expertise, I'm sure lots of organizations need it.
  
  Ang (31:06)
  Yeah, yeah, it's something that I never...
  
  I've been a creative person my whole life. So when I was in college and started to take business classes and really enjoyed them, I was kind of shocked. ⁓ And I feel like I learned that I did have both sides of my brain that like really could work on things. So being able to think through business problems in creative ways and being able to think through creative things with systems and processes. ⁓ Yeah, I really like mixing those two together. So yeah, it's been fun.
  
  Melissa Halpin (31:11)
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Right.
  
  Isn't it?
  
  Mm.
  
  Yeah,
  
  and I suspect that, I mean, I was very early on tagged as like a creative and artsy kid. And so rather than being told like, you can't draw or paint, I was told you can't do math. And I've had kind of the reverse experience of, wait, I can, well, similar to you then, I guess, as I also became an accidental CEO.
  
  Ang (31:48)
  Yes.
  
  Melissa Halpin (31:58)
  I wanted to stay home with kids more and I was doing freelance and then freelance just sort of tumbleweeded itself into a business. And then now I had to manage people and do taxes and bookkeeping. I suspect that many of us are driven into one lane or the other, but that we do have access to both ways of thinking if they're developed.
  
  Ang (31:58)
  You
  
  Yes, exactly.
  
  Yes, it is, I
  
  believe it is really about the experiences that we've had that have empowered us and, you know, talking about equity earlier, a lot of what is determined in our life is the opportunities that we're given.
  
  Melissa Halpin (32:26)
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Ang (32:33)
  I've been given
  
  a lot of opportunities over my lifetime to be a leader. And so I've been able to have places to practice and fail and succeed and fail again and succeed again and really play with those things, right? And really play with how do you build good communication systems? How do you build good budgeting? All those different things. But not everyone is afforded those same spaces.
  
  Melissa Halpin (32:41)
  Right.
  
  right.
  
  Ang (32:56)
  and being able to experience that you can be both. ⁓ So yeah, I do feel like, I will say one of the other kind of personal missions I've always had is mentoring, mentorship. I've built mentorship programs and things like that as well, but personally, I really enjoy connecting with other leaders wherever they are in their cycle. If they're a new leader, if they've been a leader for a long time.
  
  Melissa Halpin (33:00)
  Thank
  
  Ang (33:20)
  I feel like connecting with each other really helps strengthen our leadership. ⁓ And it can be really lonely. so being having someone to talk to about things can be really, really important. so for me, it's been really, really important to connect with other executive directors, entrepreneurs, know, people that are leading because while there's many great books out there and things like that, for me, at least being able to
  
  Melissa Halpin (33:25)
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Yes.
  
  Ang (33:45)
  to
  
  discuss it with someone always brings it to that next level of where that kind of rubber meets the road of how those concepts can work in real life ⁓ and in the context that you're in, because every context is different as well.
  
  Melissa Halpin (33:47)
  Yes.
  
  Yes.
  
  Ang (34:00)
  That's been the other piece that I've been passionate about is connecting with other leaders and mentoring young leaders, working with folks to help them learn where they want to go. And sometimes you learn like, yeah, I don't really want to be a leader. And that's OK too, right? Like, yeah.
  
  Melissa Halpin (34:12)
  That's okay too. I
  
  think you're really describing what's at the core of my personal mission with the Kindling Project is we've been kind of beta testing this idea of campfires, but sort of building those circles of women for those real conversations. Because you're right, there's plenty of, there's access to business training.
  
  Ang (34:30)
  Yes.
  
  Melissa Halpin (34:34)
  And there's access also, I mean, not as much as I'd like, but there's access to mental health care. And there's access to a variety of services. But to me, one of the most important experiences I've had has been in that group of women, or in that group of leaders, or in that group of creatives, where you can share what you're learning, and you can bounce off the hard lessons with each other and get advice.
  
  And that's not always a comfortable place. You have to really carefully curate those spaces in order for the magic to happen. I kind of joke about this a lot where it's always the meeting after the meeting. mean, you fight to get invited to the panel or to the boardroom or to the table, but really that's not always the most comfortable space. It's like in the parking lot with your...
  
  Ang (35:01)
  Right.
  
  Yes. Yes.
  
  Yes!
  
  Melissa Halpin (35:25)
  girlfriends or the people you connected with or you know, it's a group chat later. And so how do we have more of those meetings after the meetings? Just be the meeting. Yeah.
  
  Ang (35:28)
  Yep. Exactly. Exactly.
  
  Yes,
  
  I totally agree with you as someone that's like learned my way in to every part of this job. I've been part of lots of cohorts and training groups and things like that. And you do have to be really intentional about how you build that. You have to be really smart about how you create the safe zone for folks to be able to be transparent with each other. ⁓ Cause leadership.
  
  Melissa Halpin (35:43)
  Yeah, yeah, yeah.
  
  Me too.
  
  Mm.
  
  Exactly.
  
  Ang (36:03)
  can be really scary and ⁓ there's a lot that you have to hold close to the chest and you have to feel really safe to share those things even if you need the help. So yeah, you have to be really intentional about how you build those things.
  
