School Shootings This Year

Source: Katie Godowski, www.pexels.com

By Sam Piha

School shootings have unfortunately become commonplace but that doesn’t mean we should accept them as normal or acceptable. Over the years we have posted blogs on this topic, which can be accessed here and we will continue to speak out when they happen.

“There have been 40 school shootings this year that resulted in injuries or deaths, the most in a single year since Education Week began tracking such incidents in 2018. There have been 132 such shootings since 2018. Prior to 2022, the highest number of school shootings with injuries or deaths was last year when there were 34. There were 10 in 2020, and 24 each in 2019 and 2018.” - Education Week, School Shootings This Year: How Many and Where

Below we share Education Week's latest School Shooting Tracker, updated October 31, 2022. 

2022 SCHOOL SHOOTINGS INJURIES & DEATHS 

• 40  School shootings with injuries or deaths
• 122  People killed or injured in a school shooting 
• 34  People killed 
• 28  Students or other children killed 
• 6  School employees or other adults killed
• 88 People injured 

Here are a few organizations to help you get involved with to prevent school shootings:

• March For Our Lives
• Every Town
• Sandy Hook Promise

Source: Youth Service America

What Researchers and Experts Have to Say: The Benefits of Music and Music Making for Young People

Source: The NAMM Foundation

By Sam Piha

We know through our own personal experience that music and music making is very important to youth. However, it is useful to identify research that speaks to this issue. We continue our spotlight on the power of music in afterschool. You can view our previous blogs here.

“Research expands understanding about the impact of music making and music education, the importance of music at every stage of life, and relationships between music and physical and emotional wellness… There is an increasingly robust literature of recent research findings that support the developmental importance of music in adolescence.” – The NAMM Foundation

There is an abundance of research on the importance of music for adolescent development. Below we offer a few findings from research on the benefits of music and music making for youth development.  

Belonging
“Music creates a much-needed sense of belonging in the lives of teenagers. Teenagers are known for feeling isolated from society and friends. Music, as an art form, can serve as an outlet to express the feelings of frustration that come with feeling isolated. Listening to music can also give teens the chance to feel connected to musicians and other fans of specific musicians. 

Music is also something that can be enjoyed fairly privately and away from judgement, allowing teens to tailor their experiences to what they actually would like to listen to or play. Learning how to play music also gives teens real, impressive, marketable skills, making them feel useful and capable. Writing and making music is also a way for teens to express themselves as privately or as publicly as they wish.” – Author and music therapist, Cara Jerniga 

Bridging Societal Gaps
“Our society tends to be very racialized, and experiences tend to be very different depending on race or ethnicity. Music provides the opportunity for teens of all races and ethnicities to share a common bond and learn about each other's cultures and backgrounds. For instance, much of the Rap and R&B genres are rooted in Black culture, and many of the prominent performers and names in those genres are Black. Music is also usually very personal to the experience of the artist, so through those things, music can be used as an educational tool for teenagers to learn about backgrounds differing from theirs.” – Author and music therapist, Cara Jerniga 

Executive Functions
“Music may expose the child to challenges and multi-sensory experiences which enhance learning abilities and encourage cognitive development. In particular, music can also engage cognitive functions, such as planning, working memory, inhibition, and flexibility. These functions are known as executive functions.” – Researcher, Dave Miranda

Source: Heart of LA

Developmental Resource 

“Music influences important aspects of adolescent development; music can represent a protective and a risk factor; and music can serve as an adjunct component in prevention and intervention. Therefore, it is proposed how music is a developmental resource in adolescence. It is argued that research on the developmental role of music can create a window to the everyday psychological, social, and cultural needs of contemporary adolescents.” – Researcher, Dave Miranda

Engagement 
“Music provides opportunities in school for teens’ engagement as performers, composers and intelligent listeners, and these activities and qualities appear to be deeply meaningful to them. For teens who are desperately seeking relevance, musical study may give them the balanced experience they require.” – NAMM 

Stress Relief and Coping 
“Music is a well known outlet for stress relief. Many people actively turn to music as a coping strategy when processing stress or sadness, because it helps shut out the noise of the world and the noise inside our heads. Furthermore, music is increasingly being used as a form of therapy, and music therapy in some capacity has existed for centuries. Teenagers, especially those going through puberty, conflicts with friends, or the college process, are under a high amount of stress. Listening to music has been seen to help teens process or release difficult sensations or emotions in a healthy way.” – Author and music therapist, Cara Jerniga

