Success Academy Harlem East Concert Band Earns Top Distinction at New York State Music Association Majors

**FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, May 23, 2019**

Contact: Brian Whitley, 510-495-5542 Brian.Whitley@successacademies.org

Ann Powell, 646-894-6407 Ann.Powell@successacademies.org

SUCCESS ACADEMY HARLEM EAST MIDDLE SCHOOL CONCERT BAND EARNS TOP DISTINCTION AT NEW YORK STATE MUSIC ASSOCIATION MAJORS SA Harlem East Concert Band Playing at NYSSMA Major Organization Festival at Lehman College

New York, NY — The Success Academy Harlem East Concert Band earned the highest distinction at the NYSSMA Major Organization Festival at Lehman College, a statewide adjudication that hundreds of large ensemble programs (concert bands, jazz bands, orchestras, and choirs) participate in every year.

The band received the highest possible rating of Gold With Distinction. This rating is reserved for organizations that have demonstrated an outstanding level of technical and artistic skill, while having achieved a standard of performance deemed exceptional in all three selections. In three years of attending NYSSMA Majors, this is the first time Success Academy has earned this high honor.

The Success Academy Harlem East Concert Band is made up of 30 scholars from Harlem and the Bronx.

Many of Concert Band scholars have been playing under the direction of music teacher, Jamie Scotto, since 2013. She started the music program at Success Academy Bronx 1, where Ms. Scotto taught from 2013 to 2018. Ms. Scotto followed scholars from SA Bronx 1 on to middle school to start the music program at Success Academy Harlem East.

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ABOUT SUCCESS ACADEMY CHARTER SCHOOLS

Founded in 2006, Success Academy Charter Schools are free public K-12 schools open to all children in the state through a random lottery. With 47 schools across Brooklyn, the Bronx, Manhattan, and Queens, Success Academy enrolls 17,000 students, primarily children of color from low-income households in disadvantaged neighborhoods: 74% receive free or reduced-price lunch, 94% are children of color, 16% have disabilities, and 8% are English language learners. Success Academy schools received more than 17,700 applications for 3,288 open seats for the 2018-19 academic year.