The White House announced today that the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra’s OrchKids program is one of twelve recipients of the 2013 National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Awards. At 2 p.m. today in a ceremony being streamed live from the East Room of the White House, First Lady Michelle Obama will present the award to OrchKids Artistic Director Dan Trahey and eighth grader Asia Palmer, who has participated in OrchKids since 2008. OrchKids is a year-round after-school music program designed to create social change and nurture promising futures for youth in Baltimore neighborhoods. In partnership with the Baltimore City Public School system, OrchKids serves more than 750 students spanning pre-kindergarten through eighth grades across five Title I schools in West and East Baltimore. “The recognition from the White House and the First Lady confirms what we’ve known for some time now: music education can change lives,” said Trahey in a statement. “The award substantiates the success of the Venezuelan El Sistema model in the U.S., as OrchKids continues to grow and positively impact more students across Baltimore City.” In addition to recognition at the White House, each program receives $10,000 and a year of support from the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities. The 2 p.m. awards ceremony will be live-streamed here.
Posted November 22, 2013
