Event Recap: Color A Smile is Changing the World One Drawing at a Time

On July 18, 2025, Dwight Hall co-hosted a Yale Day of Service event titled “Color A Smile.” Yale Day of Service is the university’s annual celebration of service, which brings alumni and current Yalies together to serve their local communities worldwide. The event was led by Kitty Koo-Tse ’01 M.S., Yale Graduate School Alumni Association Board Member.

Held on Yale’s Cross Campus, the heart of the university, the event welcomed students, alumni, and families to take a break through art. The event saw more than 50 volunteers from across a wide range of backgrounds come out to color drawings with crayons and markers to give back to the community. Volunteers colored vibrant drawings intended to make one smile in celebration of National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month. These completed works of art were then sent to Color A Smile, a nonprofit organization that has distributed over one million drawings to individuals since its inception.

When asked for comments regarding the event, Kitty Koo-Tse ’01 M.S. remarked that it was “inspiring to see volunteers from across campus and the New Haven community come together in support of mental wellness, foster a sense of belonging, and spread joy through creativity.” As Kitty stated, it was “powerful to see what we can achieve together.”

Also at the event was Dr. Cecilia Fromata, Assistant Professor of Child Psychology at Yale School of Medicine, who facilitated discussions with attendees on the topic on mental health and community well-being. When asked about the event, Dr. Fromata said volunteers “honored the importance of mental well-being” that was both “uplifting and deeply human.”

Dwight Hall has encouraged students to achieve social change and improve mental health through fellowships like the Community Mental Health Fellowship and community events like “Color A Smile.” Dwight Hall’s programs and fellowships have long worked to connect students and alumni by directly engaging with communities in New Haven and beyond.

The “Color A Smile” event revealed that small acts of kindness and the power to enact change through collective action can be done through simple acts like drawing or picking up a crayon.

The “Color A Smile” event exemplifies the Engage pillar of Dwight Hall’s Engage, Grow, and Advance program delivery model. As part of this pillar, Dwight Hall students and member groups work to build meaningful relationships between Yale and the New Haven community through direct service and civic participation.