For the past several years, ARAS has been offering an intensive, summer program for New York City teenagers called Pioneer Teens. The goal of this educational outreach program has been to provide an immersive experience for young people centered around the often unnoticed and unexplored, important role that symbolic imagery plays in our daily and imaginal lives. If you are unfamiliar with Pioneer Teens, here is a video that explains how it works.
We also have a blog that contains descriptions of our program written by our teens.
--The 2024 Pioneer Teens Program was generously sponsored by The Robert Lehman Foundation.--
As we have worked with this program we have nurtured the vision that we might make the fruits of its development accessible to teachers, students, and individuals who want to learn how to explore symbols and run similar programs. Our idea for a guide book eventually took shape in A Journey Through Symbols: Your Guide to Exploring the Imagination. We are thrilled to announce that the book, both in a version for groups and a version for individuals, is now available to view and download for free on Archipelago. (Of course you can also make a voluntary donation to ARAS in exchange for the book if you would like).
Please visit our Curriculum page to find this guide. One for Jungian candidates and analysts is also in the works.