Conservatory’s Academy Awarded NEA ArtWorks Grant
The UMKC Conservatory’s Academy is pleased to announce that it has received a National Endowment for the Arts ArtWorks$20,000 grant for its Conservatory in the Schools program. This is the second NEA grant for this program. The groundbreaking Conservatory in the Schools programs provide high-quality performing arts instruction encompassing three distinct in-school programs and targets young musicians from underrepresented populations in the Kansas City metro area.
Conservatory Dean Peter Witte said, “Today’s NEA grant is another endorsement of UMKC’s commitment to inclusion and arts education. Through Conservatory in the Schools, Conservatory students learn to connect and serve prior to launching their careers. With this most recent grant, we’ve garnered close to $300,000 since 2008. The result? Our Conservatory students are engaged in neighborhoods, teaching, learning, and building bridges.”
Academy director Mara Gibson notes, “Continued recognition from the NEA affirms that we are serving our mission to provide high quality music instruction here in Kansas City, one student at a time. In 2015-16, we will reach 61 individual Musical Bridges students, and touch more than15 schools, reaching hundreds through our programs Composers in the Schools and Ensembles in the Schools.”
Enjoy the short video below about Conservatory in the Schools and read a great article about Musical Bridges, one of the outstanding programs of Conservatory in the Schools.