Increasing Support for Creative Youth Development

Creative Youth Development prioritizes equity, youth voice, and collective action through focuses on wellbeing and artistic exploration.

The Lewis Prize for Music 2024 Awardees use music to empower young people with the resources and tools to thrive. 11 Creative Youth Development (CYD) organizations nationwide have been selected for awards ranging from $150,000 to $500,000. 15 Semifinalists are receiving grants of $15,000 in recognition of their impact. Over $3 million will be distributed in 2024.

Investing in the future of young people across the nation is crucial, and we believe the expanded and diverse support of Creative Youth Development is necessary for lasting impact. The Lewis Prize is proud to announce its partnership with Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies to increase distributed funds in the 2024 Awards! We are excited to deepen our philanthropic activity by forming new partnerships and collaborations that will advance the CYD field.

The Lewis Prize for Music was founded in 2017 to support exemplary leaders across the United States who use music for positive and equitable systems change in their communities. Since launching the first Accelerator Awards in 2020, The Lewis Prize has fulfilled its 5-year commitment of $20 million invested in Creative Youth Development through awards, grants, and research.

In this philanthropic effort, The Lewis Prize is grateful for the relationships cultivated in a shared commitment to youth empowerment and systems change through music. The foundation is now looking forward to using its knowledge and experience to increase advocacy and support for young people in communities across the country.

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Click on the map to locate the Creative Youth Development organizations we’ve awarded in 2024.

Transparency is important in the work we do. Learn about our process for insight into how awardees were selected.

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Accelerator Awards

$500,000

Accelerator Awards provide multi-year support to enable leaders and organizations to make sustained progress toward ambitious community change initiatives that align with The Lewis Prize for Music’s values and vision.

Inetnon Gefpå’go Cultural Arts Program, Inc.

Merizo, Guam

Inetnon Gefpå’go is an award-winning cultural arts program dedicated to sharing and preserving Chamorro heritage. Through music, song, dance, chant, and other forms, Inetnon Gefpå’go seeks to create practitioners who educate and promote the island's culture and identity. The organization focuses on being a platform that renews identity in colonial structures, especially when dealing with crisis, trauma, and social pressures. For 22 years, Inetnon Gefpå’go’s Chamorro Performing Arts Academy has developed Chamorro cultural arts youth practitioners who demonstrate a passion for their culture and can communicate it through the arts with a global perspective.

Neutral Zone

aNN aRBOR, mi

Founded by teens in 1998, Neutral Zone (NZ) provides a hub for social, artistic, educational, and cultural opportunities. Youth engage in creative arts and activism, weekend concerts, and special events. NZ music programs include industry basics, recording and mixing techniques, and a youth-owned record label. Youth receive academic support, career and college education access, and first-time paid work experience. The organization empowers youth voices in their community, emphasizing youth stories through art productions, community conversations, and music concerts. For 15 years, Neutral Zone has supported other organizations to nurture youth-adult partnerships through dynamic training, coaching, and consulting for youth and their adult allies in its Youth Driven Spaces approach.

The Bridge Music Project

Olympia, WA

The Bridge Music Project teaches youth how music and songwriting can be tools to deal with life’s challenges. Through music, mentorship, and community, youth learn the power of self-expression and share their stories. The Thurston County-based organization began as a project for youth in foster care in 2014. Current programs include the Community Songwriting Workshops hosted in partnership with established local music venues, Haven House Workshops held at a group home for youth in crisis, Incarcerated Youth Songwriting Workshops at high-security facilities, and Audio Production Workshops. The Bridge Music Project connects with youth where they are to meet unmet community needs.

The Roots of Music

New Orleans, la

The Roots of Music (Roots) creates the next generation of New Orleans musicians. Founded in 2007 in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina by Grammy Award-winning drummer and CNN Hero Derrick Tabb, Roots uses music to develop New Orleans youth into strong, compassionate, and talented adults. Their programs include the Marching Crusaders, Sprouts of Music, and The Roots Studio Academy. Students perform in parades, conferences, and special events, impacting over 1 million visitors annually. Roots is an anchor for music education and preserves cultural heritage through performance opportunities, youth development, mentorship, and fellowship for New Orleans youth and families.

Infusion Awards

$150,000

The 2024 Infusion Awards provide multi-year support to leaders and programs creating new musical platforms and pathways in their communities.

