Project Description

Our town needs change... and it needs to come from the youth population. Proposed is a Learning Through Service (LTS) program that would work with all public schools K-12 (and any private / charter school that shows interest!) to execute community service projects that directly correlate to the curriculum students are learning!

Our students are extremely active, and this program would allow them a more upfront and creative way to be activists! For more on WH youth activism, check out our website: www.rockandlearn.org

We're also on Facebook (Rock West Hartford) or MySpace!! (www.myspace.com/rockandlearndotorg

Project Description

Kids Off The Block, a prominent community based youth organization in the Roseland Community of Chicago, IL, has ignited a passion across the city in response to an epidemic of youth violence that has claimed the lives of our children in the past year. We are embarking on our greatest challenge yet, the launching of our Citywide Campaign called “Save A Teen / Do Something”. This new Youth Anti-Violence Crime Prevention Campaign will develop sustainable processes and relationships that will address the violence, and social conditions that face youth in Chicago and across this nation. Youth (especially high school age youth) who choose to advocate in an organized body, must also receive social support that can be leveraged into opportunities to overcome their circumstances. We will build a Coalition to save our teens and provide them the resources to change their lives “literally”, and combat violence on a citywide level. To break the cycle of youth violence in 2008 we must form a coalition consisting of caring adults; city officials, law enforcement, community leaders, religious leaders, politicians and parents.

Project Description

Turning Point Youth Collective is a non-profit youth organization in Daytona Beach, Florida.

Our mission:
To provide the Daytona Beach area with resources and space for producing all-ages music events and creating music related cultural products; empowering youth through alternative leadership development opportunities including a youth-directed model encouraging leadership through open governance practices and erasing the line between the people serving and being served; to actively improve the social well-being of Daytona Beach area youth through civic engagement.

We have been in our planning stages since Jan 2006 and faced some difficulty in remaining after the original organizer moved out of state to continue his college career at Amherst in Boston, MA. Around that same time a new organizer picked up where he left off and January 2008 saw an active start to the collective.

Focusing on all-ages music events, youth empowerment, and civic engagement, Turning Point Youth Collective has already gained wide support from youth, community members in the arts, civic leaders, other local non-profit and grass-root organizations, and businesses alike.

Our first large scale event to introduce ourselves to the community will be Saturday June 7, 2008. "Endless Summer Fest" is an all day, all-ages, all local, free, community and arts event, organized largely in part for and by youth ages 16-25--the first of its kind in the area!

There are 20 confirmed music acts, 10 artists, and a number of skill shares, including a pottery wheel demonstration, and sewing workshop.

The opportunity to not only give back in such a fun and positive way to our community and its youth, but also to provide future leadership and creative opportunities for the youth in this area, combined with a love for the arts is the driving force behind our organization.

Project Description

As part of an outreach program with my school orchestra, we go to elementary schools that have 80% or more children on food plans, or are from lower income families and put on concerts for the students. Last year we had young artists from my school make masks to go with each song from Camille Saen-Sans Carnival of the Animals and kids from the elementary schools would come up and act out the animals during each song while we played.

This is out third year of music outreach in my school orchestra and this year we're performing Haydn's Toy Symphony and passing out toys to the kindergarten students in the elementary schools. We've gone to two schools and it has been our best outreach project so far. The kids love the audience interaction and playing with the orchestra.

We need grant money help to purchase the toy (cheap) instruments - we hope it might fire a spark of passion in a child that would otherwise never have been exposed to music education.

Project Description

The Milpitas Youth Advisory Commission presents the City of Milpitas Talent show, "Milpitas' Got Talent."

This city-wide talent show hopes to bring together the youth of Milpitas on a common ground, self-expression through art. All the youth of the city ranging from ages 12-21 are encouraged to audition to show off their talents in a friendly yet competitive competition for $100.

Acts will consist of bands, dance groups, hip-hop groups, singers, acoustic music groups, and solo instrumentals. All ticket sale proceeds will go to our charity of choice, Child Advocates of Silicon Valley.

Project Description

Nerdapalooza 2008

NerdCorps/Nerdapalooza has teamed up with national charity Child's Play to present Nerdapalooza 2008, the premiere nerd music event of the year.

Sponsored in part by Troma Films (Class of Nuke'Em High, The Toxic Avenger) and A Comic Shop, Nerdapalooza will host over thirty-three nerdcore hip-hop and rock bands during Fourth of July weekend in Orlando.

This is likely to be a significant media event, as interest in Nerdcore has never been higher, with the recent release of the film "Nerdcore Rising" at South By SouthWest, and the pending release of "Nerdcore for Life" in April.

Nerdapalooza's proceeds cover operating expenses, with 100% of the profit generated through merchandising and ticket sales going directly to Child's Play. Almost all of the performers pay for their own travel and accommodations.

