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Who are we?

ACAT is a no-cost, after-school music and arts enrichment program that offers all Greater Haverhill children the opportunity to explore their boundless creativity and musicality.

Young boy with curly hair playing a violin on a colorful stage decorated with autumn leaves.

A young girl lying on the floor playing a hammered dulcimer, with a boy kneeling nearby watching.

Two children and an adult in a classroom coloring leaf outlines on paper with markers. The adult is helping the children, with various coloring supplies on the table.

A group of five children sitting on a stage, one girl playing a keyboard, wearing a Santa hat, and two boys looking at their phones, in a setting decorated with colorful banners and a blue wall.

Two girls smiling and wearing animal-themed costumes, one dressed as a bunny and the other as a giraffe, indoors near a wall.

Two women sit at separate tables on a stage with colorful curtains. The woman on the left has curly blonde hair, wears glasses, a green shirt, and is holding a stuffed animal. The woman on the right has short dark hair, is wearing a black shirt, and

Two children painting a large strip of white paint on a long sheet of brown and white paper on the floor.

Children holding violins in a classroom or community center, some seated and some standing, with adults nearby, participating in an event or class.

Children performing a play on stage with adults playing musical instruments in the foreground.

Group of children on stage rehearsing with a conductor.

Children on stage dressed in colorful costumes, wearing face masks, during a school play or performance with an adult in the foreground.

Children dressed in colorful costumes, wearing masks, standing together indoors.

Three young people in a recording studio. One woman with pink hair and glasses stands, pointing at a computer monitor. A curly-haired boy in a black T-shirt sits in front of a sound mixer, and another person with curly blonde hair and glasses sits ne

Four children sitting on a wooden bench playing guitars and wearing face masks, festive holiday hats, and casual clothing in an indoor setting with a blue wall background.

Children dressed in festive holiday costumes playing violins on stage during a Christmas performance, with a woman in a Christmas sweater standing to the left.

Three children standing on stage, wearing white t-shirts with blue snowflake designs and paper snowflake headbands, participating in a winter-themed performance.

A girl with a name tag 'Wynne' playing an electric keyboard, a man with a name tag 'John' sitting beside her, and an older man and a boy in the background in a room with shelves and notes on the wall.

A man with glasses and a white beard, wearing a blue checkered shirt and a name tag that says Mr. Bruce, is talking to a young girl with glasses, a purple bow in her hair, and a denim jacket, who is seated at a digital keyboard. There are shelves wit

A young girl in a pink hoodie with braided hair and a pink headband, smiling with her eyes closed, sitting at a desk with arts and crafts supplies, including a colorful paper ball, glue stick, and purple construction paper, in a classroom setting.

Six children standing in a line, participating in an activity in a room with a stage and other children in the background.

Children and an adult stand inside a room, participating in a game involving a web of strings stretched across the space they are in.

Collage of musical instruments including paintbrushes, a violin, an acoustic guitar, and a piano keyboard with a stage curtain backdrop. Text reads 'ACAT! 2024-25'.

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Classes run September to May

ACAT’s after-school music and arts program meets each Thursday during the school year and provides children in grades 1 through 8 a safe and welcoming space to explore their creativity and musicality through instrumental, theatre and, art classes.

ACAT classes are held each Thursday afternoon from 3:30 to 6:00 from September through mid-May.

At ACAT, kids are welcomed with healthy snacks during an open time while they transition from school, work on homework, or engage in a quiet, creative project before heading off to two 40-minute class sessions.

We offer music classes in chorus, piano, guitar, or violin as well as theater, and art. Kids have fun exploring the arts, expressing themselves creatively, while building confidence and community as they share their learning with family and friends during two performance recitals held in December and May.

What an ACAT afternoon looks like

3:30 - 4:15 Snacks / homework or quiet creative time
Kids are greeted, checked in and welcomed to enjoy some snacks and time to
settle in, work on some homework or engage in a quiet creative project.

4:15 - 4:30 Announcements / Circle-time
We begin each week with a gathering song followed by a check-in with
one another and a centering exercise.

4:30 - 5:50 Class Time
Kids head off with teachers and mentors to their first 40-minute class followed by
a brief transition check-in before heading off to their second 40-minute class.

5:50 - 6:00 Closings and Pick up
We gather back together for a brief clean-up while waiting on parent/caregiver
pick up.

A person with long curly brown hair in a ponytail playing an acoustic guitar while sitting on a wooden chair.

Three kids sitting on the floor, reading a book in a room with blue walls decorated with colorful paper flowers, umbrella cutouts, and small paper circles. A keyboard is visible in the foreground.

