Latest news with #ProjectSTEP
CBS News
09-05-2025
- Entertainment
- CBS News
Massachusetts arts organizations reeling from federal funding cuts, "like a sucker punch"
Federal funding cuts to the National Endowment for the Arts has some Massachusetts organizations reeling. These groups secured tens-of-thousands of dollars in grants last year only to see that money disappear with one email. "One of which stated $50,000 for this year would be cut, $55,000 for next year, both of which were already awarded would also cut and that our application for 2026-2027 season would be declined. So, over $150,000 right there in an email," said Ashleigh Gordon, a board member of Project STEP. Programs will be impacted Project STEP has been around for more than 40 years. It serves Black and Latino youth by teaching them string instruments. In addition to sitting on the board for Project STEP, Gordon also co-founded Castle Of Our Skins. The program is a concert and education series that sponsors Black artists. Their first email said $20,000 would be cut. "On Tuesday that $60,000 would also be cut, so a total of $80,000 for our organization," adds Gordon. "To not be able to continue to support in ways that have so many impacts on our being is really disturbing." She says an email from their artistic director went out to their students to explain the situation. "It's an attempt to delegitimize our work. Again, over 40 years of what we have been doing? To show we are somehow dispensable. For Castle Of Our Skins, 12 years we have been doing this work too," said Gordon. She feels targeted saying Project STEP has helped predominantly Black, Latino, and multi-racial students from low to middle income families. "Absolutely, our programing will be impacted. It's a significant amount of money," says Gordon. Lowell Folk Festival hit by cuts "You're expecting those, and you've accounted for those in your fiscal year budget," said Lee Viliesis, Executive Director of the Lowell Folk Festival. The festival was also hit by the cuts. They received an email on Friday night saying they lost $20,000 in NEA funding grants that they were awarded last year. "This is something that was awarded and is now being withdrawn. It's one thing to not have an award be offered," said Viliesis. "It just feels like a sucker punch to throw it in [an email] at 8:30 at night." They have never charged for entry, Viliesis said it would hinder accessibility. It's been that way for 39 years. "That money, because our event is only three days and it's so large, that money was a crucial point of just making it happen," said Viliesis. Now they will have to rely on the community to keep it going. "I don't like to predict the future beyond this year," said Viliesis. "If it's the last one we can ever have, then we will go out with a bang! I hope people are willing to step up and help us to make it to 2026 which is our 40th anniversary."
Boston Globe
06-05-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Local arts groups count losses as NEA cancels grants
Ian Saunders, the group's artistic and interim executive director, said the organization might still be able to receive partial reimbursement for one of the grants. But the other grant, a $55,000 pledge, is lost. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up 'The consequence is clear: we are losing critical support we were promised,' Saunders said in a letter to Project STEP supporters. He added that the cancellations represent more than a 'reprioritization of national arts funding.' Advertisement 'It is an effort to delegitimize programs like ours and silence the very students we serve,' he said. 'The message is unmistakable: that diverse voices, diverse thinking, and any expression that challenges the administration's cultural comfort zone are no longer welcome in the American artistic narrative.' It remains unclear how many organizations have had their funding cut, but a crowd-sourced document circulating among arts administrators nationwide showed Tuesday morning that more than 150 organizations have reported losing nearly $4.5 million in funding. Advertisement 'It certainly does not seem as though it was a small concentrated group,' said Emily Ruddock, executive director of the arts advocacy group, MASSCreative. 'This piece of federal money is a big deal. In some cases it is the decision of whether or not you're going to do a project.' The letters informed grantees that the NEA is updating its grant-making priorities to focus on 'projects that reflect the nation's rich artistic heritage and creativity as prioritized by the President.' 'Consequently, we are terminating awards that fall outside these new priorities,' read one of the letters reviewed by the Globe. 