Where kids are more than one kind of smart.
Whole Minds is where they find out.
Each week, eight kids ages 11–14 explore different ways of thinking, creating, and connecting through hands-on challenges and collaborative projects.
$100/month · No Kids Turned Away For Lack Of Funds · Starts October 12, 2026 · Mondays 6-7p · Resource Center For Nonviolence · Santa Cruz, CA
Why Whole Minds?
Kids need room to surprise themselves.
By twelve, most kids have been sorted. You’re the athlete or you’re not. You’re good at math or you’re not. There aren’t many places left to try something just to see what happens.
At Whole Minds, exploration has structure. Eight kids meet every week with a trained Whole Minds facilitator. Each session stretches a different capacity language, logic, art, music, movement, self-awareness, relationships, and community engagement. No screens. No grades. No pressure to be good at it.
Kids try unfamiliar things, discover strengths they didn’t know they had, and learn what they’re capable of creating with others.
Explore
Discover new interests and ways of understanding yourself and the world.
Create
Turn ideas into something you can make, express, or share.
Belong
Build relationships across differences and contribute to something shared.
Be
Notice what’s happening inside you, reflect, and make space for who you are.
Whose in The Room?
Whole Minds grew out of years of teaching kids to make music.
Thomas Sage Pedersen founded Everyone’s Music School, where he and his team have taught hundreds of kids ages 7-18 in Santa Cruz County for over 10 years. Whole Minds grew from what they learned about helping kids explore, create, and grow.
Institute of Creativity and Belonging
The Whole Minds Youth is a program of The Institute of Creativity and Belonging which cultivates human potential and strengthens our shared humanity.
Through arts programming, music, creative learning, and community dialogue, we help people become more fully themselves, connect across differences, and participate meaningfully in their communities.