“Music helps adolescents release or control emotions and helps coping with difficult situations such as peer pressure, substance abuse, pressures of study and family, the dynamics of friendships and social life, and the pain of loss or abuse.” – The NAMM Foundation

Identity
“What music and music making means to teens? It helps define them as they grow up, it gives them purpose and meaning, and contributes to their success in school and in life.” – Joe Lamond, president and CEO, NAMM

Source: DJ Mackswell

“Music can also provide teenagers with a skill or hobby that is special to them, which can help further build identity and give teens something to be proud of during a period of life that is often characterized by low self-confidence. Music is an incredibly powerful tool that can be accessed and appreciated by people of all ages and backgrounds, and for that reason alone, it should be appreciated and utilized by anyone and everyone.” – Author and music therapist, Cara Jerniga

The Brain
“Research shows that making music changes the brain, and that these brain changes have tangible impacts on listening skills, learning and cognition.” – Nina Kraus, Ph.D., Director, Auditory Neuroscience Laboratory, Northwestern University

“Music training leads to greater gains in auditory and motor function when begun in young childhood; by adolescence, the plasticity that characterizes childhood has begun to decline. Nevertheless, our results establish that music training impacts the auditory system even when it is begun in adolescence, suggesting that a modest amount of training begun later in life can affect neural function.” – Tierney, Adam T., Jennifer Krizman, and Nina Kraus

VIDEOS
Below we cite 4 videos that explain the benefits of music and music making in the lives of young people. 

The Benefits of Music Education for Children Extends Beyond Childhood

How Playing an Instrument Benefits Your Brain- Anita Collins

5 Benefits of Music

PBS NEWSHOUR- Exploring the Connection Between Music Making and Mental Health

On November 7, 2022, from 10am- 12pm PST, Temescal Associates and The How Kids Learn Foundation will be sponsoring a webinar on this topic entitled, The Sound of Learning: The Importance of Music in Afterschool. Speakers will include researcher Patricia Shehan Campbell (UW), Les Peters (LBYMCA), Jon Bernson (BACR/SNBC), Kevin Peraza (Youth Institute Alumni) and Ren Daraio (Temescal Associates). To learn more and register for this informative webinar, click here.

YOUTH VOICE: The Meaning of Music Participation In and Out of School

Source: www.pexels.com

By Sam Piha

“We will do well to listen to what teens tell us about music as a common need and a constant presence in their lives. Music is their social glue—a bridge for building acceptance and tolerance for people of different ages and cultural circumstances.”- Patricia Shehan Campbell, Ph.D.

Anytime we want to better understand what things mean to youth, we should ask them. Below are some summaries and statements on the importance of music in young people’s lives originally published on the National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) Foundation website.

“Music is my life. It's a safe haven.” - Student at Skaneateles High School.

Source: Davis Sanchez, pexels.com

The study conducted by Patricia Shehan Campbell Ph.D (University of Washington), titled “Adolescents’ Expressed Meanings of Music in and out of School,” was based on responses by 1,155 teens who submitted student essays to Teen People magazine as part of an online contest. Throughout their essays, students expressed their thoughts regarding learning and playing music and revealed that they value music making as a central aspect of their identities.

“The findings include:

• Playing music provides a sense of belonging for teens
• Making music provides the freedom for teens to just be themselves; to be different; to be something they thought they could never be; to be comfortable and relaxed in school and elsewhere in their lives
• Music helps adolescents release or control emotions and helps coping with difficult situations such as peer pressure, substance abuse, pressures of study and family, the dynamics of friendships and social life, and the pain of loss or abuse
• Teens believe developing musical skills and performance is important since it paves the way to musical opportunities as skills develop
• Teens long for more variety and options for making music in school, including the expansion to instruments and technology used in popular music
• Adolescents are genuinely committed to their instruments and their school ensembles because they love to be involved in these musical and social groups
• Teens believe that music is an integral part of American life, and that music reflects American culture and society
• Teens feel that playing music teaches self-discipline such as “there are payoffs if you practice and stick with something”
• Adolescents are of the opinion that playing music diminishes boundaries between people of different ethnic backgrounds, age groups and social interests
• Teens associate playing music with music literacy, listening skills, motor ability, eye-hand coordination and heightened intellectual capabilities.”

