Young Musicians Unite Inc

YOUNG MUSICIANS UNITE BELIEVES THAT EVERY STUDENT IN MIAMI-DADE COUNTY DESERVES ACCESS TO MUSIC EDUCATION REGARDLESS OF THEIR SOCIO-ECONOMIC BACKGROUND. WE COLLABORATE WITH SCHOOLS TO PROVIDE FREE MUSIC EDUCATION WHICH HAS BEEN PROVEN TO INSPIRE PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT, FOSTER A SENSE OF COMMUNITY AND PREPARE OUR FUTURE LEADERS.

YOUNG MUSICIANS UNITE PROVIDED PROGRAMS FOR 3,812 STUDENTS AGES 9-18 IN 35 SCHOOLS ACROSS MIAMI-DADE COUNTY INCLUDING: YOUNG MENS PREP ACADEMY, JOSE DE DIEGO MIDDLE, BOOKER T. WASHINGTON HIGH; CORAL GABLES SENIOR HIGH; MIAMI BEACH SENIOR HIGH, NORTHWESTERN SENIOR HIGH, MIAMI CENTRAL SENIOR HIGH, MIAMI EDISON SENIOR HIGH, MIAMI CAROL CITY SENIOR HIGH, NAUTILUS MIDDLE, FIENBERG FISHER K-8, NORTH BEACH ELEMENTARY; NORTH GLADE ELEMENTARY, LAKE STEVENS ELEMENTARY, BEACON COLLEGE PREP, SKYWAY ELEMENTARY, BRENTWOOD ELEMENTARY, BARBARA HAWKINS ELEMENTARY, EARLINGTON HEIGHTS ELEMENTARY, OLINDA ELEMENTARY, KELSEY L. PHARR ELEMENTARY, MIAMI GARDENS ELEMENTARY, NORTH GLADE ELEMENTARY, CITRUS GROVE K-8, NORTH COUNTY K-8, MYRTLE GROVE K-8, WEST LITTLE RIVER K-8, LEISURE CITY K-8, BROWNSVILLE MIDDLE, THE SEED SCHOOL OF MIAMI, SOUTH DADE MIDDLE, LAKE STEVENS MIDDLE, MADISON MIDDLE, CAROL CITY MIDDLE, AND THE YMU STUDIO IN ALLAPATTAH ACTIVITIES: INSTRUMENT INSTRUCTION, PUBLIC PERFORMANCES AND PARTICIPATION IN ENSEMBLES DURING AND AFTER SCHOOL (DRUMLINE, MUSIC TECH, BEGINNING BAND, JAZZ/ROCK ENSEMBLES, STRINGS, MODERN BAND, SONGWRITING, BEATMAKING, RECORDING). WITH AN EXPANDED PRESENCE IN MIAMI-DADE COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS, YMU WAS ABLE TO IMPACT 3,812 STUDENTS THROUGH ENGAGING THEM WITH HIGH-QUALITY MUSIC EDUCATION. IN 2022-23, YOUNG MUSICIANS UNITE (YMU) OFFERED COURSES IN JAZZ BANDS, ROCK ENSEMBLES, MUSIC PRODUCTION, MODERN BAND, BEGINNING BAND, ORCHESTRAL STRINGS, DRUMLINE, PITCH & RHYTHM, SOUND ENGINEER, AND SONGWRITING AND BEAT MAKING, MEETING STUDENTS WHERE THEY ARE, AWAKENING THEIR NATURAL DESIRE TO LEARN AND MASTER THE MUSIC THEY ARE MOST INTERESTED IN. WE PROVIDED 3 PILLARS OF YMU PROGRAMS AND INSTRUMENTS AT NO COST TO STUDENTS, INCLUDING: 1. IN-SCHOOL PROGRAMS: DESIGNED TO PROVIDE ACCESS TO MUSIC EDUCATION WHERE IT OTHERWISE WOULD NOT EXIST, OUR PROGRAMS WERE EMBEDDED IN OUR PARTNER SCHOOLS CURRICULA AND DESIGNED TO HELP STUDENTS OF ALL LEVELS, GENRES, AND ABILITIES SUCCEED. WE WORKED CLOSELY WITH OUR STUDENTS AND SCHOOL PARTNERS TO ENSURE THAT WHICHEVER SCHOOL THEY HAPPEN TO ATTEND, AS THEY MOVE