Today we’d like to introduce you to Rahsona Elder.
Hi Rahsona, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
“I was just a kid from Paterson, NJ with a big heart and dreams. We started with two students in 1998. Last year we serviced close to 2,000 in multiple locations. Through out my career we serviced over 10K children and families. I am humbled. Grateful to God for the journey..” – Rahsona Elder (Smith), Founder
InnerFaith Performing Arts Center, Inc. (IPAC) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit, faith-based arts organization based in Paterson, New Jersey. Founded on December 31, 1998, by social worker and artist Rahsona Elder (Smith), the organization is dedicated to empowering local youth through creative, technical, and cultural arts education. Elder holds a MSW from Fordham University.
Core Programs & ClassesIPAC offers a comprehensive arts curriculum tailored to boys and girls ages 3 to 17. Their initiatives focus on building confidence, discipline, teamwork, and self-expression:Saturday Dance Academy: Offers structured training in various movement styles (such as ballet and creative dance).After-School & In-School Arts Programs: Direct training inside Paterson public schools and local community sites covering music, theater, voice, media, and dance.Summer Camps: Seasonal creative workshops designed to give children full immersive experiences in performance and visual arts.First Ward Initiatives: Active community partnerships, including creative arts training and family enrichment events hosted in public spaces like Cobb Park. The park has a dedicated playground in honor of Rahsona’s mother and the late InnerFaith Founding Board Member Commissioner Lynda “Sarge” Smith.The renovated park features brand-new playground equipment and a rubberized safety surface, including inclusive elements for children with autism. Smith, a respected Paterson NJ state commissioner and community pillar who passed away in 2020, co-founded local initiatives aimed at creating positive opportunities for youth. Elder’s ongoing advocacy is deeply intertwined with preserving her mother’s impact through several key areas in Paterson’s first ward.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Sustaining programs over decades. Keeping a community arts organization operating for nearly three decades requires continual funding, facilities, staff, partnerships, enrollment and fundraising. IPAC has continued despite those pressures and has trained more than 10,000 youth according to its published history. The Dream HUB project represents the next major evolutionary phase for Rahsona Elder and the InnerFaith Performing Arts Center (IPAC).While Elder has fronted capital outreach and public scaling to fund this massive structural project, the campaign is tied to a broader transition strategy for her organization. Raising capital for a major project like this is not for the faint at heart.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
🌟 What makes IPAC stand out 1. Longevity with purpose.
Founded in 1998, IPAC has remained committed to children and families for nearly three decades—a remarkable legacy for an independent, community-based arts nonprofit. Under Elder’s leadership, the organization has provided professional training and creative opportunities to more than 10,
000 young people. Creating jobs for teaching artist locally and abroad.
2. The arts + social development model.
This may be IPAC’s most distinctive strength. Along with music, theater, voice, art, media and dance, IPAC developed Social Arts Programs addressing grief, anger management, self-esteem, bullying and healthy peer relationships through creative expression. That combination reflects Elder’s unique background as both an artist and a social worker.
🩰 The standout signature program: Tiny Ballerina
My pick for IPAC’s most recognizable standout program is Tiny Ballerina. It has the strongest potential to be a true signature brand because it introduces very young children to the beauty, discipline, confidence and joy of dance at an early age.
What makes Tiny Ballerina especially powerful is its identity: it isn’t just another dance class. It can represent the beginning of an IPAC journey—where a child’s first pair of ballet shoes can lead to years of artistic growth, confidence and connection to the organization.
What would you say have been one of the most important lessons you’ve learned?
Lessons I Teach Every Child
Every Child Has a Gift.
I believe every child has something special within them. My job is to help them discover it, nurture it, and give them the confidence to share it with the world.
Hard Work Will Beat Talent When Talent Doesn’t Work Hard.
Talent is a gift, but discipline, commitment, perseverance, and consistency are what turn potential into achievement. I teach children to show up, work hard, and never give up on themselves.
A Whole Child Makes a Successful Child.
Success is more than what a child can perform. We must develop the mind, body, heart, spirit, character, confidence, and creativity. When we nurture the whole child, we prepare them not just for the stage—but for life.
My greatest lesson:
“We believe all God’s children are stars”
Pricing:
- 25 registration
- 20 per session
Contact Info:
- Website: innerfaithpac.org
- Instagram: @innerfaithperformingarts
- Facebook: InnerFaithPAC
