Settlement Music School

Settlement's financial aid program is the vehicle through which underserved children gain access to the School's programs. The School annually provides approximately $2.7 million in financial aid and scholarships across all programs to nearly 60% of its students. Settlement has been successful in recruiting and retaining credentialed and experienced faculty. This faculty provides 10,000 weekly Music and arts related programs and services to all the communities that the School serves, including low-income and underserved communities. Settlement employs approximately 260 faculty, making it one of the largest employers of Music educators in Pennsylvania.

Settlement's Music education pathways program is an afterschool program at seven Philadelphia schools, in operation since 2012, serving over 200 students with over 130 hours of ensemble and group lessons in band, orchestra, and choir. Research has shown students living in poverty to experience gains in socio-emotional learning while engaged in this program.

The kaleidoscope program uses the arts to prepare 114 low-income preschool students for academic success. The program has a proven record of success, with participant's School readiness scores three times higher than peers in non-arts enriched programs. 90% of the students in the kaleidoscope program qualify for head start funding due to family income or special needs and attend tuition-free. The innovation and quality of kaleidoscope has helped it become a national model of arts-based preschool education. The budget for kaleidoscope is over $1 million, representing approximately 13% of the School's budget.

Settlement is the lead partner of the pmay artists initiative, a $5 million, six-year program funded by the mellon foundation to support a cohort of nine youth and Music organizations to increase diversity in the professional classical Music field. Settlement is proud to serve the initiative as a lead partner and re-grantor for this work. We support a cohort of students, who are in fifth through twelfth grade from underrepresented communities and financially disadvantaged backgrounds, on their paths to becoming professional classical musicians. Since its inception, pmay artists have received extensive audition, lesson, and instrument loan assistance that has enabled them to be accepted into top Music schools and conservatories, including carnegie mellon university, new england conservatory of Music, cleveland institute of Music, and boston university, with scholarship offers of up to $8 million.

The kardon center at Settlement Music School offers Music, art, and dance/movement therapy services to individuals with diverse needs at Settlement branches and at other locations in our community. Creative arts therapy is a form of non-verbal psychotherapy using the senses to open new channels of communication between participants and their therapists, families, and communities. Creative arts therapy uses the arts in order to achieve therapeutic goals. Goals for creative arts therapy are tailored to each participant, and benefits may include improvement in social skills, psychological factors, cognition, language, and physical skills. 17 certified creative arts therapists deliver services onsite and at multiple community branches