When budget shortfalls forced the Fullerton school district to cut its arts curriculum nearly 35 years ago, a group of parents took action.

Driven by their deep belief that arts education is just as necessary in children’s education as math, science and history, the motivated parents founded the All the Arts for All Children Foundation.

Lauralyn Eschner, right, founder and creative director of All the Arts for All the Kids, stands alongside children from Morningside Children’s Center as they wait to board their bus after an art session in Fullerton on Thursday December 12, 2024. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, collaborating photographer)

The newly opened All the Arts for All the Kids studio also has a small gallery to showcase work in Fullerton on Thursday, December 12, 2024. The new studio space will offer classes for adults as well as children. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, contributing photographer)

Angel Ramirez, 7, center at Morningside Children’s Center, learns to form clay using a potter’s wheel with help from Marsha Judd, left, of All the Arts for All the Kids at Fullerton on Thursday, December 12, 2024. Fischer Liu, 5, right, looks on. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, contributing photographer)

Isla McCann, 6, left, works on her clay creation with help from Marsha Judd, teacher at All the Arts for All the Kids in Fullerton, Thursday, Dec. 12, 2024. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, contributing photographer)

A clay creation made by a young student from All the Arts for All the Kids in Fullerton on Thursday, December 12, 2024. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, contributing photographer)

A Morningside Children’s Center class works on an art project at the All the Arts for All the Kids studio in Fullerton on Thursday, Dec. 12, 2024. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)

Kellee Wightman, left, executive director of All the Arts for All the Kids, interviews children from Morningside Children’s Center about their experience creating art at All the Arts for All the Kids in Fullerton on Thursday, Dec. 12, 2024. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, collaborating photographer)

A young student learns to work clay on a potter’s wheel with the help of an art teacher at All the Arts for All the Kids in Fullerton on Thursday, Dec. 12, 2024. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)

Fischer Liu, 5, of Morningside Children’s Center, puts the finishing touches on his clay project during an art session at All the Arts for All the Kids in Fullerton on Thursday, Dec. 12, 2024. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, photographer collaborator)

Lauralyn Eschner, center, founder and creative director of All the Arts for All the Kids, supervises students at Morningside Children’s Center as they work on an art project using clay in Fullerton on Thursday, Dec. 12, 2024. The foundation has recently opened a studio in downtown Fullerton while continuing to provide art education in Fullerton schools. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, contributing photographer)

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Lauralyn Eschner, right, founder and creative director of All the Arts for All the Kids, stands alongside children from Morningside Children’s Center as they wait to board their bus after an art session in Fullerton on Thursday December 12, 2024. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, collaborating photographer)

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The foundation has since raised more than $3 million for the Fullerton School District, ensuring that every child in the district benefits from art, music, dance and theater lessons.

And now, the nonprofit has taken a big step forward by opening its first brick-and-mortar studio in the heart of downtown Fullerton.

“It has been a long-held dream of ours to have a space where the community can come and nurture their creative spirit, and we are incredibly grateful to the many people who have helped us make this dream come true,” said Lauralyn Eschner, member of All the Arts co-founder and its creative director, said. “Our goal is to help support creative arts experiences for children of all ages. »

As part of the studio’s recent grand opening celebration, the foundation donated an additional $30,000 to the Fullerton School District.

Although the studio has only been open about two months, the creative space is bustling with activity daily, with more than two dozen educators tapping into students’ inner artists in multiple media.

The studio offers ongoing classes and full-day workshops in painting, sculpture, digital imaging, music, dance, theater and much more.

The studio’s first-ever exhibition, “Creative Sparks,” was on display until just before Christmas, showcasing the works of several local artists.

All the Arts for All the Kids has traditionally served the Fullerton School District, but now, with a functioning studio in place, the foundation is expanding to include arts education for all children and adults.

“We have a space and it’s to nurture creativity,” Eschner said. “Creativity through the arts is one of the best vehicles for creativity, and it’s really what’s going to solve all of the world’s problems.” When you think about it, all the inventions in the world were made because of someone’s creative idea, which they were then able to translate into reality.

With the new studio in place, the foundation hopes to collaborate on projects with the Fullerton Museum and the Muckenthaler Cultural Center, said Eschner, former director of visual and performing arts for the Fullerton School District.

Executive director Kellee Wightman, also one of the nonprofit’s founders, said the All the Arts Foundation was a godsend for her daughter, who was once told she wasn’t inclined to study.

“I signed her up for an art class,” Wightman said. “She was doing incredible things.”