'Funding is being allocated in a new direction in furtherance of the Administration's agenda.' Among the new directions cited by the agency are projects that 'elevate' historically Black colleges and universities, 250th anniversary celebrations of American independence, fostering 'AI competency,' and making 'America healthy again.' Saunders called the revocation of the already-approved grants 'a betrayal.' 'It breaks faith with communities who were told their voices had a place,' he said, 'and that their stories belonged in the national consciousness.' The NEA did not respond to a request for comment. The agency's decision follows earlier grant cancellations from the Other Boston-based groups that received termination letters include Castle of our Skins, a Black-led performing arts group; Boston String Academy, which offers affordable musical instruction to kids; and Urbanity Dance, a professional company that also offers accessible lessons. Advertisement Madeleine Steczynski, co-founder and executive director of ZUMIX, a youth organization focused on music and technology, said they received a cancellation notice Friday. 'Ironically, we have already completed the project, and received our funding in full, so the letter is moot,' she said via email. 'However, we have a grant pending for this year with the NEA, which we assume will not be granted, and we are not planning to apply for NEA funding for the coming year.' EdVestors, which works closely with Boston Public Schools to provide enhanced educational opportunities, also received a letter saying the agency had cancelled its two-year, $100,000 grant to help support arts education in BPS. Like ZUMIX, the organization had already been reimbursed for the full grant. Ruddock said that the loss of federal funding goes far beyond the dollar amount, adding that federal grants often help organizations attract private support. 'The multiplier effect of public funding to arts and culture is significant,' she said. 'It's a signal to private funders and donors, to corporations and other potential sources of funding that your program has relevance' Malcolm Gay can be reached at
Boston Globe
08-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Boston Globe
March's best photos: Figure skating, Match day and high school championships
Lindsay Grimes, a horticulturist at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, climbed a ladder in order to remove a 20-foot vine of nasturtiums from their trellis on March 25, as a team from the museum moved the nasturtiums from the greenhouse where they're grown to the museum's courtyard. Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff The Wachusett Girls Basketball team celebrated after winning the D1 Girls MIAA basketball finals against Bishop Feehan High at Tsongas Center in Lowell on March 15. Erin Clark/Globe Staff Theresa Lister, 16, a junior at North Andover High School, spoke to some of the students after they walked to the School Administration building on March 24 during a walk-out in support of their teachers and programs. Pat Greenhouse/Globe Staff Civil rights activist Dorothy Burnham (left) reached toward a guest during her 110th birthday celebration March 22. Erin Clark/Globe Staff Victoria Ajayi from Nigeria was overcome with emotion after learning she will serve her residency at the Cleveland Clinic. Tufts University School of Medicine Class of 2025 opened their letters to learn where they will serve their residencies during National Match Day on March 21. John Tlumacki/Globe Staff Cellist Sofia Hernandez-Williams, 11, practiced before rehearsing with the Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra on Sunday, March 2. She is a Project STEP student who recently became one of the youngest semifinalists at the prestigious Sphinx Competition. Brett Phelps for The Boston Globe University of Maine's Luke Antonacci celebrated his game-tying goal with teammates and fans against Northeastern University during the Hockey East semi-final game at TD Garden on March 20. Matthew J. Lee/Globe Staff Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum stuffed Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic on his shot attempt during the third quarter at TD Garden on March 8. Barry Chin/Globe Staff The New Bedford-Fairhaven Bridge cast a shadow over MacArthur Drive. Fisherman Alfredo "Freddy" Loya once confronted Officer Jorge Santos here after Santos allegedly stole pills from him. The police in New Bedford have a long history of abusing the confidential informant system in the fight against drugs, guns, and gangs. Lane Turner/Globe Staff Members of the Colonel Henry Knox Color Guard Sons of the American Revolution made their way down the spiral staircase inside the Old State House for a wreath-laying ceremony in honor of the Boston Massacre anniversary on March 5. Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff Demonstrators carried Palestinian flags during a 'standout' organized by Needham for Palestine on March 8. Craig F. Walker/Globe Staff Protesters gathered outside of the Boston Public Library to advocate against the removal of the Boylston Street bus lane on March 18. Erin Clark/Globe Staff The Catholic Memorial team celebrated after winning against Saint John's at the 2025 Boys D1 Ice Hockey State Championship on March 16 at TD Garden. Brett Phelps for The Boston Globe Jeyden, 6, (left) and his cousin Sylvia, 5, played together in Jeyden's family's apartment. Jeyden's brother, 17-year-old Jose Adalberto Herrera who entered the United States as an unaccompanied minor in 2019, was released back to his parents and is now being held again in federal custody. Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff Paula and Jeff Babel sampled a recent batch of maple syrup inside their sugar house in Mason, N.H., on March 7. John Tlumacki/Globe Staff Ace, a 2-year-old dog who was surrendered to the Animal Rescue League of Boston Dedham branch, attempted to look out the door on March 6. Suzanne Kreiter/Globe Staff Survivors of the commercial sex industry (from left) Brittanie Adams, Audra Doody, Audrey Morrissey, and Stacy Reed watched a live broadcast of the Cambridge Court proceedings with client Mark Zhu shown on the screen. They are from the EMMA Coalition. John Tlumacki/Globe Staff Greg Bobst, 65, who lives in a tent in an abandoned lot in Bridgewater, had a cigarette in the rain on March 17. He said he doesn't feel safe in a shelter. 'I just want to have a mail in address and have a nice room by myself and just start my life over.' Stan Grossfeld/Globe Staff Members of the Tenth Regiment of Foot, a reenactment group portraying British troops at Lexington and Concord, underwent drills in preparation for the April 19 commemoration in the parking lot at St. Brigid's Church in Lexington. Barry Chin/Globe Staff
Boston Globe
07-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Boston Globe
This preteen cellist from Central Mass. just made history at the Sphinx Competition
Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Though Sofia didn't qualify for the final round, which includes cash prizes ranging from $3,000 for third place to $10,000 for first, her performance earned an honorable mention, and it's possible she could apply again in the future; many semifinalists do. Advertisement However, the bright-eyed preteen with a seemingly insatiable appetite for music has plenty to keep her occupied before application season rolls around again. Next Sunday (March 16), she'll participate in a showcase concert at Rockport's Shalin Liu Performance Center presented by Project STEP, the Boston-based nonprofit that provides instruction and resources to young musicians from historically underrepresented backgrounds in the classical music field. This is her fifth year as a Project STEP student, and she will be performing the first movement of a cello concerto by Saint-Saëns, as well as a violin-cello duet arrangement of the same composer's 'Danse macabre,' which she had just rehearsed before sitting down for the interview. 'I was working with my colleague,' she said, then shook her head and softly giggled at her own use of the word 'colleague.' Sofia is the youngest member of a Holden-based family quartet of string players. Her father, the Cuba-born violinist and violin maker Angel Hernandez Dominguez, met her mother, cellist Caroline Reiner-Williams, while studying at the now-shuttered Atlantic Union College in Lancaster. Her older brother Alex Hernandez-Williams, 14, picked up the violin, while Sofia gravitated toward its lower cousin. Advertisement 'I actually have this very distinct memory of coming from the living room, Mama was in the kitchen, and I was like' — she gestured as if pulling on an adult's shirt — 'I wanna play the cello!' She started playing at 4 or 5, she estimated, then turning to her father: 'I don't know if you consider me starting the cello, but I kind of scratched the cello a lot…' 'Well, that's how we start,' said Hernandez. Her first instructor was her mother, but before long, she started taking formal lessons at Worcester's Joy of Music Program with Timothy Teranella, who remains her primary teacher. Because Teranella had taught Reiner-Williams during her own years as a JOMP student, Sofia said, 'we call him the grand-teacher,' she joked. In addition to private lessons and Project STEP, she plays in youth ensembles through JOMP and Boston Youth Symphony Orchestras, as does her brother. It helps that there is some room for improvisation in the rhythm of their days. Reiner-Williams was home-schooled as a child, and she and Hernandez decided to do the same for their children. 