International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Teams with CBS EcoMedia and Nonprofit Little Kids Rock to Expand Music Education in District of Columbia Public Schools Amidst Budget Cuts
IBEW grant to Little Kids Rock will fund free instrumental music classes for more than 1,700 additional public school students; IBEW will deliver instruments to Brightwood Educational Campus
WASHINGTON D.C., November 21, 2013 /3BL Media/ – Budget cuts are eliminating music programming from inner city public schools at an alarming rate. To reverse this alarming trend in Washington D.C., the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 26 has partnered with CBS EcoMedia and is providing funding to national nonprofit Little Kids Rock to expand its free and innovative music education programming to 1,700 additional students in the District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS).
Little Kids Rock, the leading non-profit provider of free music instruction, musical instruments and teacher training to U.S. public schools, will utilize a generous grant from the IBEW local 26 and CBS EcoMedia to provide training to 20 new teachers and professional development to 13 existing Little Kids Rock teachers to launch and expand its innovative programming for more students this school year. The donation will also fund the donation of curricula and as many as 500 additional instruments, including guitars, drums, bass guitars and keyboard for use by student music-makers throughout the DCPS. This will effectively double the size of Little Kids Rock’s Washington D.C. chapter, which is one of 25 chapters serving more than 110,000 kids nationwide.
“The members and officers of Local 26 aren’t just proud to work here in the Washington, DC, metropolitan area; we are proud to live here and support our local community,” said Chuck Graham, Business Manager, IBEW Local 26. “We have long made community service a key component of our Local Union and we are honored to be part of this very worthy cause.”
The Little Kids Rock teacher training took place on October 19-20 at Lafayette Elementary School (5701 Broad Branch Rd. NW, Washington D.C. 20015) and featured teachers employed by the DCPS who are eager to receive instrument grants and launch Little Kids Rock’s free programming in their schools.
Following the training, on November 22nd, members from the IBEW local 26 and EcoMedia will join Little Kids Rock at Brightwood Education Campus (1300 Nicholson St. Washington, DC 20011) to deliver some of the brand new instruments funded by the grant.
“Little Kids Rock is so grateful that the IBEW Local 26 has chosen to support our kids’ right to rock!” said David Wish, Founder and Executive Director of Little Kids Rock. “With this donation, several more students from our nation’s capital will have access to a first-rate and entirely new type of music program.”
“Learning to play musical instruments instills confidence and inspires creativity in children,” said Paul Polizzotto, Founder and President, CBS EcoMedia. “Thanks to IBEW Local 26’s generous funding of Little Kids Rock’s free music education programming, more kids in D.C. will have access to transformative musical instruments.”
Press are invited to attend and film both events, with interview opportunities available:
What: Little Kids Rock will train 20 District of Columbia Public School teachers in its innovative, “Modern Band” music curriculum, with funding from IBEW. Students will perform at noon on Saturday.
Where: Lafayette Elementary School (5701 Broad Brand Rd. NW, Washington D.C. 20015)
When: Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 19-20, 9am-3pm
What: IBEW, EcoMedia and Little Kids Rock will make surprise instrument delivery of guitars to D.C. schoolchildren
Where: Brightwood Education Campus -- 1300 Nicholson St. Washington, DC 20011 (Pre-K to grade 8)
When: Thursday, Nov. 21, 9am-10am
About IBEW Local 26
IBEW Local Union 26 is over 8,000 members strong and proud to be part of the more than 800,000 members of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. The men and women of Local 26 have been expertly installing, maintaining and servicing the electrical needs of contractors and end users throughout Washington, DC, Maryland and Virginia for more than 120 years. In fact, it was the men and women of Local 26 who lit the U.S. Capitol in lights for the first time in history back in 1894.
Today, the highly skilled electricians of Local 26 can be seen plying their skills in government buildings, on major infrastructure projects, in entertainment venues and even on mass transit systems, to name only a few. The work of IBEW Local Union 26 keeps the Washington, DC, metropolitan area moving, growing and thriving.
About Little Kids Rock
Little Kids Rock is a national nonprofit that transforms children’s lives by restoring and revitalizing music education in disadvantaged public schools. The organization partners with school districts to train public school teachers in their innovative curriculum while donating all of the instruments and resources necessary to run rockin’ music programs that focus on teaching kids to perform, improvise and compose the musical genres that they love. To date, Little Kids Rock has reached nearly 250,000 students. More info at www.littlekidsrock.org
About CBS EcoMedia Inc.
At EcoMedia, we're propelled by the desire to create positive social change; that's been our mission since we founded the company in 2002. In 2010, after successfully partnering with CBS on a wide range of environmental projects, EcoMedia became the newest addition to the CBS Corporation portfolio, exponentially scaling our reach across television, radio, interactive, publishing and outdoor media.
Through our patent-pending EcoAd, WellnessAd and EducationAd programs, an innovative twist on traditional advertising, advertisers are able to support much-needed local projects which in turn creates jobs, saves taxpayer money and improves the quality of life in communities nationwide. In the process, we’re fundamentally altering the advertising landscape, elevating the ordinary, traditional commercial – and media, in general – into a catalyst for tangible, quantifiable social change. Please visit ecomediacbs.com, like us at facebook.com/EcoMediaCBS or follow us at Twitter.com/EcoMediaCBS.
By participating in EcoMedia’s EcoAd, WellnessAd and EducationAd advertising programs, EcoMedia’s advertisers agree to provide funding for projects we believe will have a beneficial effect upon the environment, health and/or education within local communities. EcoMedia’s advertising programs are not certification programs nor are the EcoAd, WellnessAd or EducationAd logos seals of approval. EcoMedia does not in any way certify, endorse or make any representations about EcoMedia program advertisers, their products or services.
Media Contacts:
Keith Hejna
Little Kids Rock
Cell: (201) 264-9520
keith@littlekidsrock.org
Lindsay E. Brown
CBS EcoMedia
Office: (212) 975-1989
Lindsay.brown@ecomediacbs.com
