Thirteen aspiring artists have a chance to follow their dreams this summer thanks to scholarships they’ve received from Arts Alive.
For the second year of the scholarship, the Tillett Foundation, which sponsors the Arts Alive program, gathered more than $7,000 to provide high school students from grades ninth through 12th with small scholarships that will allow them to attend art, music and dance summer programs. The foundation held an awards ceremony on Tuesday to honor the scholarship winners.
Polly Watts, chairwoman of the Arts Alive board of directors, said that the scholarships are small but they go a long way to help the recipients fund programs that will give them an opportunity to develop their abilities.
“We want the students to get out there and be challenged,” she said.
The recipients were from Charlotte Amalie High School, Ivanna Eudora Kean High School, Antilles School and V.I. Montessori School. Seven of the students will be attending the UVI Summer Music Camp but others are going as far as New York to expand their artistic horizons.
Bailee Dukes and Jonathon Qualls, two recipients of the scholarship, have both already begun their study at Joffrey Ballet School in New York and were unable to attend the ceremony. Two other recipients, Keshawn Hardy and Daisy Garner, are slated to attend the prestigious Interlochen Center for the Arts in northwest Michigan.
Isis Collier, a recipient from V.I. Montessori School and International Academy, will be attending Sphinx Performance Academy, a summer program for minority string players. The program is extensive, requiring up to seven hours of practice daily. It is also competitive. Collier was one of 30 people accepted from a host of nationwide applicants.
Collier started playing the violin at 4 years old and has been playing for 13 years. When she was 4, her mom rented a movie called Small Wonder, a film about a dedicated violin teacher who instructs a group of kids from East Harlem to play the violin.
Collier said that when she saw the students in the movie playing at Carnegie Hall, she knew she wanted to play the violin.
This will be Collier’s fourth time attending the academy. She said she dreams of becoming a professional violinist, playing in orchestras, performing on stage and one day teaching others the instrument she loves. “It is my passion,” she said. “It is part of me.”
Joshua Farrell, scholarship recipient from Antilles School, said, “Every day you live you hear music. Music is everything. What would the world be without it?”
Farrell has been playing percussion since he was 7. He plays snare, bass, piano, xylophone and timpani, to name a few, but his true talent shines on a drum set. He’s recently picked up jazz. Farrell said he wants to become a lawyer, but he is also likes the idea of becoming a professional jazz musician.
Farrell will be attending UVI Summer Music Camp, which is taught by international jazz recording artist Dion Parson. He has been attending the program for the last four years and someday hopes to attend the jazz program at Interlochen.
Watts said, “These students are highly motivated and very talented.”
This year Arts Alive received scholarship donations from the Prior Family Scholarship Fund at Communication Foundation of the V.I. and ArtVI Advocates. Arts Alive also collected small donations during the concerts they host. Last year they only raised enough for six scholarships. Now they’re at 13. Watts hopes the scholarship continues to grow.
We hope next year we can raise enough for 20 or 25. It depends on how much we can raise, Watts said.
Other recipients of the award were:
– Khaila Pruiett – attending UVI Summer Music Camp;
-Te’Jani Jackson – attending UVI Summer Music Camp;
-Tisean Paul – attending UVI Summer Music Camp;
– Eljhaie Brathwaite – attending UVI Summer Music Camp;
-Khaimal Venzen – attending UVI Summer Music Camp;
-Jelani Gumbs – attending UVI Summer Music Camp;
-and Jairay Petty – attending Norfolk State University Junior Music
Program.
