Girls Rock Charleston to launch after-school music education program

From the Charleston Post and Courier:

A nonprofit that empowers girls through music education and creative collaboration plans to launch a new after-school program in the spring.

Girls Rock Charleston‘s newest offering will focus on leadership, mentorship and music as a means for social change. Participants will learn an instrument, form a band, participate in workshops on social justice principles, and perform their original music at a local venue.

“One of the main things we focus on is developing leadership for the next generation of youth, so we definitely see our programming as almost primarily a leadership development vehicle,” said Jenna Lyles, one of the four founders of Girls Rock Charleston. “The music piece is really important; it’s a platform for social change.”

In Charleston, the 3-year-old, all-volunteer nonprofit has served more than 150 girls through a one-week summer camp, and that will remain its flagship program. The new after-school program grew out of that effort because organizers wanted to do a longer program that would provide deeper mentorship for participants. The program begins Feb. 4 and lasts until May 1.

“It will be more time for them to get creative and work together more,” Lyles said.

The new program will include social-based justice lessons, such as the history of women in music.

“It’s definitely a combination of ‘Songwriting 101′ and (girls’) image and identity,” Lyle said. “It’s primarily gender focused, but we talk a lot about race and class.”

The local group is part of the Girls Rock Camp Alliance, an international coalition of organizations that promote and support its affiliate camps. The first camp started in Portland, Ore., in 2007, and spinoff camps have cropped up across the world. The goal has been to use music education to foster self-esteem and confidence.

In Charleston, the new after-school program has a sliding-scale fee, from $500 to free, depending on parents’ income. Lyles said the racial and socioeconomic demographics of summer campers has been diverse, and they strive to create a safe place where girls can talk about who they are and their experiences.

Some students have attended the camp because they have a keen interest in music, while others are into social justice.

“We encourage both,” Lyles said. “Whatever they bring, we amplify it. We want to break down the barriers that prevent girls from being able to live out their full humanity. We consider ourselves to be a feminist organization.”

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