The Jack Elliott Music Project is (JEMP!), named in honor of composer Jack Elliott (founder of the Henry Mancini Institute).
JEMP! provides music education and technology to schools and communities at no cost to the schools or students.
JEMP! helps schools structure a program incorporating technology and music education in the following ways:
• JEMP! introduces schools and communities to JEMP! partners like M-Audio, Apple
• JEMP! introduces curriculum to help schools incorporate technology into music program
• JEMP! helps schools find new and incorporate existing sources to pay for technology
• JEMP! helps schools organize communities inside the school district to provide outreach into lower schools and surrounding communities
The Recording Club
“The Recording Club” teaches students how to compose music. "The Recording Club" combines state of the art technology with traditional teachings of theory, harmony and performance.
This past year, "The Recording Club" met Wednesdays at George Washington Prep. H.S. in South Central Los Angeles. Alan Elliott, Washington teachers Fernando Pullum, Stan Jackson, record producer Tom Rothrock and others put together an inspirational program that we hope is a step forward to producing musicians for the next generation.
This school year, with JEMP, Hamilton High School's music magnet in Los Angeles is starting our first partnership to provide a one-to-one (student to computer ratio) program. The plan is to start with two classes of kids (around 50 kids total) and to ramp up over the next few years to serve the entire 900 student population (and teachers too). JEMP's program will allow each kid to own their own laptop computer loaded with M-Audio’s Reason software and keyboard controller. The students will be working off the debt of their computer by teaching through JEMP's after school program which teaches music in the surrounding grammar schools.
Go watch a video of the Recording Club by clicking here!
After School Program
JEMP's after school music program introduces music fundamentals and styles to students in an interactive, ten-week program. The goal is to provide music education programs to elementary and junior high schools filling the need for sequential music education, and preparing students for future opportunities.
Recent History
This past year, JEMP! programs have been taught in conjunction with, and in preparation for, Washington Preparatory High School’s innovative music program under the direction of Fernando Pullum.
In a high school with a 30% graduation rate, those involved in the music program achieve a 90% graduation and 99% in the jazz program graduate and go on to college.
Incorporating the After School Program with The Recording Club
JEMP! programs are directed to increasing the level of musical readiness as well as raising students' self-esteem, their overall interest in education and providing a bridge to other musical experiences in life.
JEMP! worked last year to fill critical needs to help prepare students for George Washington Prep's exceptional music classes under the direction of Mr. Fernando Pullum by offering music appreciation programs to third and fourth graders.
JEMP! is a 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to seeking out, and fulfilling, areas of need in music education.
Next steps...
In the upcoming months, JEMP is putting together a program in conjunction with the Los Angeles Unified School District to start an after school program in the Leimert Park area, serving many of the surrounding schools. The program will be an “all city computer music” all star program- which, the kids will also be able to get school credit for. This pilot program will create a template that JEMP will then be able to export back to schools.
How you can help
We need your help to continue these programs.
JEMP's main focus from a fundraising standpoint now is to build a scholarship fund so that as JEMP partners with schools, we can actually help endowments for technology with seed money for computers as we teach schools how to build an infrastructure to support themselves.
The schools JEMP serves are not usually financed for a one-to-one program. However, we are learning that there is money out there for technology- sometimes inside the district and definitely through grants and fundraising- and it is JEMP’s mission to help schools get to this money.
To contribute to JEMP or to find out more info, please contact us at info@jemp.org.
