To better connect Colorado Springs’ local art community with its students and educators, The Cultural Office of the Pikes Peak Region has launched a new online search tool to ease the process.

PeakArtsEd.com is the region’s first centralized tool where educators and community members can discover and book local creative classes, educational programs, field trips, camps and more from local arts organizations.

The online hub is the newest addition to the COPPR’s PeakRadar.com, an online cultural calendar for the Pikes Peak region and audience development program.

The website offers media exposure, culture guides and information to local artists, arts organizations and event venues.

Dedicated search tools for educators, community members and organizations are available on the website, along with a how-to guide, to help each interested party find exactly what they’re looking for.

“This our largest expansion of PeakRadar.com, our flagship program, in years,” COPPR Executive Director Angela Seals said in a press release. “This powerful website continues to connect our community to arts, culture and entertainment, increasing access, stimulating our creative economy, and boosting participation in the arts — now in new ways.”

PeaksArtsEd also serves as the latest step of COPPR’s Arts Vision 2030 plan which aims to make arts education offerings from local artists and organizations more accessible.

The portal bears similarities to Think 360 Arts For Learning in Denver, nonprofit that works to connect local arts programming to K-12 schools along with other community venues.

Local educators can search for programs like field trips, arts-integrated workshops and in-school performances.

“There’s even a dropdown menu for standards, which is very helpful for teachers in school to help them validate supplementing their classwork,” COPPR Program Manager of Education Melissa O’Rear said.

Beyond public education, community members can find art classes in theatre, music, dance and visual arts. Classes cater to a variety of demographics, from youth to age 55+, including special programs for military families and community members needing accessibility or therapy options.

At the same time, arts organizations in the area can promote their classes and programs year-round for free simply by creating a profile on PeakRadar.com.

At the time of the tool’s Aug. 14 launch, 19 local organizations had already signed on to be included on the website. Since then, seven more groups have joined.

O’Rear said they would like to see the number of participants grow to 50 by next spring.

The program is already making an impact, helping connect local schools to materials and resources they couldn’t have accessed otherwise.

“When a school makes a purposeful effort to educate using the arts, content is learned on a much deeper level,” said Ian Schimmel, Assistant Principal at Widefield Elementary School of the Arts. “Risks are taken, laughter is heard, and the whole child is educated.”

O’Rear is in the process of demonstrating the program to representatives of school districts in the region to increase its awareness.

Although the program is centered around the arts, there are also opportunities for science, technology engineering and math (STEM) education with categories for science, technology and social studies/world history already listed as options for arts integration education.

Once the tool is more familiarized and established, O’Rear hopes it can also be used as a go-to resource for accessing available grant funding, curriculum for schools to adopt and even education for individual teachers.

“This could be a landing page where teachers could find their own professional development opportunities,” she said.

“PeakArtsEd is a game changer for our community, providing arts programs in an accessible one-stop shop,” Colorado Springs Children’s Chorale Executive Director Marcia Hendricks said. “This tool will benefit arts educators and arts organizations alike, broadening program access for students throughout the Pikes Peak region.”