'It's important that we give them the education that we wish for them to have, and the chance to pursue the things they're most interested in,' he said. Which parent takes charge of teaching at home? Hernandez silently pointed to his daughter and cracked a smile. Advertisement 'We have an online curriculum,' Sofia quickly clarified. 'And the home-school co-op, too' — specifically Great Explorers Co-op, based in Marlborough. But Sofia's curiosity helps her excel as a self-directed learner, Hernandez said. 'She's very disciplined and self-driven, and she makes her own schedule that she's very good at following to the letter,' he said. Anytime she's practicing cello, 'she's very intense. It looks like she's always preparing for a competition.' Alex loves playing music as well, but doesn't thrive on competition the same way Sofia does, said Hernandez. 'She came to me about two years ago, maybe a little more, and said, 'I know what I want to do when I grow up! I want to be a soloist,'' he said. 'And I was like, well, OK, guess we'd better start now.' In 2024, Sofia performed Haydn's complete Cello Concerto No. 1 with the Worcester-based community orchestra Seven Hills Symphony. Then, in subsequent months, she performed single movements from the same piece with the Massachusetts Symphony Orchestra and the Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra — the last one only days after returning from Sphinx. Asked whether she'd describe herself as competitive, Sofia mumbled and tried to hide as much of her 4-foot-something frame as possible behind her cello. Her list of dream pieces to learn in the future includes concertos by Dvořák, Lalo, and Elgar, and she especially enjoys recordings by Jacqueline du Pré and Gautier Capuçon, 'and Yo-Yo Ma, for Bach,' she said. Sometimes, Hernandez said, he has to warn her to stop practicing for the day. He doesn't want her to strain herself, and also, he said, 'I want her to enjoy herself. Just be a kid.' Read a book, or play on the Nintendo Switch, or go outside, or play with her pet rabbit Blueberry, for example. Advertisement 'She's old-fashioned,' he said. 'She reads Dickens — ' 'I don't read Dickens!' Sofia jumped in. 'I've never read anything by Dickens!' She's actually reading 'Emma' by Jane Austen. PROJECT STEP March 16, 3 p.m. Shalin Liu Performance Center, Rockport. Free; tickets required. 978-546-7391, A.Z. Madonna can be reached at
CBS News
07-02-2025
- Entertainment
- CBS News
Boston musician spreads love of playing classical music to children in underserved communities
BOSTON - A Black musician has made it his mission to connect kids in underserved neighborhoods in Boston with classical music. Reaching kids in underrepresented communities "I was curious to look at it and what's inside a cello, what's these little holes and strings. After listening to a certain piece I was like, oh yeah, it's so good," said 12-year-old cellist Malik Mason Williams II. He got hooked on classical music because of a program called Project STEP, or String Training Education Program. "Supporting students that are traditionally underrepresented in classical music. Black, Latinx, Haitian in our community," said Project STEP Artistic Director Dr. Ian Saunders. At Project STEP, students as young as 6 years old come to the Boston Symphony Orchestra every Saturday and learn pretty much free of charge how to play their instruments. They also have chamber groups and perform seasonal concerts. "I like Project STEP because they always give opportunities for students to join, especially little kids, like focus program. It's good for kids to learn about movement and listening to notes," said Malik. For Saunders, Project STEP is his passion and purpose. He's had an interest in classical music as early as kindergarten. He's classically trained and earned a college scholarship to Penn State. He's since performed around the world. Looking to expand the program "The reason why STEP is near and dear is because I feel like, for me to get to where I am, I was fortunate enough to have a lot of great people in my corner and mentors to guide me to where I am today. And it's important for me to give back," said Saunders. Project STEP has been around for 42 years and they have 56 students enrolled in the program. They want to expand to more than 100 students a year but the challenge is they need more space. "We can't work with as many students as we would like," said Saunders. "We're very fortunate to be in this historic building and incredible building at Symphony Hall but this program is incredible and should be shared with more students across Boston." Malik said Project STEP will help him achieve his ultimate goal. "I want to be a police officer so eventually I can help out the community, say hi to little kids and teach them what it's like," said Malik.
