Hands are for Holding®
Overview
Hands are for Holding® is a youth-centered arts education program that uses dance and movement to engage in conversations about healthy relationships.
Developed in 2014 in close partnership with Day One and the Mayor’s Office to End Domestic & Gender-Based Violence, this program has reached over 40,000 young people, and over 200 schools and organizations across the nation.
Details and Booking
Youth Workshops
Each workshop session includes the following:
- A live dance performance featuring professional dancers, followed by guided conversation.
- Movement and dance activities to explore healthy relationships.
- Resources for young people around teen dating violence and mental health.
Topics Explored
- Boundaries
- Healthy vs. Unhealthy Relationships
- Mental Health and Technology
- Bullying and Cyberbullying
Program Structure
- Can be offered as a Multi-Workshop series (up to 80 participants) or a One-off Workshop (up to 150 participants)
- Appropriate for Grades 3 and up, tailored to the needs of distinct age groups.
- Duration of sessions 45-60 minutes, available to be scheduled Mon-Fri between 9:00am-6:00pm.
To learn more, submit an interest form or give us a call to inquire about program details and pricing. We are committed to working with NYC schools to accommodate budgetary restraints whenever possible.
Professional Development Workshops
Each workshop session includes the following:
- A live dance performance featuring professional dancers, followed by guided conversation.
- Building shared language around healthy relationship topics.
- Exploring methods for implementing SEL-focused embodied activities into practical contexts.
- Offering everyday self-care tools applicable for young people and adults.
- Sharing available resources and discussing strategies for supporting young people.
One-Off Workshop or Series
- In person or virtual workshops available (up to 80 participants).
- Duration of sessions 75-90 minutes, available to be scheduled Mon-Fri between 9:00am-6:00pm.
- 1-2 virtual planning meetings to customize the workshop plan for your community.
To learn more, submit an interest form or give us a call to inquire about program details and pricing. We are committed to working with NYC schools to accommodate budgetary restraints whenever possible.
Book a Workshop
For more information or to bring the Hands are for Holding® program to your organization, click here.
Testimonials
“I discovered that I could use movement to express my emotions and let out all the stress or anxiety I had bottled up inside me.”
– Student Participant
“Thank you all so much for your support for our students and our community. We heard rave reviews from our staff who participated in the session and we appreciated your arts-focused approach to SEL .”
– Assistant Principal at Partner School
Media
Hands are for Holding® Partners
Local & National Schools and Organizations
Academy for Environmental Leadership
A Call to Men
ACCION Academy
Achievement First North Brooklyn Prep Middle School
August Martin HS
Baltimore County Public Schools
Bard College
Baruch College Campus High School
Briarcliff High School
Brighter Choice Community School
Bronx Academy of Letters
Bronx Bridges HS
Bronx Dance Academy
Bronx Leadership Academy
Brooklyn Friends School
Brooklyn Gardens Elementary School
Brooklyn High School for the Arts
Brooklyn International High School
Brooklyn School for Social Justice
Brooklyn Urban Garden Charter School
Brownsville Academy High School
Center for Anti-Violence Education (PACT)
CES Regional Center for the Arts
Channel View High School
Children’s Aid
Citywide Students in Temporary Housing Conference
Coalition School for Social Change
Columbia University
Consulate General of Denmark: Citizen Sustainability Summit
Cultural Academy for the Arts and Sciences
Cypress Hills Community School PS 089
Day One
Dos Puentes Elementary School
DYCD Step It Up
E.S.M.T. IS 190
East Flatbush Research Community School
Edward R. Murrow High School
Ella Baker School
ENDGBV + Queens FJC: Healthy Families Resource Fair
Entrada Academy
Essex Street Academy
Fannie Lou Hamer Middle School
Fordham Institute for Women and Girls Conference
Fordham Leadership Academy