A Good Resource for Research

The National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) Foundation is a not-for-profit association dedicated to advancing active participation in music making across the lifespan by supporting scientific research, philanthropic giving and public service programs.

On November 7, 2022, from 10am- 12pm PST, Temescal Associates and The How Kids Learn Foundation will be sponsoring a webinar on this topic entitled, The Sound of Learning: The Importance of Music in Afterschool. Speakers will include researcher Patricia Shehan Campbell (UW), Les Peters (LBYMCA), Jon Bernson (BACR/SNBC), Kevin Peraza (Youth Institute Alumni) and Ren Daraio (Temescal Associates). To learn more and register for this informative webinar, click here.

Millions of Youth Are Newly Eligible Voters in 2022

Source: Photo by Mikhail Nilov: https://www.pexels.com

By Sam Piha

The 2022 election offers a number of opportunities to engage older youth. We can frame these efforts as “meaningful participation”, “civic engagement”, “youth leadership” or “community service”. There are a number of organizations and initiatives that have designed curriculums, program tools and other materials to assist afterschool providers in their efforts to engage youth in the 2022 election. Consider working with youth to organize a voter registration event in your school. At the end of the blog, we list some resources on how youth can get involved.

Did you know that:

-“Young people who have turned 18 since the 2020 election are a sizable group that is diversifying the electorate and can have a decisive impact on the midterms. There are an estimated 8.3 million newly eligible young voters for the 2022 midterm elections—meaning, youth who have turned 18 since the previous general election in November 2020. These 18- and 19-year-olds comprise 16% of the 18-29 age group for the 2022 election.” - Peter de Guzman, Researcher

-Young people can pre-register to vote at the age of 16. There are a number of ways that youth can be involved in the 2022 election, even if they are not old enough to vote. These include sponsoring a voter registration event, supporting family and friend’s participation, uplifting stories and issues they care about, supporting a candidate’s campaign through volunteering or being part of the election process.

-“There are distorted “assumptions about young people and how they participate in political processes that are common and are often triggered by lack of understanding and/or by prejudice. These persistent assumptions inaccurately characterize the everyday experiences of most youth – who do not constitute a homogenous group – and can lead to discrimination of young people, negatively affecting their capacity to participate in political processes… Assumptions about young people that distort the actual picture include the following: 

• they are apathetic about and disengaged from politics – so, for example, they don’t bother voting
• they lack maturity, experience, and knowledge, implying they are not capable or intelligent enough to make informed decisions (such as when voting) and are easily manipulated
• they are “anti-state,” with a propensity for violence and extremism.” – The ACE Project

ELECTION VIDEO BY RAPPER, YELLOPAIN

We learned about how teachers and youth workers can use a video by rapper, Yellopain, entitled, "My Vote Don't Count," which can be viewed by clicking on the image below. 

Source: Yellopain, Youtube.com

RESOURCES

Below are a number of other resources that you can check out:

• Growing Voters: 18 Ways Youth Under 18 Can Contribute to Elections 
• Afterschool Alliance Election Toolkit
• Rock the Vote Democracy Class
• The Civics Center- Bringing Voter Registration to Your School

You can also learn more by exploring these websites:

• Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE)
• Afterschool Alliance
• Rock the Vote
• The Civics Center

EDUCATION CULTURE WARS AND AFTERSCHOOL

In recent months schools and educators have been attacked under the guise of critical race theory, parent rights and the call to ban certain books. We published three LIAS blogs and a briefing paper (14 pages) on this topic of the education culture wars. We also sponsored a webinar entitled, Education Culture Wars and Maintaining Bipartisan Support for Afterschool. We posted a recording of this webinar on our How Kids Learn Youtube channel, which quickly received over 700 views. 

New stories of the education culture wars continue to pepper the national news and we expect this to increase over the course of the upcoming election season. 