Brandon House Cultural & Performing Arts Center

Little Rock, ar

Brandon House Cultural & Performing Arts Center (Brandon House) is a community-based organization whose mission is transforming lives through creative and performing arts. Founded in 2014, Brandon House programs and services are designed to expose youth to creative arts, develop artistic skills and talents, and transform artistic skills into a creative economy. The Sound Off Music Program offers hands-on learning experiences in audio/music production, songwriting, and recording in Brandon House’s state-of-the-art recording studio. Youth receive tools that address their personal, academic, and social needs. Combining musical instrumentation with choral music, the Sound-Off Music Program offers youth a creative platform for high-quality music learning, performances, and career development.

BUMP: The Triangle

Durham, NC

BUMP: The Triangle uses arts programming and African diasporic cultural enrichment to empower youth with artistic proficiency, heritage connections, cultural knowledge, and resilience. Artists and youth work together for the exposure, expansion, and survival of African diaspora heritage arts. Youth learn West African balafon, African drumming and percussion, steelpan, and DJ/turntablism, in addition to many traditional Western classical instruments, voice, and multimedia visual arts. Their community-building enrichment programs include BUMP Jams, which allows youth to showcase their music and art to the larger local community.

Community Music Center of Boston

Boston, MA

Community Music Center of Boston (CMCB) is an arts education nonprofit founded in 1910, and is proud to be the largest outside provider of arts education to the Boston Public Schools. CMCB's direct service supports include music lessons, school-based instruction, youth employment, teacher training, and more. Youth also have access to Board-certified Music Therapy, adopting the skillful use of musical instruction to achieve non-musical goals. Students entering all these programs have an entire ecosystem of support throughout their K-12 education and beyond, with an educational framework that centers on cultural inclusion and social-emotional development alongside musical artistry.

HEAL Center for the Arts

Saint Louis, mo

HEAL Center for the Arts (HEAL) is committed to developing young intellectual artists by creating and presenting ‘art as therapy’ for hurting communities. Students are mentored with love, enthusiasm, and dedication through high-level music programming. The inspiration for HEAL comes from the founder's experience growing up in Miami, FL, where he discovered the power of the arts to nurture his aspirations for the future. While band director at Riverview Gardens High School and Performing Arts Coordinator of Secondary Education for the district, Harvey Lockhart realized the lack of professional arts training and opportunities for his students and many other young people living in low-income areas of Saint Louis. Recognizing the opportunity to engage local youth through the arts, HEAL was created.

Healthy Hood Chicago

Chicago, IL

Healthy Hood Chicago was created to address symptoms of systemic oppression by offering affordable programming and resources that elevate the mind, body, and conscience. The organization provides relief through several initiatives, including its food pantry, community garden, chronic illness screening, and KNVS House music program. Healthy Hood’s music and dance program, KNVS House, focuses on bridging the gap between Chicago’s creative community members and potential resources. Since its inception, KNVS House has expanded to include many forms of creative expression to combat generational poverty. The program teaches youth to make a sustainable living as they express their creativity and share their lived experiences.

Juneau Alaska Music Matters (JAMM)

jUNEAU, AK

Juneau Alaska Music Matters (JAMM) is a prominent feature in the education and arts landscapes of Juneau, using music as a vehicle for social change. The program develops youth resiliency, teamwork, and self-confidence to empower, inspire, and strengthen communities. JAMMʼs Haa Tóo Yéi Yatee (“It is inside us”) Lingít language revitalization program uses Lingít as the medium to teach violin. The program brings together classroom teachers, string instructors, Lingít culture bearers, language scholars, and elders to incorporate Lingít, the indigenous language of the land. JAMMʼs after-school classes reflect the local community with diverse cultures, including Lingít dance and drumming, ukulele, bluegrass, and more. Through these culturally immersive programs, students are supported to see themselves as assets and leaders in their community.

White Hall Arts Academy

Los Angeles, ca

The White Hall Arts Academy (WHAA) provides free and subsidized conservatory-level transformative arts education programs to local communities of South LA, Inglewood, Watts, Compton, and online. WHAA aims to bridge the gap through access to the creative capital that drives Los Angeles. Founded in 2011 by Berklee College of Music alumna Tanisha Hall, WHAA offers a blend of classical and contemporary arts training to children and adults. The organization serves a diverse range of youth, from elementary school students to young adult TV stars. WHAA provides intensive music education to youth with programs that include songwriting, music production, piano, guitar, and singing. Through their efforts, WHAA empowers youth and creates opportunities for artistic expression and community engagement.