826 Seattle, a part of the 826 National network of non-profit community writing centers, will soon split from its parent organization and create a new organization titled the Greater Seattle Bureau of Fearless Ideas. The new organization will do many of the same things as 826 Seattle, just as a new and independent organization.
According to the Stranger, the plan to create the Bureau of Fearless Ideas had been in the works for about a year and had many different names, including Pencil Head and Studio 26. There are no hard feelings between 826 Seattle and 826 National prompting the change. Rather, executive director Teri Hein believes her center was always different than the others, and that they needed to grow beyond the 826 national mission statement. Hein also hopes that the Bureau of Fearless Ideas can become an affiliate of 826 National.
826 National is a nonprofit organization that provides free writing tutoring at their seven writing centers in Boston, New York, Chicago, Washington DC, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and the larger Ann Arbor area. They serve more than 32,000 students between the ages of 6 and 18 and have roughly 6,000 active volunteers.
The Bureau of Fearless Ideas will still be doing many of the things that 826 Seattle was known for, and perhaps a few more. They will continue to offer free writing tutoring, writing classes, and other writing-related events. Plus, given the rebranding effort, the Bureau of Fearless Ideas will be provided with the opportunity to expand their image of what they do as an organization.
According to 826 Seattle’s website, there will be an open house on Saturday November 15th from 12–2 in their tutoring center. The post says they will reveal a “big surprise” at the event—the official name change is likely the announcement.
What do you think about 826 and other community writing centers?
