Nonprofit Brings Free Music Education to More Than 20,000 Miami Students in 131 Schools.
Young Musicians Unite, a Miami nonprofit, now offers free in-school and afterschool music programs in 131 Miami-Dade schools, reaching more than 20,000 students each week, the organization says.
Young Musicians Unite, a Miami nonprofit, provides free music education to more than 20,000 students each week. The organization says its in-school and afterschool programs cost students nothing and now operate in 131 schools across Miami-Dade.
The group says the classes teach more than instruments. They are also meant to build confidence, teamwork and leadership. At Little River K-8, 9-year-old Jayden Morisseau, a fourth grader, has played the trumpet for two years. He is working toward a leadership role in his school band. "To step up my game, to be a drum major, a section leader," Morisseau said.
His band director, Reinaldo Velez, whom students call Mr. V, teaches for the nonprofit and was once a student in its program himself. Velez said band brings people together and teaches practical skills, such as repairing an instrument and helping someone in need. Morisseau said he likes the people in the program and finds them helpful.
Founder and CEO Sammy Gonzalez Zeira, a musician born and raised in Miami, said his own experience with free music education led him to start the organization. He credits music with helping him find his voice growing up, and he said he wanted other children to have the same kind of opportunity.
The organization sees music as a way to give students another reason to engage with school while they develop skills that carry beyond the classroom. "Kids need a reason to show up to school, and kids need an opportunity to be seen," Gonzalez Zeira said. Morisseau said the program has given him chances to go places and improve on his instrument, and he praised his teacher's knowledge of music.
At a Glance
- Young Musicians Unite says it serves more than 20,000 students each week across Miami.
- The nonprofit's programs now reach 131 schools across Miami-Dade.
- All in-school and afterschool programming is free for students, the organization says.
- Band director Reinaldo Velez of Little River K-8 was once a Young Musicians Unite student himself.
- Founder and CEO Sammy Gonzalez Zeira was born and raised in Miami.
Sources
This brief was written by Brightside Report from the reporting linked above. Spot an error? Request a correction.