  Melissa Halpin (36:05)
  scary and lonely.
  
  Right.
  
  Absolutely, absolutely. Well, that kind of gets into well-being. How are you taking care of yourself, like, and managing all these pressures?
  
  Ang (36:29)
  That's a great question. I will be transparent and say...
  
  Melissa Halpin (36:33)
  Not well.
  
  Ang (36:33)
  I don't actually think this is something that
  
  I'm great at. I will say one of the hard boundaries I've always set is that if I'm on vacation, if I'm off the clock, I'm off the clock. ⁓ setting those boundaries has been really, important for me. It was interesting when 2020 happened because all these folks started working at home. And I've worked at home my entire adult life.
  
  Melissa Halpin (36:45)
  That's good.
  
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Right.
  
  Ang (36:59)
  Not 100%. It's usually been basically what we now know is hybrid. ⁓ But it was interesting to hear people be like, man, this is harder than I thought it would be. like, man, I really thought that working from home was just like not working. And I'm like, yeah, no, it's not. It definitely is not. But so I've always set really, really clear boundaries about if I'm off the clock, unless it's an emergency, I'm off the clock. And that's really helped me.
  
  Melissa Halpin (37:03)
  Me too.
  
  Yes.
  
  No, no.
  
  Mm-hmm. Right.
  
  Ang (37:27)
  now when that clock starts and stops, that can be a problem. But, I will say being able to like flip the switch in my brain and learning how to build that muscle to be able to do that to say like, not only to my staff, but to myself, you're off the clock switch gears. Yes. Let the, you know, let the notifications pile up until the morning. It will be fine.
  
  Melissa Halpin (37:35)
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Right, right, you need rest and recovery.
  
  Yeah.
  
  Ang (37:49)
  ⁓
  
  And then the other thing actually I was just talking to a staff member about this today is determining how you reset for the day. So for me, I spend what I know that there's probably lots of people that will cringe at this, but I spend about a half hour while I'm like eating breakfast or laying in bed or whatever, like basically clearing my notifications and seeing like what has changed about my day, what you know, what what does my day look like? What, you know?
  
  what fires can I put out before I get to my computer and get sucked into a whole thing? ⁓ So kind of clearing those notifications before I sit down so that I can actually do my work when I sit down. and then I would say the other big thing that's helped me has been time blocking. So like I still am doing all of our grant writing and things like that. And anything that takes concentration over a longer period of time.
  
  Melissa Halpin (38:19)
  Right.
  
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Ang (38:40)
  I have to block that off in my calendar so that I'm not getting interrupted. I'm not, you know, getting requests, things like that. And last is learning for me where I need coworking, which, has often been like, Hey, you know, development associate, we're going to sit in a Google room and I'm going to just be on mute and typing this grant. But then I can just ask you questions.
  
  Melissa Halpin (38:42)
  Okay.
  
  Ang (39:05)
  but that will help me concentrate better. And so I do that, but I also encourage our staff to do that as well. If you're working on projects together, even if you're just sitting in a room together, like we've been working on policy and procedure for about two years and we have a time where we just all co-work on policy and procedure. We're all sitting in the room. No one's talking, but like we all know we're working on this thing. And then if someone's like, I'm working on this.
  
  Melissa Halpin (39:07)
  Right.
  
  Ang (39:28)
  I have a question, can anybody else, has anybody else done this yet? Then you can very quickly, you know, hit each other up about those things. It helps you be more intentional with that time to make sure you stay on task, but it also allows you to work, co-work with folks that are kind of working on those same goals, even if it's in a different way. So I feel like having those boundaries around how I work on the clock has also helped me actually
  
  Melissa Halpin (39:32)
  Yeah.
  
  Ang (39:54)
  hit the switch and be off the clock as well.
  
  Melissa Halpin (39:56)
  All
  
  Yeah, it flows over into your personal life once you set them, I think.
  
  Ang (40:01)
  Right, exactly.
  
  Melissa Halpin (40:02)
  So what are you working on right now that excites you the most?
  
  Ang (40:06)
  good question. What am I working on right now that excites me the most?
  
  So one of the things that I talk about a lot at Arts and Scraps is making sure that we are thinking about the organization as a whole more than the organization with us in the room. I believe that our mission should be bigger than any of us. And the example I often give is Peg, ⁓ that she was able to...
  
  Melissa Halpin (40:18)
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Ang (40:30)
  birth this mission, raise it for 26 years, and then give it away and walk away and have it be healthy without her. Like I told, like I said earlier, it took her about six years to build everything that needed to be built for her to do that. And so I've always been really, really intentional about making sure that we are creating those policies and procedures, creating
  
  Melissa Halpin (40:32)
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Right.
  
  Ang (40:56)
  you know, those documents that if somebody had to pick up your job tomorrow because you won the lottery and left, you know, someone else can do that, right? Really being intentional about how we are thinking through policies and procedures so that the phrase I use all the time is you have to set policy and procedure in the best of times so that when the worst of times happens, you are ready. ⁓ So if you set policies and procedures when there's
  
  Melissa Halpin (41:01)
  Mm-hmm.
  