Below we list some new articles:

• 3 Ways to Avoid Hurdles for Social-Emotional Learning 
• A School Librarian Pushes Back on Censorship and Gets Death Threats and Online Harassment 
• As Rhetoric Heats Up, Many Parents Fear Politicians Are Using Children As ‘Political Pawns’ 
• Banned-Book Author: If a Book Isn’t in the School Library, ‘It Might as Well Not Exist’ 
• Most parents want classrooms to be places of learning, not political battlegrounds 
• ED Week Spotlight on Critical Race Theory

An Afterschool Innovator: Bringing Urban Music to Afterschool

Source: Sunset Neighborhood Beacon Center

By Sam Piha

We first met Jon Bernson decades ago at the Sunset Neighborhood Beacon Center (A.P. Giannini Middle School, SF). Jon founded an urban music program, which taught young people the skills and business of being a DJ. This program has evolved over the years and Jon is now the Director of Creative Arts at Bay Area Community Resources. As an early innovator in afterschool music programs, I asked Jon a number of questions regarding the power of music in afterschool and below are his responses. 

Jon Bernson, SNBC

Q: What are the ages of youth served in your program?
A: 12 - 14 (Middle School).

Q: Do you think music is important to youth? If yes, why?
A: To some youth, music is life-changing and transformational. To some, it does not speak as loudly, but in my experience, it has profound effects on most teens. Some reasons that come to mind: 

1.  Music is the language of emotion, and has far more complex ways of communicating feelings than written or verbal language. Developing the ability to express oneself through music allows youth to communicate feelings that are often difficult for them to express with words alone. 
2. To many, music is a shared interest that allows youth who may have little else in common the ability to come together around a shared passion. In this respect, it can break down geographic, language, cultural and age barriers that other forms of education and activism may struggle to provide. 
3. Music soothes the soul. Simply put, listening to music takes the mind off of many youth's troubles. It cannot remove these troubles, but it can give them distance, so that when their troubles return to their consciousness, they have a better perspective, as a result of the distance they've gained. 
4. Music is a conduit for inspiration. It is a way that artists can speak with one another across time and space. Without knowing another person, youth can feel that they are intimately connected to another artist, whether that is a friend, mentor or someone famous. By hearing another artist, youth get ideas, and are given a yardstick with which they can compare their results and aspire to greater heights. 

Q: How does your program engage youth in music? 
A:

• Listening to music
• Learning how to play an instrument
• Dj skills
• Making beats
• Recording music

Source: www.mackswell.com

Q: Please describe one example of how your program engages youth with music?

A: Since 1997, we have been teaching youth how to DJ and produce their own music. During that time, we have produced 58 compilations of youth-produced music. In most cases, this series documents the first attempt our youth have ever made to create their own original piece of music. While most youth are encouraged to draw or paint original pieces in art classes, our education system rarely teaches and supports the mysterious pathway that leads to the creation of original work. 

Q: What benefits do you think come from youth engagement with music?
A: Confidence, when youth stick with the process. The tools to express themselves. Community and a connection to a lineage of artists that spans many years, as well as the broader community of artists around the world. Because we use technology and touchscreens to make music, we have helped many youth to understand that our screens are not just passive devices but tools for creativity that can change and influence their peers, their community and their world. This is one of the greatest lessons we try to impart in our program: that it may be harder to create than consume, but it is far more rewarding. 

Source: www.pexels.com

Q: What benefits do you think carry into adulthood?

A: Creation over consumption is a lesson described above that we've seen many youth carry with them into whichever field they choose to pursue, whether musical or not. We are cognizant that most of our youth will not become professional musicians or DJ's (though some do), but everyone will have developed a deeper understanding and appreciation for the elements that are needed to create music. Not least of which is the courage to take the leap of faith and follow a spark of inspiration until they are finished making what they started. 

MORE ABOUT...

Jon Bernson, SNBC

Jon Bernson is BACR's Director of Creative Arts and is the founder and coordinator of SNBC's Urban Music Program (UMP). Jon is also the founder of Sunset Media Wave, a mixed-media blog run by high school students out of SNBC's community storefront. Outside of UMP, Jon is the songwriter behind several musical acts, including Exray’s, whose music can be heard in David Fincher's Academy Award-winning movie, The Social Network. Jon is also a resident playwright at Playwrights Foundation and was a 2015 artist-in-residence at the de Young Museum.

