National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Jane Chu has approved more than $80 million in grants as part of the NEA’s second major funding announcement for fiscal year 2018. Included in this announcement is an Art Works grant of $50,000 to Education Through Music to support year-long music education for youth in the Bronx. The Art Works category is the NEA’s largest funding category and supports projects that focus on the creation of art that meets the highest standards of excellence, public engagement with diverse and excellent art, lifelong learning in the arts, and/or the strengthening of communities through the arts.
“The variety and quality of these projects speaks to the wealth of creativity and diversity in our country,” said NEA Chairman Jane Chu. “Through the work of organizations such as Education Through Music in New York City, NEA funding invests in local communities, helping people celebrate the arts wherever they are.”
“On behalf of Education Through Music, and the tens of thousands of deserving New York City children who are enrolled in ETM partner schools, we thank the NEA. These funds will be used to support partnerships in the highest-need areas of the city,” said Katherine Damkohler, Executive Director of Education Through Music.
“Grants like these, and relationships with our federal partners, underline the importance of access to quality music education for all children.”
“Education Through Music is doing imperative work in the field of music education that’s led to proven results for students, families and teachers,” said Richard Bernstein, Chairman of Education Through Music, and Executive Vice Chairman of Cushman & Wakefield. “It is wonderful for this work to be supported by such a generous grant from the NEA.”
The NEA funds will help Education Through Music expand its reach in the Bronx to provide more children with music education as a core subject which has been shown to build a child’s self-confidence, increase their motivation for school and improve their academic achievement.
For more information on projects included in the NEA grant announcement, visit arts.gov/news.
About Education Through Music
Education Through Music was founded in 1991 to promote the integration of music into the curricula of under-resourced schools in order to enhance students’ academic performance and general development. ETM forms long-term partnerships with elementary and middle schools to develop sustainable, long-term music programs.
The ETM model currently serves 30,000 students in New York City, and our model reaches another 12,000 children through the work of our licensed affiliate organization in Los Angeles. ETM’s comprehensive, sustainable music education network has garnered the support of corporations, public policy makers and foundations, including The Music Man Foundation, CMA Foundation, The Jerome L. Greene Foundation, Steinway & Sons, William Randolph Hearst Foundation and D’Addario Foundation. For more information visit ETMonline.org.
