Hi Friends,
Thanks for your interest in my blog. Over the next year, I'll be updating anyone who's interested on my experiences in Boston, Venezuela, and the many other places we end up. This week marks the first gathering of this year's Abreu Fellows, and we've been busy.
Before I really dig in, a little background on what I'm doing here. El Sistema is a belief in the power of music to empower children to change their own lives. It has spread throughout the world, from Venezuela to Scotland and to the United States. Our purpose as Abreu Fellows is to make a significant contribution to the growing movement in the United States.
The first six weeks of the program are all spent in Boston at New England Conservatory, where we start classes on everything from El Sistema fundamentals to nonprofit leadership to poverty in the United States. The faculty assembled to teach is an astounding group of individuals from many Boston institutions, including NEC, Harvard, and Brandeis. It's quite a privilege to sit in a group with nine other people so passionate about using music for social change and to pose question after question to whoever happens to be talking with us.
It's exciting to think that at the end of the year, many of us will spread across the country to begin our own programs. As we get into the meat of our classes, I hope to leverage what I'm studying into the actual program I hope to create once I leave. Over the next few months, the theories we study will turn into real fundraising and strategic planning.
I could go on for quite a while, but I'll leave you there as an introduction with the promise of adding something more soon--hopefully including some pictures and videos. Thanks again for your support, as it is extremely comforting to have a network of people interested in what is going on and willing to help make a difference.