THROUGH THE GRADES, EACH OF THEM HAD ACCESS TO CONTINUAL MUSIC EDUCATION FROM GRADES 5-12 THROUGH 87 90-MINUTE CLASSES (2-3 DAYS/WEEK) DURING THE YEAR. THIS INCLUDES: - STEAM: YMU UNIQUELY USES ART AS A PLATFORM TO ENTICE STUDENTS TO ENGAGE WITH SUBJECTS THAT ARE OFTEN DIFFICULT FOR THEM TO GRASP, SUCH AS SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, ENGINEERING, AND MATH (STEAM). YMUS 5.0 STEAM LESSON PLANS, DESIGNED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH MDCPS, ARE ACCESSIBLE, RELATABLE, AND REWARDING FOR STUDENTS. LESSONS EXPLORE A CORE CONCEPT THROUGH ALL 5 ASPECTS OF STEAM TO ENSURE THE CONTENT STICKS ACROSS MULTIPLE STYLES OF LEARNING, E.G. DISCOVERING SOUND WAVES AND DESIGNING, BUILDING, TESTING AN ACOUSTIC AMPLIFIER, AND PLOTTING DATA POINTS AS PART OF THEIR RESULTS. LESSONS TAKE PLACE 4X/YEAR WITH STUDENTS GRADES 6-8. 2. AFTER-SCHOOL ENSEMBLES + MEDIA ARTS: SUPPLEMENTING IN-SCHOOL PROGRAMS AND HOUSED IN OUR PROFESSIONAL-QUALITY YMU STUDIO, AFTER-SCHOOL ENSEMBLES AND MEDIA ARTS PROGRAMS ENABLED HIGHLY MOTIVATED STUDENTS TO FURTHER DEVELOP VALUABLE MUSICAL AND EXTRA-MUSICAL SKILLS AND TALENTS TO MONETIZE VIA CAREERS IN THE CREATIVE INDUSTRIES, SUCH AS ADVANCED PERFORMING ENSEMBLES, GRAPHIC DESIGN, BOOKING, BAND MANAGEMENT, STAGE CREW, LIGHTING, LIVE SOUND, RECORDING AND PHOTOGRAPHY, STAGE PRODUCTION, AND HANDS-ON EXPERIENTIAL TRAINING IN OUR PROFESSIONAL MUSIC RECORDING STUDIO. OUR AFTER- SCHOOL PROGRAMS HAVE BEEN PART OF OUR PROGRAM FOR 11 YEARS, PROVIDING ACCESS AND INTENSIVE PROGRAMMING TO STUDENTS THAT EXCEL IN MUSIC AND WANT TO GET TO THE NEXT LEVEL. STUDENTS WORKED ALONGSIDE OUR PERFORMING ENSEMBLES AND AFTERSCHOOL PROGRAMS AND SHOWCASES, SUPPORTING OVER 150 PERFORMANCES IN 2023-24. 3. PERFORMANCES: YMU STUDENTS, PRIMARILY THE ADVANCED ENSEMBLES, EACH PARTICIPATED IN AT LEAST 3 LIVE PERFORMANCES IN 2022-23 TO SHOWCASE THEIR SKILLS TO AN AUDIENCE OF CLASSMATES, FAMILY, FRIENDS, FACULTY AND STAFF. THEY ALSO PERFORMED IN A VARIETY OF PERFORMANCES THAT INCLUDED HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH. YOUTH WORKED TOGETHER IN A COLLABORATIVE SETTING AS THEY LEARNED TO PLAY THEIR INSTRUMENT, READ MUSIC, AND GAIN REAL-WORLD EXPERIENCE THROUGH GROUP PERFORMANCES. YMUS IN-SCHOOL PROGRAMS FOCUSED ON PROVIDING ACCESS TO MUSIC EDUCATION WHERE IT OTHERWISE WOULD NOT EXIST, WHEREAS AFTER-SCHOOL PERFORMING ENSEMBLES & MEDIA ARTS PROGRAMS ARE FOCUSED ON PROVIDING VOCATIONAL EXPERIENCE FOR OUR STUDENTS TO ENSURE THAT THEY ARE EMPLOYABLE OR ELIGIBLE FOR COLLEGE SCHOLARSHIPS.