Music In Schools

Education is the major emphasis of what the jazz society is all about. We feel that to keep jazz music flourishing, we must work in the schools to expose young people to the history of this great american art form. The jazz society is actively involved in presenting workshops, demonstrations, master-classes, lectures and concerts to students at all levels from K through college. Since the jazz society began seven years ago, we have given more than 15 scholarships to talented music students who are pursuing a career in music.

Read what some of our participating schools had to say:

“I want to thank each of you for your part in this grand collaboration. You offered partnerships that changed how our children learn. You brought the world to our classrooms and our classrooms to the world. You were always there with your time or resources to provide whatever our students needed. On behalf of our students, I would like to thank you for providing partnership with our schools. I hope that you will continue to affect the lives of the young people in our community. You truly are changing the future of St. Lucie County by partnering with our schools today.” - Dr. Bill Vogel, Superintendent and Dr. John Carvelli, Chairman St Lucie County School Board.

“Thank you very much for taking the time to come to Village Green Elementary to perform for the children in the Extended Day Program. Your performance was excellent. The students and staff enjoyed the music. We look forward to having you return for another assembly this year” - Cathy Anderson, Extended Day Coordinator, Village Green Elementary

“I want to complement some of your members, BossaJazz . These gentlemen came to F.K. Sweet Elementary Magnet School to present Jazz to our 5th grade students today. They were great! Not only did they play some great jazz for us, but they taught our students to play a Duke Ellington piece, “C Jam Blues” on their recorders. Once the students were comfortable, they invited them up to improvise with the band. The students surprised themselves and their peers as they were able to play along making “real” Jazz music.” -Christine K. Hill, Music Specialist, F.K. Sweet Elementary Magnet School

The Fort Pierce Jazz & Blues Society will continue our efforts to bring jazz into our schools to teach our students the history behind Jazz and to enjoy this amazing music. For more information or to request a visit to your school, call our hotline at (772) 460-Jazz (5299).

The Annual Jazz Ball

The Jazz Ball is a formal event used to raise money for our scholarship fund. Held annually in March, offers dinner, dancing, live music, silent auction and door prizes. This event has been very successful fund raising tool for our scholarship fund over the last 3 years. For more information, please call our hotline at (772) 460-Jazz (5299).

Annual Essay Contest

Students in St. Lucie County are invited to participate. Students will learn about jazz by researching its history and its famous jazz musicians..

Participants:

All middle and high school students in public, private or parochial schools, or those who are home schoolers are eligible. This contest is conducted without regard to race, religion, sex or national origin.

Judging:

A panel of educators, community and business leaders will serve as judges and select the winning essays.

Contest rules:

• Essays submitted must be no longer than 500 words (middle school), 1000 words (high school).
• Each student may enter only one essay.
• Essays must include a title page with the following information: Name, Home address, telephone number, school the student attends, grade level and title of essay.
• Entries must be received by 5:00 p.m. (EST), March 9, 2007.
• Entries should be emailed to Bill Dake at dakeb@stlucie.k12.fl.us

Prizes:

Two winners will be selected from each grade-level category - middle school, 6-8 grades, and high school, 9-12 grades. All four winners will receive monetary awards; middle school winners receive $150 each and high school winners receive $300 each. In addition to the cash prizes, winners will receive tickets to the David Sanborn Concert on April 14.

Scholarships

In seven years, FPJS has given away more than 15 scholarships to deserved music students who plan to pursue a career in music to some degree. Only through contributions and sponsored events are we able to award scholarships to college bound students who wish to pursue music as a career. For more information on the Scholarship Program please call our hotline at (772) 460-Jazz (5299).