Forsyth Satellite Academy High School
Franklin Middle School
Frederick Douglass Academy
Friends Seminary
Grace Church School
Gramercy Arts High School
Great Oaks Charter School
Hamilton Heights
Harlem Village Academy
Harvest Collegiate High School
Harvey Milk High School
Health Opportunities High School
Herbert H. Lehman High School
High School for Law, Advocacy, and Community Justice
Hope’s Door Annual Teen Symposium
Hunter College: NYSDEA
International High School at Union Square
Intrepid Museum – GOALS Program
IS 117 Joseph Wade
IS 217 School of Performing Arts
IS 228 David A Boody
IS 281 Joseph B Cavallaro
IS 291 Roland Hayes
IS 392
IS 584
IS 61 Leonardo Da Vinci
It Takes a Village Academy
Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis High School
James Madison High School
JHS 98 Herman Ridder
Kent Place School
Khalil Gabran International
Kurt Hahn Expeditionary Learning School
Lansdowne High School
Lansdowne Middle School
Life is Precious – Bronx
Life Is Precious – Brooklyn
Life is Precious – Queens
Life is Precious – Washington Heights
Lili’uokalani Trust
Loch Raven Academy
Lower Manhattan Academy of the Arts
Lutheran Social Services of New York (Fortitude House)
Lutheran Social Services of New York (Vanguard House)
Lyons Community School
Marie Curie High School
Middle River Middle School
Middle School for Art and Philosophy (MS 588)
Middle Village Prep School
M.S. M247 Dual Language Middle School
MS 202 Robert H. Goddard
MS 210 Elizabeth Blackwell Middle School
MS 217 Robert Van Wyck
MS 258 Community Action School
MS 301 Satellite East
MS 328
MS 340 North Star Academy
MS 377 Renaissance School of the Arts
MS 447 The Math & Science Exploratory School
MS 53
New Heights Academy Charter School (ACDP COMPASS)
New Visions Charter High School for Advanced Math & Science II (AMSII)
New York Presbyterian Hospital
Nightingdale-Bamford School
North Bronx School of Empowerment
Northside Charter High School
NYC Arts Office
NYC DOE – Election Day PD (OSYD)
NYCHA (Staten Island)
One to World
Orchard Collegiate Academy
Pace High School
Peekskill Middle School
Phipps Neighborhoods
Pikesville Middle School
Police Athletic League
Poly Prep
Professional Pathways High School
PS 125 Ralph Bunche
PS 140 The Eagle School
PS 154 Jonathan D. Hyatt
PS 163Q Flushing Heights
PS 165 Ida Posner
PS 165Q
PS 169 Sunset Park School
PS 188 The Island School
PS 194 Countee Cullen
PS 196
PS 199 Frederick Wachtel School
PS 2 The Alfred Zimberg School
PS 201Q
PS 202K
PS 21 Crispus Attuck
PS 239Q
PS 298
PS 299 Thomas Warren Field
PS 306 The Ethan Allen Community School
PS 32
PS 330Q
PS 343 Peck Slip School
PS 38 Roberto Clemente Learning Complex
PS 463 Urban Scholars Community School
PS 50 The Vito Marcantonio School
PS 536
PS 54 Magnet School
PS 56 The Lewis H. Latimer School
PS 59 William Floyd
PS 67 Charles A. Dorsey School
PS 68Q
PS 81Q
PS 91Q
PS 92 Bronx School
PS 92Q The Harry T. Stewart School
PS 94 Henry Longfellow
PS 96 Global Kids
PS/IS 171 Patrick Henry
PS/IS 178Q The Holliswood School
PS/IS 226
PS/IS 284
PS/IS 686 Brooklyn School of Inquiry
PS/MS 161 Pedro Albizu Campos
PS/MS 194
PS/MS 200 The Magnet School for Global Studies and Leadership
PS/MS 5 The Port Morris School of Community Leadership
Riverdale Avenue Middle School
Russel Sage JHS 190
Sanctuary for Families Benefit
St Nicks Alliance The Green School
Stemmers Run Middle School
Storefront Academy Harlem
Stuyvesant High School
Success Academy Harlem East
Summer Streets
TAG Young Scholars School
Talent Unlimited High School
The Brearley School
The Door
The Door – Bronx Youth Center
The Urban Assembly Unison School
Tilden Educational Campus
Townsend Harris High School
University Neighborhood High School
University Neighborhood Middle School
William Cullen Bryant High School
Williamsburg Charter High School
Windsor Mill Middle School
Hands are for Holding® Support
Gibney’s Hands are for Holding® Program is generously supported by Hearts Port Washington, The Pierre and Tana Matisse Foundation, the New York City Council and Council Member Harvey Epstein, the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature, the Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund, and The Joseph LeRoy and Ann C. Warner Fund, Inc.
As of August 13, 2026.