Meaning and Importance of Music Participation in the Lives of Youth: What Afterschool Leaders Say

Source: NAMM Foundation

By Sam Piha

We believe that opportunities for youth to participate in a music program is important for their development, especially in light of the fact that many schools have eliminated music education to make more time for math and reading instruction. We also believe that afterschool programs are perfectly positioned to fill this gap.

We will continue to post on the importance of music featuring interviews with innovative practitioners and a summary of research. To learn more, we reached out to afterschool programs across the country to share their thoughts on this topic. We heard back from program leaders across the country, serving all ages of youth. These programs reported that they engage youth with music in a number of ways, including listening to music, learning how to play an instrument, learning DJ skills, making beats, recording music, spoken word, playing in a band, song writing, singing and drumming.

Below are some of the responses we received from afterschool practitioners to our questions.

Do you think music is important to youth? If yes, why?

• “We currently have a music program at our site and have witnessed the beauty of music. Kids love to learn and filter their emotions through the music.” – ELP Site Lead, San Joaquin, CA, serving youth ages 5-11.

• “Music provides so many emotional development attributes, that can lead to social, academic, personal and economic accomplishments and endeavors throughout their lives. Further, it’s something that they get that is theirs and stays with them for the rest of their lives to be used whenever and however they want, it’s god's gift forever playing.” – Afterschool Staff, Cleveland, OH, serving youth ages 12-14.

• “It builds confidence and teaches them how to work with other people. It’s a discipline that teaches students to persevere.” – Instructional Associate, Vista Verde, CA, serving youth ages 5-11.

• “It allows a scholar to be creative. Music reaches the inner depth of a person. A good sound can resonate on the sternum of a person and create calmness. It can also create a release of energy, etc.” – Afterschool Staff, Redwood City, CA, serving youth ages 12-14.

• “I believe music encourages self-reflection. Through reflective moments we are able to engage and analyze our thoughts to help us make more informed decisions.” – Afterschool Staff, Euclid, OH, serving youth ages 5-11.

Please describe one example of how your program engages youth through music.

• “We have a community partnership which places teaching musicians in our programs to teach ukulele. These instruments are affordable for us and fill a needed gap now that our elementary schools no longer have music programs.” – School District Coordinator of Expanded Learning, Vallejo, CA, serving youth ages 5-14.

• “We have had weekly drumming classes and have opportunities for these classes to play at our fund raisers, end of the year performances, as well as performances around the city.” – Director of Staff & Student Development, West Palm Beach, FL, serving youth ages 5-18

• “We partner with Women’s Audio Mission every semester. We have apprenticeships on how to build instruments, like a guitar, we have offered spoken word apprenticeship courses.” – Afterschool Staff, Redwood City, CA, serving youth ages 12-14.

Source: Mark Pan4ratte, unsplah.com

What benefits do you think come from youth engagement with music?

• “There are academic and social-emotional and engagement benefits to the way we engage with music in our expanded learning programs” – School District Coordinator of Expanded Learning, Vallejo, CA, serving youth ages 5-14. 

• “It allows children the opportunity to build self-esteem in a skill or something that they love and enjoy.” – School Age Coach, Dayton, OH, serving youth ages 5-11.

• “Youth in the project live mostly in communities that have a lot of high-risk challenges. Many have experienced direct and indirect traumas on a regular basis. Many are faced with making decisions everyday as to whether to fight or flight, being involved in out of school activities that include music is beneficial to their physical and emotional survival.” – Afterschool Staff, Cleveland, OH, serving youth ages 12-14.

• “Children find their personalities in music, it can be soothing and calming in times of stress.” – Afterschool Staff, Redwood City, CA, serving youth ages 12-14.

Source: www.pexels.com, photo by nappy

What benefits do you think carry into adulthood?

• “My hope and aspiration are that these experiences not only create fond memories for them, but that for some it sparks a lifelong desire to make music.” – School District Coordinator of Expanded Learning, Vallejo, CA, serving youth ages 5-14.

• “Music helps connect people and is a great tool for social emotional development.” – School Age Coach, Dayton, OH, serving youth ages 5-11

• “Many attributes carry into adulthood. First, they learn that if you practice, put in the time you will become proficient at your task. Second, they learn discipline, follow direction, and stick to the order given and your results will be good. Third, they learn the importance of teamwork, brother and sister hood and build relationships that can last a lifetime. Fourth, they learn the essence of commitment, how to live up to your decision, to show up on time, follow through on time and to be there on time all of the time.” – Afterschool Staff, Cleveland, OH, serving youth ages 12-14.

