SOUND BUSINESS, INC.
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Mission Statement
Branded as an “Inclusive Grassroots Cooperative” (IGC), SBI’s Randolph Program creates a cooperative that supports the students. It includes administrators, staff, parents/guardians, alumni and corporate and community partners. The community, with the structure created by this IGC, helps define priorities for the school and its students. In the case of Randolph, SBI focused on academic enrichment, comprehensive college access services, theatre production and performing arts, all aimed at preparing students attitudinally, socio-culturally, and academically for post secondary educational and career opportunities. SBI’s Inclusive Grassroots Cooperative is a replicable framework for the next generation of Public Schools. This innovative and collaborative approach has redefined the public’s role in public schools.
About This Cause
Sound Business, Inc. (SBI) is an independent, 501 (c) (3) New York City not-for-profit education services organization. Its program, the College and Career Preparatory Institute (CCPI), based at West Harlem's A. Philip Randolph Campus High School, is designed to enhance the public high school educational environment and culture. Through CCPI, Sound Business, Inc. fosters systemic socio-economic change through the education of high potential youth from socio-economically disadvantaged communities. Many Randolph students attracted to Sound Business, Inc.'s CCPI would, in fact, excel in the public school system yet they often do not have the opportunity to acquire the knowledge and understanding necessary to make the right choices affecting their high school careers and realistic informed choices regarding post-secondary education opportunities and career paths. CCPI's diverse extra-curricular programs address students' informational, academic, attitudinal and socio-cultural needs. The programs, which are scheduled during lunch periods and during after school hours include: ¢ 4 afterschool College Admission Strategy Courses ¢ 14 afterschool performing Arts Programs ¢ 1 mid-day Seminar Series ¢ 1 College Campus Workshop and Tour Program ¢ 4 Parent/Guardian College Planning Workshop Series. Sound Business, Inc. is the result of a long-term vision of holistic education translated into action by its Founder and President, Charles R. Thompson. In the late 1980s, Thompson, then the director of the Musicians' Advisory Service, Ltd. (MAS), partnered with the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine, known nationally and internationally for its innovative community programs and outreach. Together, they formed RPM - Recording, Production, and Management Institute - an educational program designed to create employment opportunities "behind-the-scenes" in the entertainment industry, for college students of color from West Harlem's Morningside Heights neighborhood. Thompson's association with the recording industry, along with foundation support and the alliance with the Cathedral, helped to make this idea of youth empowerment a reality. Moving from the Cathedral to the "fiscal umbrella" of the Citizen's Committee for New York City, RPM gradually became an independent venture through Thompson's energetic leadership. As RPM's recognition increased, links to the corporate world grew, resulting in funding contributions from Anheuser Busch Companies, BMG Entertainment, BPI Communications, Chase, Morgan Guaranty, New York Times Foundation, Polygram Holding, Inc., Sony Music Entertainment, Time, Inc., and others. During this period, SBI's focus moved from targeting college students to targeting publicly educated high school students, many of whom came from the city's most socio-economically disadvantaged communities. Sound Business, Inc. began operations at Randolph High in the Spring of 1991. It focused initially on career paths within the music entertainment industry but soon expanded to a wide range of career fields. Following a name change to Sound Business, Inc. (reflecting both the organization's grounded educational approach and its historical link to the examination of music entertainment industry issues), SBI was successful in recruiting a volunteer roster of professionals who served as instructors, chaperones, workshop facilitators, mentors, guest speakers and coaches. Through most of its first decade at Randolph High, the primary SBI program objective was to prepare students for post-secondary career path opportunities. During the second decade, the focused moved to college readiness. Today, the principle objective of SBI's College and Career Preparatory Institute is to prepare students for admission into selective undergraduate programs at four-year residential colleges. Too often in America, only young people from our society's affluent socio-economic communities receive the kind of education that will produce an adult citizen able to participate effectively in our society. To that end, CCPI instills in its students the desire for post-secondary undergraduate experiences that will enable them to: ¢ Think and problem solve in a creative, risk-taking manner ¢ Express ideas and feelings in organized, logical, coherent, descriptive rich language, both orally and written ¢ Analyze, organize and use data for meaningful solutions ¢ Be capable of setting goals with appropriate information and then achieve these goals through proper means ¢ Have the capacity and instinct to work in a cooperative, collaborative manner with others in their professional and community lives. SBI Executive Director, Charles Thompson, notes that many of our urban problems impact heavily upon the lives of working class people who are often not equipped either to contribute to, or to effect change in the system. Establishing SBI's programs in public schools where working class youth receive their education can thus provide them with the skills needed to initiate significant change to their own lives and in the world around them. States Thompson, "Education, organization, and mobilization - these make up the core of our mission. We must elevate our youth by building diverse communities and partnerships that support a holistic vision of public education. We must educate and empower the leaders of tomorrow. We must respond not only to economic disadvantage, but also to impoverishment of the mind and the spirit. This is the work of Sound Business, Inc. - enabling young people, irrespective of race, ethnicity, or background, to take their place in the professional world of the 21st century and to assume leadership roles at all levels of our society."