Art Institutes

Community Arts Resource Exchange

Ai CARE Program

At The Art Institutes, we’re committed to providing our students with an accessible, affordable, relevant and purposeful education that equips them for meaningful careers in their chosen fields. We are a system of accredited, private, non-profit schools located throughout the United States, offering undergraduate and graduate programs in the design, media arts, culinary arts and fashion.

Through the Community Arts Resource Exchange (CARE) program, senior-level students dedicate their time and talents to meeting the needs of non-profit organizations in the community. Whether in developing a marketing campaign to support a successful annual fundraising gala or designing a physical space that can be used to better meet the needs of a non-profits clients, The Art Institutes are dedicated to meeting the needs of the communities where we educate our students. We are committed to exposing students to the rewards of charitable giving through service learning projects that also help advance their educational progress and career goals.

Each Art Institutes location carefully selects community outreach projects that are a good fit with its educational programs and goals. Please select a location below for more information on how your non-profit organization can apply for assistance from our schools.

Review the Criteria for Selection PDF


Click Here for a CARE Program application

Contact Information

If you have questions or need assistance in completing your application, please call Keith Chandler at 480-327-3485 or email AIDCAREDallas@aii.edu.

CARE Program Volunteer Efforts


Miami International University of Art & Design

The MIU community recently took on an amazing community-minded opportunity to work with Miami’s Homeless Trust organization on a project called, Roofs Rising where 1,100 miniature wooden houses were painted to raise awareness of homelessness in Miami. The 1,100 houses represent the actual number of beds needed to house Miami’s street homeless. The final, painted houses were used in an art installation in the form of one large house. Students from our visual arts program along with some staff took on painting 200 houses of the 1,100 that were completed.

The Art Institute of Dallas - A branch of Miami International University of Art & Design

Tammy Wascovich, an instructor at The Art Institute of Dallas, a branch of Miami International University of Art & Design, was this year’s Decoration Committee Coordinator for the 2018 Kidney Cancer Coalition’s Rock the Cure event. Wascovich enlisted the help of Ai Dallas Audio Production instructor Doug Holmes and Barb Pennington, Assistant to the President, to each paint a guitar made from plywood. The decorated guitars were used as centerpieces on the tables and subsequently sold during the banquet’s auction to support fundraising efforts. All proceeds from the event and auction were used to fund the research of the UT Southwestern Kidney Cancer Program.


The Art Institute of Houston

The Art Institute of Houston welcomed to campus Brighter Bites, a local nonprofit that delivers fresh fruits and vegetables to families, while also teaching them how to eat healthier and more nutritious meals. 

Culinary Instructor Chef Elaine Small provided a 2-hour knife skills class to 20 Brighter Bites employees, teaching them knife skills for cuts that included julienne, oblique, batonnet, allumette, paysanne and chiffonade.

The goal was to help them to create efficiency and consistency in their day-to-day processes, while allowing them to add a variety of textures and enhanced visual appeal to their food.