New Survey Shows that Afterschool Programs are Still in High Demand

Source: NHP Foundation

By Guest Blogger, Nikki Yamashiro (Previously published by The Afterschool Alliance)

Back-to-school season is in full swing and intermixed with the uplifting news stories on students’ return to the classroom are stories of the challenges taking place after the school day ends, from families waitlisted for afterschool programs to program providers struggling to find staff to fill open positions. A new brief, based on responses from nearly 1,500 parents or guardians of school-age children, conducted May 12-June 28, 2022, provides insights into both the issues families face when looking for afterschool programming, as well as the motivations behind wanting to enroll their child in a program. Four key takeaways from “Access to Afterschool Programs Remains a Challenge for Many Families,” include:

1. Unmet demand for afterschool programs remains high during the pandemic. There are 24.7 million children who are not in an afterschool program, but would be enrolled if a program were available to them. Now, for every child in an afterschool program, there are four more who are waiting for an available program.
2. Cost is the top barrier to afterschool program participation. More than half of parents without a child in an afterschool program (57 percent) report that programs being too expensive was an important factor in their decision not to enroll their child.  Other barriers include lack of a safe way for their child to get to and from programs (52 percent), inconvenient program locations (51 percent), and programs’ hours of operation not meeting parent needs (49 percent).
3. For kids who are able to access afterschool programs during the pandemic, programs are keeping kids safe, connected, and engaged in learning. Fully 95 percent of parents are satisfied with their child’s afterschool program and 90 percent rate the quality of their afterschool program as excellent or very good. Most parents report that their program is helping their child with everything from building social skills (91 percent) to providing homework help (79 percent) and from providing time for physical activity (87 percent) to connecting their child with caring adults (79 percent).
4. Parents agree that afterschool programs are providing critical supports to children and families during the pandemic. Strong majorities of parents agree on the positive role of afterschool programs, including keeping kids safe and out of trouble (82 percent), helping young people build positive relationships with caring adults and mentors (78 percent), providing working parents peace of mind that their children are safe and supervised (85 percent), and helping working parents keep their jobs (83 percent). Eighty-three percent of parents agree that all young people deserve access to quality afterschool and summer programs.

As a recent EdWeek Research Center report finds that nearly half (49 percent) of program providers surveyed in May and June 2022 said that they currently had a waitlist of students, similar to Afterschool Alliance’s Afterschool in the Time of COVID-19 spring 2022 survey, it’s clear that additional public and private investments at the local, state, and federal levels are needed to ensure that all young people have access to quality, affordable afterschool programming. Thanks to COVID relief funding, there are programs who have benefited from the additional support and have been able to meet the needs of their children and families, with one spring 2022 program provider respondent writing, “We would not have been able to stay in business or provide the same quality of care and programming without financial assistance. Or, we would have had to greatly increase the cost of our programming at a time our families were least able to afford it.” However, with only 1 in 5 program providers reporting receiving COVID relief funds, there is still more to be done. Read the full brief to learn more about the current afterschool program landscape. 

MORE ABOUT...

Nikki Yamashiro

Nikki Yamashiro joined the Afterschool Alliance in June 2012. In her current role, Nikki coordinates, manages, and advances the Afterschool Alliance’s research efforts, including developing the organization's research goals and agenda and effectively communicating findings on afterschool and summer programs to policy makers, afterschool providers, advocates, and the public. Current major research initiatives that are a part of Nikki's portfolio include America After 3PM, a longitudinal study of how children in America spend their hours after school, and Afterschool in the Time of COVID-19, a multi-wave tracking survey documenting the pandemic's impact on the afterschool field.

Afterschool and the Power of Music

Source: Long Beach Youth Institute 

By Sam Piha

Because music is so important to young people’s development and identity, we wanted to interview an afterschool innovator on how his organization engages with young people through music. We first learned about the Youth Institute (YMCA of Greater Long Beach) many years ago when they were training young people and afterschool staff how to use computer technology to make movies. Below is an interview with the Youth Institute’s Director, Les Peters, on how they are paving the way for the use of music in afterschool. We also spoke with Kevin Peraza, a Youth Institute Alumni from 2007.