Young boy playing the violin during a performance on a decorated stage with autumn leaves and trees painted on the backdrop.

Summer Theatre Workshop

ACAT’s annual Summer Theatre Worksop is a multilingual musical theatre presentation at Trinity Church, 26 White St., Haverhill. It is a full a week of fun, friendship, and learning. Thanks to the support of the Haverhill Cultural Council, generous donors, and volunteers, over the past summers, our kids have had a great learning experience and were able to share the fun with their families and community.

Children performing on a decorated stage, dressed in colorful costumes, with ocean-themed decorations and fish hanging from the ceiling.

School Year Program

ACAT is a free after-school music and arts program for Greater Haverhill children in grades 1 to 8. The low-cost program provides all children an opportunity to explore their boundless creativity and musicality through vocal, instrumental, theatre and art classes.

The fall session starts in September and classes meet Thursday from 4 to 6 p.m. inside Trinity Church at 26 White St., Haverhill.

We are proud to participate in the Card to Culture program, a collaboration between Mass Cultural Council and the Department of Transitional Assistance, the Women, Infants & Children (WIC) Nutrition Program, and the Massachusetts Health Connector, by breaking down the financial barriers to cultural programming. Children of EBT, WIC, and ConnectorCare cardholding families receive free admission.

Registration is limited. For more information, contact admin@urbanbridgesinc.org, or call 978-457-1538.

An older man with gray hair and glasses, wearing a blue checkered shirt and a name tag that says 'Mr. Bruce,' is talking to a young girl with glasses and curly hair tied with a purple ribbon, who is sitting at a keyboard. They are in a room with metal shelves filled with plastic containers and paper with musical notes on the wall.

Our Teachers are the foundation of our program. Every child deserves to learn from the best. All our ACAT teachers are professional musicians and artists that love children, inspire them to be creative, and provide them with a life-long appreciation for the arts.

A music lesson taking place with a young boy and an adult man sitting on the floor, each holding guitars, in a room with shelves filled with books and baskets.

ACAT Teachers

Dream it.

David Talmage (Guitar) has won awards as a songwriter, banjo and fiddle player. He loves entertaining, and teaching and working at ACAT is one of the things he finds most rewarding in life.

“Mr. Dave” has been with the program since 2011.

Build it.

Jan High (Violin) has played violin since Elementary School, and taught at ACAT since the second year of the program’s existence, Jan has certification to teach the Suzuki Method through Book 3. She also plays with the Merrimack Valley Philharmonic Orchestra. She looks forward to another year of working with our wonderful students!

Noah Greenstein (Theatre) is an actor, graphic artist, and social media coordinator. He holds a BA in Graphic Design from Northern Vermont University and AA in Art from Northern Essex Community College. On stage, he originated the role of Harold in Rite of Passage, appeared as the Gaoler in Saltonstall’s Trail (which was voted Best Ensemble by BroadwayWorld Boston), appeared in the Equity production of No Victors, No Vanquished in Boston, and as Oliver in Puffs.

Kerry Anne Kilkelly (Theatre/Arts) is our new ACAT Director. She studied Graphic Design, Communications and Theatre at Endicott College in Beverly and Suffolk University in Boston and has spent years engaged in varying aspects of stage theatre and film work.

Grow it.

John Churchwell (Piano) teaches Group Piano for ACAT and enjoys teaching piano to beginner students. He has been playing the piano for 40 years. and the organ for 35 years. He is the Music Director for Trinity Episcopal Church in Haverhill. Mr. John is from Arkansas, so be prepared for his accent! teaches Group Piano for ACAT and enjoys teaching piano to beginner students. He has been playing the piano for 40 years. and the organ for 35 years. He is the Music Director for Trinity Episcopal Church in Haverhill. Mr. John is from Arkansas, so be prepared for his accent!

Our Community Partners

Trinity-Trinidad Church, Haverhill

Boston Church of Christ

Merrimack Valley Community Action

Head Start Early Intervention

Haverhill Citizens Center

The Giving Tree

City of Haverhill

MakeIT Haverhill

Merrimack Valley Project

Unitarian Universalist Church of Haverhill

L’Arche

Our Financial Partners

Haverhill Cultural Council

Trustees of the Sears and Other Funds

City of Haverhill

Trinity-Trinidad Church, Haverhill

Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts

Mass Cultural Council

Haverhill Cultural Council

Second Church, Boxford

Pentucket Bank

Rotary Club of Greater Haverhill

The Cogswell Foundation

The JF Maddox Foundation

Mass Executive Office of Workforce Development