Leigh Curran founded the Virginia Avenue Project in 1991 and served as its Artistic Director for 11 years. The Project was a free after-school program based in Santa Monica’s Pico Corridor that combined the performing arts with one-on-one mentoring to help at-risk youth realize their full potential. Children typically joined the program in elementary grades and most remained through high school. The program boasted a 100% high school graduation rate, with 90% of participants going on to college and 85% being the first in their families to do so.

* Leigh transitioned out of her role at the Virginia Avenue Project in 2013.