By Geraldine Inoa | Development Associate
Happy Summer from ETM!
We hope you’re enjoying these wonderful last days of summer! Although the school year may be over, the impact of your support on our partner school students is still going strong. During the 2015-16 school year, your generosity transformed the lives of nearly 27,000 children through quality music instruction that improved academic performance and cultivated emotional intelligence. And today, that dramatic growth is continuing to benefit our students beyond the classroom.
This is especially true for our first-year partner school students—many of whom had never before had music as a consistent part of their school routine. Students like Jayden, a fourth grader at P.S. 75 in Brooklyn—a first-year partner school this past year. Because of music, Jayden is gaining a better sense of himself and the world.
Jayden suffers from a psychological condition that hinders his ability to socialize with others, which complicates his school life and alienates him from his peers. A learning disability made classwork also a challenge for Jayden. Often, he seemed adrift in school. He was frequently absent and only engaged with his classmates through outbursts and disruptions.
This year, his school’s new music program helped Jayden turn over a new leaf. He joined the chorus and became a thriving member of the group. His attendance improved. In music class, Jayden gradually started to listen to his peers and acknowledge when they spoke to him. He grew confident in social interactions and began to trust the people around him. As the year went on, his involvement in the music program deepened and his behavior in music class continued to improve. Jayden became an example his classmates could follow.
One day, his music teacher asked for volunteers to demonstrate a body percussion lesson in front of the class. Jayden volunteered and bravely and beautifully illustrated the lesson for his teacher and classmates. Afterward, he raised his hand and said, "I don't like to perform in front of everyone because it makes me shy and nervous, but I love music, so I wanted to try. When I was doing it, I got nervous but I looked up and saw everyone looking at me and no one was laughing or being mean and I felt really happy. I can't wait until we can all do this together in the concert." This was such a pivotal moment for Jayden—one that illustrated all the growth he had been making over the year. The emotional intelligence and stronger sense of self Jayden developed are the same skills that will steer him toward a brighter and more successful future. Music is grounding Jayden, giving him a motivation to come to school and connect with people and world around him.
Thank you for helping to provide deserving children with the opportunity to reach their potential. Your investment is building brighter tomorrows for inner-city students across New York City just like Jayden, whose passion for music is steering him toward a positive direction in his life. Share this report with your friends and family and show them the life-changing impact they can have on children by supporting their music education!
Links:
Project reports on GlobalGiving are posted directly to globalgiving.org by Project Leaders as they are completed, generally every 3-4 months. To protect the integrity of these documents, GlobalGiving does not alter them; therefore you may find some language or formatting issues.
If you donate to this project or have donated to this project, you can receive an email when this project posts a report. You can also subscribe for reports without donating.
Support this important cause by creating a personalized fundraising page.
Start a Fundraiser
