The instructors have become mentors, friends and surrogate parents of the students. They inspire hope in children who may not have otherwise been optimistic about their futures. “We’re here to help fill the void these kids may have at home,” says Thompson. “Some are missing fathers or other role models in their lives. We’re here to not only teach them but we also aim to challenge them to achieve more.” The students are given intensive, hands-on training from for more than two hours every day after school. There are twelve instructors plus Thompson, so the workshops are small and personal. The training goes beyond music - punctuality, attentiveness, and compliance of the rules are strictly monitored. In addition, all of the work is done as a group, so there is a lot of peer-to-peer instruction, support and encouragement. “If the kids take their mind off what they are doing for five seconds, that could ruin what could happen to the entire group,” Thompson says. “This is all a metaphor for life.” Students have improved musically and academically, Thompson says, and some have developed strong leadership qualities. Lanese Rogers says that her daughter, first chair cello player Simone Rogers, a 7th grader, finds herself in random situations where she offers to teach other kids how to play instruments. “We spend a lot of time in church,” Lanese Rogers says. “She sits at the piano, teaching the younger ones notes. It’s amazing to see her confidence. It’s like she’s getting something she wants to share. She doesn’t want to keep it to herself.” That is why the program exists – to facilitate social-emotional, behavioral and cognitive development. Through music training, the students are supposed to develop teamwork skills and self-esteem. “What we do with the children for two and a half hours every day,” says Thompson, “is that we tell them, ‘You’re going to do you’re best,’ and ‘You’re going to care about one another.’” He’s building a model he wants to see replicated around the city. He thinks this program can help young people deal with the ills of the difficult urban environment. The connections these children have made with each other wouldn’t have been possible if it weren’t for the connections made between people eager to make a change in the way children are taught. After Thompson’s visit to Venezuela, he was introduced to Philadelphiaarea philanthropist and champion of the arts, Carole Haas Gravagno. Her initial contribution enabled TUP to function during the first year. “I think the arts - not just music - play a very big role in education,” says Haas Gravagno. “There needs to be a reason to learn to read and to learn mathematics. Through the arts, kids can really see the reason to do it. When they can express themselves through the arts, it makes learning come alive.” During difficult economic times, though, funding for the arts is often sacrificed. And with the state budget threatening massive cuts to education spending, music and other jumpphilly.com
SEEDS OF SUCCESS: Stanford Thompson (opposite page) conducts the student orchestra during a recent performance. "We’re here to not only teach them but we also aim to challenge them to achieve more," he says of his students (above). art programs around the city are in danger. “It breaks my heart to see music essentially taken from schools,” says Haas Gravagno. “Music made school a much more vibrant place for me and I want to share that.” Mayor Michael Nutter visited a recent TUP performance and even guest conducted. “Now that you’ve been given this gift, please don’t you ever forget it,” he told the student musicians. “You might go far away to school but promise to come back, right here. Because we need you here to give something back to another young person.” The TUP students want to come back. Most of them don’t actually want to leave. “My oldest, she’s about to be in 8th grade, the last year of the program,” says Eleanor
Rooks, mother of second seat cello player Anjelica Rooks. “She already wonders, ‘Do you think there’s a way I can still be a part of Tune Up Philly? There’s got to be a way! I’m going to ask Mr. Stanford if I can still play in the orchestra.” Rooks says that her daughter has formed bonds with the TUP instructors, as well as with her fellow performers. She has matured by working collaboratively with her classmates, including her sister, Christina Rooks, a fourth grade trumpet player. “She’s upset that it’s going to come to an end,” Rooks says. “It’s not every day that you see kids wanting to go back to their former school to teach the younger kids what they’ve learned.”
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