Q: In terms of your music program, what ages of youth do you serve?
A: We manage afterschool programs for all ages of youth,  but our music programs serve youth ages 15 - 18 (High School). 

Q: Do you think music is important to youth? If yes, why?
A: Yes, it is very important. It provides an opportunity to express themselves, if they have difficulties expressing feelings and emotions. It uses the same side of the brain as math and science. We teach digital music production, guitar, and drum lessons to our youth. 

Source: Long Beach Youth Institute 

Q: Currently how does your program engage youth in music? 

A: We currently engage youth with music by teaching participants how to play an instrument, teaching them Dj skills, how to make beats, record music and sponsoring youth to play in a band.

Q: Please describe one example of how your program engages youth with music?
A: For the past 21 years, in the Long Beach Youth Institute (YI) we have used music as one of our engagement strategies to support academic success, creativity expression and workforce development. It began with teaching the guitar to introducing digital music production and keyboard (piano) basics to evolve into making beats for their short films. For those teens who progressed in guitar & piano playing they started to record themselves and other teens started to use them for their films. Guest musicians and producers would volunteer with the YI to further develop the skill sets of the youth. Those youth who were in band and orchestra in high school would practice at the YI, because they didn’t have the space at home. Our youth formed a rock band and organized a battle of the band event for local area youth. In 2017, the YI was fortunate to have a partnership with Levi’s and a local musician/artist who wanted to give back to their community. Rapper and North Long Beach local – Vince Staples came to the YI to provide his experience in the music business and Levi’s provides financial support to expand our Digital Music program. Levi’s shot a commercial at the YI, with our youth as extras. 

[You can view a brief video about the Levi's/ Snoop Dogg project that features Snoop Dogg working directly with kids.] 

Then in 2019, Levi’s came back to us with another opportunity – artist Snoop Dog wanted to work with us, and he spoke to the youth about his career, and he brought his producing staff and taught professional beat making, song arrangement, and DJ skills. Snoop Dog even purchased a few of the beats our youth made during that time. At our new building location, the YI has a dedicated music room, with all the equipment we received from Vince Staples, Snoop Dog, and Levi’s. This music room has created an opportunity for our youth to have space to express and create. Our youth have started to create Podcasts, recording, and practicing their drums and guitar.

Source: Long Beach Youth Institute 

Q: What benefits do you think come from youth engagement with music?
A: The benefits we see are creative expression, improved social skills, manage emotions & stress, self-esteem booster, and perform better academically. The Youth Institute (YI) historically has been recognized for its ability to engage youth at different levels with a vast array of program activities; with music being one of the most popular. Many of our youth pursue post-secondary degrees in music because of their engagement in the YI. Workforce development is another benefit, with our social enterprise business – Change Agent Productions. Some of our youth are hired to create background music, loops, and narrative for videos and commercials. 

Q: What benefits do you think carry into adulthood?
A: As our youth transition into young adulthood, we have seen them have increased self-confidence, social growth, more creative and have a greater awareness of tolerance. We have seen youth come to us quiet, shy, non-social, but evolve to being social, leaders, and staff in the Youth Institute or other afterschool programs.

Below we share responses from YI’s 2007 alumni, Kevin Peraza.

Q: Do you think music is important to youth, If yes, why?
A: I think music is an important part of finding identity. Culturally speaking. Different genres can affect a young person’s personality. Going further and learning how music is made allows youth to dissect the parts of music that resonate with them. Which can be a really cathartic experience.

Kevin Peraza playing in his band.

 Q: Give one example of how the Youth Institute program engages youth with music?

A: On a base level the YI gives youth their first and, in some cases, only experience with music. The equipment that’s readily available makes it so easy to try it. Whether it’s garage band on the macs or picking up a guitar that many mentors have lying around. In my experience the YI bought band equipment so that some of the youth could try their first experience at playing music with a collective group of like-minded individuals. In the past they have even held a battle of the bands for local Long Beach high school bands. Which was for most participants their first experience of being on stage performing for a crowd.

I think the YI understands the importance of music and the positive effect it can have on youth with a deep desire to express themselves.

MORE ABOUT...

