HAI Turns 35!

During the 1960s, Michael Jon Spencer performed numerous piano recitals / lectures at NY State Psychiatric Centers. Observing the recuperative effect these concerts had on patients, he realized that exposure to the arts can have enormous psychological and physical health benefits. In 1969, he founded HAI as a vehicle to help individuals who are culturally isolated to enrich their lives through access to the arts.

Over the past three and one half decades, HAI has grown into a prominent New York City nonprofit agency, providing a wide array of arts and educational services. Inside you will find out more about some of HAI’s most recent accomplishments and milestones such as the 10th Anniversary of two HAI programs: the Saturday Art Studio and Violence Prevention Workshops.