DUKE ELLINGTON SCHOOL OF THE ARTS PROJECT
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Mission Statement
Since its inception in 1974, the Duke Ellington School of the Arts has upheld its mission of providing an exemplary arts and academic education to talented youth who may not otherwise have that opportunity. An independently operated public school in partnership with the Ellington Fund, George Washington University, The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and DC Public Schools, it serves over 500 students from all wards of the District, Maryland and Virginia. The Ellington Fund serves as the fundraising arm for the school. At Ellington, students specialize in dance, literary media and communications, museum studies, instrumental and vocal music, theatre, technical design and production, and visual arts. We have consistent graduation rates of over 95%, with many of our students receiving scholarships. Ellington is proof of what it means to successfully educate young people for the 21st century--- in and through the arts.
About This Cause
Located in Washington, DC, the Duke Ellington School of the Arts was founded in 1974 and is the only DC public high school that provides pre-professional arts training and a full college preparatory curriculum to over 530 talented youth (grades 9-12) from every ward of Washington, DC, with approximately 40% from Wards 6, 7 and 8. Each student takes a full academic course load and majors in one of eight arts disciplines: Dance, Instrumental Music, Literary Media & Communications, Museum Studies, Technical Design and Production, Theatre, Visual Arts, or Vocal Music. Our mission is to nurture and inspire passion for arts and learning in talented students who might not otherwise have an opportunity to develop their artistic skills. We ensure that our students are prepared for post-secondary education and/or careers in the arts by offering an intensive arts-based program. We prepare our students to become productive citizens in our global society through our strong focus on academics and community service. Ellington students are dedicated and driven. The school day runs from 8 am to 5 pm, and students often stay later for additional classes, rehearsals and performances. Many of our students enter the school below grade level in math and reading, but through additional tutoring are able to bring up their grades to graduate on time. Ellington's graduation and college acceptance rates currently average 95% - among the highest in DC Public Schools. The graduating class of 2015 was awarded over $3.5 million in scholarships, including the prestigious Gates Millennium Scholarship that was received by one of our dance students. The Ellington faculty includes talented educators and award-winning writers, artists and musicians. They are dedicated teachers who develop close relationships with the students and serve as a surrogate family. For many of our students, the school is a place of refuge from the challenges of daily life and a place they feel accepted for who they really are. Because of Ellington's reputation for success in arts education, many well-known artists and professionals have visited the school to work with students or to simply see what we have to offer. Some of these include First Lady Michelle Obama, Misty Copeland, Robert Battle (Artistic Director, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater), Bobby McFerrin, Phylicia Rashad, John Ridley, Ledisi, Sting, Paul Simon, Patti LaBelle, Stevie Wonder, Smokey Robinson, Earth, Wind & Fire, Robert Townsend, Billy Taylor, and Kerry Gordy. Ellington graduates include comedian Dave Chappelle, opera singer Denyce Graves, artist Hank Willis Thomas, actors Lamman Rucker (Why Did I Get Married?), Samira Wiley (Orange Is the New Black) and Corey Hawkins (Straight Outta Compton), Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater dancers Samantha Figgins and Michael Jackson, Jr., and many others working in the arts, as well as other fields.