As a charity event, we are currently seeking corporate sponsorship in various forms. Of primary concern would be tax-deductible donations made in the name of Nerdapalooza to our chosen charity organization, Child's Play.

However, there is also a need for hotel rooms, gear to be auctioned/raffled/given as prizes, etc., internet broadcasting, audio/video production/editing, and most importantly, the support of the geek community.

We are entirely open to featuring banners and logos from sponsors. Divx and Capcom's involvement in 2007 resulted in positive publicity in the film "Nerdcore For Life".

Pending the success of Nerdapalooza 2008, we hope to conduct a similar event during CES next year, as well. While we would certainly appreciate your company's patronage, I do want to thank you personally for your time.

Sincerely,
Jason Christie
337-407-1055

Nerdapalooza 2008 featuring MC Frontalot
http://www.fulldeity.com/robisfunny/sexorgan/nerdIndex.php

Charities
http://www.childsplaycharity.org/

Sponsors
http://www.troma.com
http://www.myspace.com/acomicshop

Films
http://www.nerdcorerisingthemovie.com
http://www.nerdcoreforlife.com

Nerdcore Hip-Hop - As seen in Wired, Vanity Fair, Esquire, Newsweek.
http://www.nerdcorehiphop.org

NerdCorps
http://www.rhymetorrents.com/nerdcorps

Project Description

During my junior year in high school my friends and I decided to hold a benefit dance to raise money and awareness for Pancreatic Cancer, a usually fatal cancer. My friends father was recently diagonosed with this Cancer in the spring of the previous year. So we decided to help other victims by raising money to aid in the research of this cancer. We went to businesses all over our area to gain sponsorship money to help with our profits. Then we had to find a location. Our school told us we coudn't have it there, so we decided on the local skating rink. The owners said they wouldn't charge us to use the building and all our ticket sales were also for us. Then we had to get the word out about our dance. We put up posters in our school and had announcements daily on the PTA system and somtimes on the television announcements. We also made boxes and placed them in the office and teacher's lounge to help gain more money. Then the dance finally came. We charaged people $4.00 a ticket and in the end we raised about $4,000! We sent all of the money we earned to the American Pancreatic Assocation, their website can be found at http://www.american-pancreatic-association.org/. For all our hardwork and dedication we had a few newspapers interview us and we were put into the Grand Rapids Press and the Cedar Springs Post. This project was probably the most rewarding experience for all three of us.

Project Description

The Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota is home to thousands of Lakota Indian people. Unfortunately, it is also home to a huge drug problem that effects everyone. Children and adults alike die from drug related causes everyday. I am apart of a small group of people here in Pine Ridge who are working towards bringing something positive to the reservation. The way that we hope to do this is through music. We would like support in putting on a drug awareness concert- free and open to everyone. We are planning to have positive messages, music, art and free food. We hope that this day of celebrating awareness will inform our youth and help them see that there is something else out there besides the use and abuse of drugs. The bands we are bringing in are: Aztlan Underground, RED, NyteLyfe, K-dog, Derelict, RipSnort. All of these bands spread a positive message, a few incorporate a cultural element in their music and all of them are friends of ours. There are also a group of guys coming from Arizona on their own free will who are gonna DJ through out the day. Totelcytol, a muralist team from LA is coming to run an art workshop and paint a mural the week before and the day of the concert. All of this the music, the food and the art is free and open to everyone. Realizing that drugs are rampant everywhere, we know we can't exterminate the use completely... But, we believe giving our youth a chance to dream of another way of living is a start.

Project Description

This has been an idea that I've had for a little over a year to try to help all of the new bands get their music and name out there. Not only do they get to play at a free concert, but they will be able to get a free recording of the night right off of the sound board. If everything works out it should be on April 11, 2008 at The Ally in Fullerton. Al money raised will benefit a little recording organization I started to provide a cheap, high quality audio recording for bands in their early stages. We are here to help the new bands get up off the ground. Not only does it go to help the bands and my recording organization to provide more bands with free or very inexpensive recordings, but it will also go to help many of the local teens stay away from drugs and alcohol because it is scheduled for a Friday ,big party night.

Project Description

At risk teenager girls ages 11-17, introduced to the arts. They create plays, music, and dance. They direct, they act, they dance, and they commit. The program will be about graduating high school, and college, by using the arts as a outlet for social, school, and family stress.
Strong educated women will be there mentors, and also sponsered trips to shows, and meet and greets with local actors, musicians, and working professionals. Have professional luncheons, and be required to write and keep journals. The main requirement will be maintaining their grades.

* this program is in remembrance of mothers, who strive to give there daughters advice, and courage to accomplished their dreams*