Coloring in Connecticut: DREAM Expands Creatively in New Britain
- Elexxus Ryan Perea
- 1 day ago
- 5 min read
Updated: 22 hours ago
Every artist begins with a blank canvas.
For our new DREAM Connecticut region, that canvas is a vibrant community filled with possibilities. At its center is Jordan Dias, who believes that building a community is its own kind of art.
Before stepping into nonprofit leadership, Jordan spent years thinking about how people grow, express themselves, and build something meaningful. Coming from a background in art, he’s very familiar with the ways painting, sculpting, and drawing are used to craft stories and bring people together. When his path led him into nonprofit work, he began to recognize that same creative process in the relationships and communities he was helping to build.
“When I came to DREAM, I started thinking about the work the same way I think about making art,” he says.
Building a new region usually means beginning without a finished picture, so there’s space to listen, experiment, and allow the community to influence what the work might become. For Jordan, that openness is an important part of creating something that belongs to the people who will be a part of it. It’s also what makes the work feel creative to him. As the region takes shape through the people who become a part of it, Jordan sees the space they are building for others to grow as a work of its own.
“I always wanted to make art that could help people,” he says. “Then I realized helping people is the art.” — Jordan Dias, Youth Service Director
Today, that perspective guides the vision he is bringing to the DREAM Connecticut region.
DREAM Connecticut Sees Outside the Lines
DREAM’s mission has always been to close the opportunity gap through mentorship, adventure, and enrichment. Jordan hopes to carry that mission forward by focusing on the possibilities in young people's lives. He does not want the barriers they face to become the defining frame of their story. Instead, he wants DREAM Connecticut to create room for them to move beyond the outlines others may have drawn.
Jordan’s goal is to help them explore more of who they are and support them as they imagine their own futures. By celebrating what they already bring to the table and surrounding them with people who can help them recognize it, Jordan hopes that the young people who become a part of DREAM Connecticut will be able to move through life with greater trust in their potential.
That hope is where his creative life and his role at DREAM begin to meet. Both start with noticing something that’s already there, and helping to bring it into full view. Youth who arrive at DREAM bring their own ideas, histories, and ways of seeing the world. Jordan wants them to know that those things matter. That there’s someone who sees them and believes their possibilities are endless. His role is to help them see that possibility too, and discover the strengths and talents they may not have realized were already there. By giving them room to experiment and explore those parts of themselves, Jordan believes they will color in a story brighter than anything DREAM could imagine for them. All the while, he remains a steady presence they can lean on as they begin to imagine what they want to create with their lives.
"We're not here to fix or mold kids," he explains. "We're here to walk alongside them as they build their own futures."
Room To Leave a Mark in New Britain
Now that programming is in full swing in New Britain, Jordan’s able to see what his philosophy looks like in practice. Youth are encouraged to ask questions, follow their interests, and leave room to discover new ones along the way. They're active in designing their own activities, and can try out new ones they may not be familiar with. This community has become one where they are free to be loud, be curious, and be themselves. As they come to learn that it’s safe to take up space here, Jordan hopes they will begin to leave their mark here as well. He’s already seeing the ways their confidence has grown since they’ve let their full personalities shine. “They’re more comfortable speaking. They’re not hiding as much. They get to express themselves as they are without these preconceived notions,” he shares.
DREAMer shows off their drawing of a fire truck. Dreamers expressing creativity and drawing together. DREAMers and mentors drawing together. DREAMer shows off their drawing of a fire truck.
These days, Jordan's office is rarely quiet. Children’s voices drift in and out throughout the day, while kids stop to ask questions, tell stories, or just see what he’s up to. He welcomes them with attention and patience, taking the time to listen to each one. Those ordinary conversations can be some of the most impactful parts of his work. They reflect the trust he’s built with young people, and the care that goes into maintaining it. As that trust grows, he hopes that it opens the door to new people, places, and ways of seeing the world.
“I want them to know there is more,” he says. “I want them exposed to other lifestyles that aren’t a vacuum or conversations that are not an echo chamber, exposure to different cultures.”
Jordan knows that a new perspective can lead to new possibilities. Throughout their journey at DREAM Connecticut, youth will meet people who carry different experiences or a different way of seeing the world. Those connections can change how they understand the world around them, and may even lead them to paths they never knew existed. “The connections you make with people, those last longer than anything you can put on paper.” For Jordan, that’s the beauty of this work. “They get to break through barriers and meet people who will see them for who they are,” he explains.
Drawn Together: DREAM Connecticut Builds Something Meaningful
Those connections are ultimately what make all of this work possible. DREAM Connecticut’s vision may have started with Jordan, but it has been brought to life through the commitment of mentors, families, and community partners. Through its partnership with DREAM, the New Britain Housing Authority has helped Jordan build strong relationships with local families and create safe spaces for youth to grow and thrive. Those same families have trusted DREAM with their children and play an essential role in our mission, offering insight that helps us support young people every day. Students from local schools, such as Wesleyan University and Central Connecticut State, have dedicated their time to serving as mentors, bringing guidance, consistency, and encouragement into the lives of young people. Together, they’ve built a community centered on imagining what’s possible. For Jordan, DREAM Connecticut is only the beginning of what this community can create.
“You start with a blank canvas… and then you build something meaningful together.”
If you'd like to be part of the DREAM New Britian community or follow along the journey, you can connect with the region through Linkedin.
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