Chicago Musical Pathways Initiative Announces First Cohort

Guild Member Merit School of Music (Chicago, IL) is one of five community partner organizations making up the new Chicago Music Pathways Program. 

From the CMPI site:

On Monday, September 16, 2019, the Chicago Musical Pathways Initiative (CMPI) welcomed its inaugural class of fellows. Fifty students, representing 36 zip codes from across the greater Chicago area, gathered in Chicago High School for the Arts auditorium to learn about the mission of CMPI – to identify and develop gifted and motivated orchestral students from underrepresented backgrounds for acceptance into top-tier conservatory, college or university classical music programs in preparation for careers as professional musicians.

The freshman class was chosen from 137 applicants after completing an intensive multi-month audition process. The students range from sixth graders to high school seniors and reflect the diversity of the city of Chicago (44% African American, 40% Latinx, 10% Southeast Asian, 6% South Asian). Learn more about all the fellows at www.chicagopathways.org/fellows.

CMPI is the result of a $3.5 million grant over three-and-one-half years from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to a consortium of Chicago-area organizations dedicated to music and education.