Les Peters

Les Peters currently works for the YMCA of Greater Long Beach, Youth Institute, a national recognized Teen Youth Development & Digital Media Arts program as the Executive Director of Youth Institute & Curriculum Development. He has over seventeen years of experience in youth development and over fourteen years in digital media arts technology. He develops and implements after-school and year-round programming for low-income urban youth of color, provides diversity training and develops creative academic & social skills through the use of multi-media technology.

Kevin Peraza

Kevin Peraza is a Youth Institute Alumni from 2007 who was fortunate to participate in all of their music activities: playing guitar, took part in YI’s youth band and did work with Change Agent Productions. Today Kevin is a young adult who is a filmmaker and still plays in a band. 

Afterschool and the Education Culture Wars (Part 2)

By Sam Piha

In part 1 of Afterschool and the Education Culture Wars we introduced the issues that many schools are facing regarding critical race theory and the call to ban books dealing with identity issues (racial and gender). In part 2 we offer some tips on how to avoid entanglement in these education culture wars and how to combat misinformation in the community. 

HOW TO AVOID ENTANGLEMENT IN THE EDUCATION CULTURE WARS

When Describing the Program, Sharpen the Message; Avoid Acronyms and Jargon 

When describing your program in written outreach documents, remember your audience are not afterschool insiders- they might be parents and community members. It is very useful to have parents and community members review the text to ensure that it is understandable to an outsider. This is also a good way to build parent advocates for the program who can speak out and support if the program comes under scrutiny.  

Source: Nicolas Picard, Unsplash.com

“The first question they [parents] had was, ‘What the hell are you talking about?’” he said. “’I get math. I get reading. What the hell is social-emotional learning? ’When commissioners explained they wanted schools to nurture qualities such as discipline, self-management, and relationship skills, “they’d [parents] say, ‘Oh yeah, we’re for that,’” - John Bridgeland, CEO of Civic Enterprises

Terry Peterson

“Working on education improvements and reforms for almost fifty years, I have observed that almost any education innovation using initials [or acronyms] is likely to invite pushback. Also, describing development and learning in shorthand “buzz words," not mainstream terms, also invites problems. Case in point: We give very conservative critics great aid by providing them both initials, SEL, and words like social emotional learning. Instead, say practically that we are working to strengthen: self-management skills, social awareness skills, responsible decision-making skills, and teamwork skills” - Terry Peterson,  Afterschool Alliance

Double Down on Commitment to Program Values

“We all just have to continue to believe in what we do and stick together and not back down.” - Bridget Laird, CEO of WINGS for Kids 

While it is important to steer clear of trouble, we have to remain committed to our views. Below are some inspirational statements taken from As Terms Like ‘SEL’ Draw Fire, Organizations Supporting Schools Sharpen Their Message by Libby Stanford for ED Week.

“Although the rhetoric surrounding critical race theory and SEL can be loud at times, it has not deterred education organizations from being vocal about their work. ‘If anything, we’ve doubled down on our values, we’ve doubled down on our program,’ Peter Shulman (CEO of Urban Teachers) said.” 

“Urban Teachers isn’t coy about its stance on race and racism in its messaging. On its website, the organization writes “Structural racism and inequality have kept generations of urban children from receiving the education they deserve.” 

Get Involved, Especially in Your Local Community

Support for afterschool is not guaranteed and may have a shelf life. Thus, it is vital that we get involved in decision making to protect afterschool. Below are some suggestions. 

• Support candidates and groups that agree with your values. 
• Vote for local, state and federal candidates that agree with your values.
• Keep up on what’s happening locally and across the nation.
• Write to your elected officials to continue supporting afterschool.

Participate by:

• Running for school board or a local office 
• Follow or attend local school board meetings. They are often televised, or video recorded and publish their notes and future meeting agendas on community websites. You can view a recorded school board meeting from Polk County, Florida, as they discuss the banning of books.  

On September 13, 2022, Temescal Associates and The How Kids Learn Foundation will be sponsoring a webinar on this topic to further discuss the issues behind the current education culture wars and how it affects afterschool. Panelists will include Terry Peterson (Afterschool Alliance), Michael Funk (CDE), Bridget Laird (WINGS for Kids), Melissa Schlinger (CASEL) and Femi Vance (AIR). To learn more and register for this informative webinar, click here.