  Right.
  
  Right.
  
  Ang (41:21)
  everyone there that you trust and you know no one's going to steal money, then if somebody tries to, you know what's happening and you have those policies and procedures. Exactly. So as we've been building this infrastructure for arts and scraps to live on, those have been those core concepts we've been working on. How will the organization be bigger than any one of us? And how will we set policies and procedures in the best of times to make sure that we're ready in the worst of times? And I will say that
  
  Melissa Halpin (41:26)
  Right. Then the procedure is there, right? Yeah.
  
  Ang (41:48)
  you know, 2020 hit and that man, that was the worst of times. And we had policies and procedures that we had to, you know, fall back on and think through and actually utilize. And it made a huge difference. Now we've also hit times where we're in the worst of times and we didn't have those policies and procedures in place. And man, man, did we write them after because then we really knew what that needed to look like for the future. So it's
  
  Melissa Halpin (41:52)
  It sure was.
  
  Of course. Yeah.
  
  learn.
  
  Ang (42:14)
  partially that legacy piece of thinking about if you want this organization or mission or small business or whatever it is to live for another 36 years or if you're a small business owner if you want to go to being an owner-operator Right and not be in the day-to-day work You have to be thinking about how you're building those systems and policies and procedures so that you can Walk away whether it's because you won the lottery you got hit by a bus or you just want to make money and not have to work anymore
  
  Melissa Halpin (42:43)
  Right.
  
  Ang (42:44)
  whatever that looks like, it can be really difficult to concentrate on that, right? Cause it's not the actual day to day work, but putting aside time, whether it's on a weekly basis or a monthly basis, whatever it is to make sure that you're building all of those pieces for your business really strengthens the organization as a whole so that the bumps in the road that will absolutely happen don't knock you off the road. So.
  
  Melissa Halpin (42:51)
  Right.
  
  yet. Yeah.
  
  Ang (43:09)
  I'm really passionate about all that boring stuff.
  
  Melissa Halpin (43:12)
  You know, it's not too often we find someone passionate about these things, but you you are creating it. It is a creative, you know, if your mindset can shift to seeing that as building, I think for lot of creatives and entrepreneurs, they might be able to slow down a little bit and do it. I really want to thank you. You shared so much wisdom today. I know there are a lot of people in this community who
  
  are creatives who want to start nonprofits that just have a lot of overlap with you. Can you tell us how they can connect with you and how they can support Arts and Scraps?
  
  Ang (43:44)
  Absolutely. Well, you can always go to our website, which is just artsandscraps.org. I would also suggest connecting with our social media. We're most active on Facebook and LinkedIn. I'm sorry, Facebook and Instagram, probably Instagram more than anything else. On Tuesdays, we have Trash Treasure Tuesdays, which are like a reel on Instagram that show you all the goofy things we have in the store. Highly entertaining, highly recommend.
  
  Melissa Halpin (43:57)
  Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Okay.
  
  Okay.
  
  Ang (44:09)
  But if you want to connect with me, you can always email me. My email is adamack, A-D-A-M-I-A-K at artsandscraps.org, all spelled out, no spaces or anything. Or connect with me on LinkedIn, connect with me on Instagram. I'm always happy to connect with folks. And honestly, the biggest way that you can support Arts and Scraps is spreading the word about Arts and Scraps, coming and shopping at Arts and Scraps, or being a donor.
  
  This month, Earth month, we always do our monthly giver campaign and we have about 30 individuals that give on a monthly basis and honestly, it makes a huge difference. It makes a huge difference. So... ⁓
  
  Melissa Halpin (44:45)
  Right. Having that cash,
  
  having that little bit of cash flow that you can count on is huge. I mean, for every business and nonprofit.
  
  Ang (44:50)
  Exactly. Yes.
  
  Absolutely. So, and I will encourage you, like even if Arts and Scraps isn't your mission, I encourage you, whatever your mission is, whoever, whatever organization you care about, give to them monthly. whatever you give per year, split it up, make it monthly. You won't have to think about it anymore. Most organizations have a monthly giver program, so you like get regular updates about the mission, things like that. It's a really enjoyable way to connect to the nonprofit that you care about.
  
  Melissa Halpin (45:08)
  Yeah.
  
  Ang (45:21)
  But it also really supports the organization in some really deep and meaningful ways. So I encourage you to think about giving monthly anywhere you want to give.
  
  Melissa Halpin (45:30)
  Okay, and we'll include all of those links tips in the show notes. I just want to thank you for showing us what's possible when we lead with creativity, care, and community. Arts and Scraps isn't just about making arts. It's about making access, opportunity, and imagination a reality. I think for youth and for adults.
  
  join us in our Facebook community, The Kindling Project Ignite. I think you're already there. But we have conversations with lots of women who are dreaming of building a nonprofit or starting a business or contributing to their community in some way. until next time, thank you so much.
  
  Ang (46:10)
  Thank you.