Project GRAD Houston
3000 Richmond, Suite 400
Houston, Texas 77098
832-325-0325 (main)
Ann B. Stiles
Executive Director
832-325-0467
Email
Students Showcase their Artistic Talents
Approximately 200 Houston Independent School District (HISD) Students
Showcase their Artistic Talents at Project GRAD 2010 Summer Fine Arts Studio Culminating Event
(Houston, TX) – “Since 1st grade, I’ve always loved the cello.  It’s like me and my instrument are combined.  My life would be boring without music, like living in the dark,” said Luis Mondragon, a fifth grader at Ketelsen Elementary School and one of approximately 200 students participating in the Project GRAD 2010 Summer Fine Arts Studio.
The goal of the Summer Fine Arts Studio is to provide inner city children with an opportunity to develop and enhance skills in visual arts, instrumental music (band and strings), vocal music, and theater arts/drama in a fun, safe, educational environment. Â During this three-week session, the students are actively and intensely involved in the arts. Â At the conclusion of their Summer Studio experience, students have an opportunity to showcase their artistic talents on Performance Day, to the delight of their parents, HISD personnel, and other members of their community.
The Project GRAD Houston/Davis feeder pattern Fine Arts collaborative is in its eleventh year of serving students that attend Jefferson Elementary, Ketelsen Elementary, Looscan Elementary, C. Martinez Elementary, Sherman Elementary, Marshall Middle and Davis High Schools, a community of approximately 5,400 mostly minority students at or below the poverty level. Â The program offerings include instrumental music, choir, piano, visual arts, drama, and opera.
WHAT:Â Project GRAD Summer Fine Arts Studio Culminating Event
WHEN: Friday, June 25, 2010. 8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
WHERE:Â Marshall Middle School, First Floor Fine Arts Wing
WHO:Â Students from Davis High School, Marshall Middle School, Jefferson Elementary School, Ketelsen Elementary School, Looscan Elementary School, C. Martinez Elementary School, and Sherman Elementary School
Project GRAD Houston serves 67 HISD schools with approximately 45,000 students in low-income communities. Since its inception in 1994, GRAD has awarded over $18 million in college scholarships to more than 4,500 HISD students.
For more information about Project GRAD and its operations, please contact Ann Stiles, Executive Director, at 832-325-0467 or visit our website at www.projectgradhouston.org.
The mission of Project GRAD is to ensure a quality public education for all students in economically disadvantaged communities so that high school and college graduation rates increase.