We’ll take you to a summer camp at the Musical Instrument Museum in Phoenix attended by students who got scholarships from a program developed by a local high school student.
TED SIMONS: Tonight's "Arizona Artbeat" looks at how a local high school senior decided to takes on the issue of education funding cuts to the arts. Danielle Shum, who performs as Danielle Victoria, turned a school project into a foundation that brings music to the lives of children so that they don't miss out. Producer Shana Fischer has more.
SHANA FISCHER: Summer camp at the musical instrument museum is how you might imagine, plenty of songs and plenty of music.
SHANA FISCHER: Classes focus on learning about the world through music. Carly Ofsthun is MIM's director of education and says music is a great steppingstone in a child's educational journey.
CARLY OFSTHUN: It has a great way to make connections. Developmentally, we know that music can improve your fine motor skills, it can improve test scores. But it's also a great way to make other connections with subjects. So while our students are having fun and they are playing, they are learning social studies, they are learning science.
SHANA FISCHER: For 12-year-old Trey Cardi, summer camp is a chance to explore subjects he really loves.
TREY CARDI: There's three classes I took during the whole summer camp, it was music class, drama class and art class.
SHANA FISCHER: Tray and his camp mates are able to enjoy the classes thanks to high school senior Danielle Shum.
DANIELLE SHUM: Music is important for kids, I believe, it really helped me grow and shape as a person.
SHANA FISCHER: Danielle is in the inter-baccalaureate program at Desert Mountain High School in Scottsdale. In addition to taking special classes, Danielle has to complete a community service project. She knew she wanted to do something that reflected her love of music. She created a foundation that funds scholarships for students to attend MIM's summer camp.
DANIELLE SHUM: The foundation originally started as a school project. But I was inspired to give back to the community and help those who share a love of music like me.
CARLY OFSTHUN: Someone like Danielle Victoria and our other donors are really important. We as a nonprofit organization, you know, are looking for ways to provide a lot of different offerings.
SHANA FISCHER: Danielle raised the money through donations and also the sale of a CD she recorded. For her, getting to see the kids experience the camp gave her a new appreciation for the power of music.
DANIELLE SHUM: I think interacting with the kids, seeing them enjoy the MIM as much as I did, and seeing them play the piano and try it out, or talk about their musical interests, it really made me happy and excited, because I love music and I'm glad that people can share the same passion for music. I think that if this foundation is able to help one child pursue that love, it's all worth it.
SHANA FISCHER: Trey says he loved his time at camp and is looking forward to coming back next year.
TREY CARDI: It's really fun, you get to do a lot of different things with it. It's just a way for you to learn about different cultures and having fun while doing it.
SHANA FISCHER: As for Danielle, she's thrilled that her little project had such a big impact.
DANIELLE SHUM: I think I'm most proud of being able to help someone chase their dream of music.
VIDEO: Here we sing.
TED SIMONS: And the website, DDmusicfoundation.com.
TED SIMONS: That is it for now; I'm Ted Simons, thank you for joining us. You have a great evening.
VIDEO: "Arizona Horizon" is made possible by contributions from the Friends of Eight, members of your Arizona PBS station. Thank you.
VIDEO: "Arizona Artbeat"" is made possible in part by the Flynn foundation, support, the advancement of arts and culture in Arizona.
