Kaitlyn Bukofsky (left) and Rebecca Howley (right) are pictured at the Cranberry Pines band concert. Kaitlyn got her start on the alto sax after gaining a music scholarship from the nonprofit South Jersey Music Education Partnership to the New Jersey School of Music last summer.(Photo: Photo provided)
MEDFORD – Kaitlyn Bukofsky had never played the alto saxophone before last summer. Now she's hooked.
A fifth-grade student in Medford, Kaitlyn netted a music scholarship with the nonprofit South Jersey Music Education Partnership at the New Jersey School of Music and received 10 weeks of summer music lessons.
"The lessons I took last summer got me in the advanced group in my school band," Kaitlyn said. "I was one of select kids to play in a holiday concert. It helped me be a stronger alto saxophone player. I really looked forward to it each time because I just love playing the saxophone and I just really enjoyed every minute I got to play."
More than 200 scholarships are available for beginner flute, clarinet, alto sax, trumpet and trombone players. Students entering fourth through eighth grades are eligible to apply for the lessons, which run from June 26 to Aug. 28 at the New Jersey School of Music in both the Cherry Hill and Medford locations.
They are available for children in Burlington and Camden counties.
"This is going to be our fourth summer. We've given scholarships for the past three years," said Dave Bermingham, SJMEP scholarship coordinator. "As an organization, we've been together for five or six years. We really formed in response to when Medford had to eliminate their elementary band program back in 2010 due to state budget cuts. A bunch of the parents were really upset about that.
"We got together and started doing some fundraising and different things."
Some of the parents, including Bermingham, were also musicians and formed a band called M-Town Jazz Jam in the fall of 2011 and they began performing and practicing and bringing some of the children into rehearsals to perform.
Soon, they decided to officially start the nonprofit to address the issue of the band program being eliminated. While it has been reinstated, the nonprofit lives on.
"We formed the nonprofit and we've been doing it ever since," Bermingham said.
The scholarship program was one of the first things they started to get children interested in music and to try to help "fill the gap until Medford was able to return their band program, which they have."
Nate Levas (left), Sarah May Lambert, Madison Bermingham, Kassidy Farnum, and Maggie Bowman are shown at the Haines 6th Grade Center's band concert. Most got their musical start after attending the New Jersey School of Music for the 10-week summer music lessons for beginners on a scholarship from the South Jersey Music Education Partnership. (Photo: Photo provided)
Ryan Loughead a fifth-grader at Milton H. Allen School in Medford, gained a scholarship for the music lessons a few summers ago and hasn't put the alto sax down, either. He's in his first year of band in elementary school this year and is in an advanced sax group and was also selected to play in the Elementary Honors Band in April.
"I love playing the sax; the scholarship really helped," he said. "It just really got my interest. I really liked the music and my brother (Brett) plays another instrument (trumpet) so I really wanted to try an instrument. I'm really excited to go into sixth grade band and try out for jazz band."
While the lessons are free, scholarship participants must provide the instruments, lesson books suggested by the teacher and pay a $20 registration fee, which was added for the first time this year.
Applications are being accepted online at www.sjmep.org through the end of the day on June 14.
If the number of applicants exceeds the number of scholarships available, scholarships will be awarded via a random drawing on June 15.
The New Jersey School of Music also donates significant resources to help ensure the lessons are available to as many students as possible, Bermingham says.
With a big assist from the school, they're able to "maximize our dollars and get as many kids as possible into the summer music program."
Since 2012 SJMEP, a 501c3 nonprofit, has awarded over 150 scholarships and has provided mentorship, master classes, and performance opportunities. The organization also created the Pinelands Jazz Festival, which is its annual fundraising event to support its initiatives.
Kaitlyn's mother Kristen Bukofsky said her son John also earned a scholarship with the program a few years ago and played the clarinet.
She said Kaitlyn got into the fifth-grade band at school this year and was fully prepared to play several songs right away thanks to the program.
"We're not a very musical family and we were almost hesitant to have her do this summer music lessons program," her mother said. "I've never seen such an enthused child. Anytime we were late, she'd be like 'hurry up, hurry up, I can't be like one minute late for my lesson.' It was a great experience. I feel so lucky we were able to do this."
Celeste E. Whittaker; (856) 486-2437; cwhittaker@gannettnj.com
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Source: SJ nonprofit sponsors music scholarships for kids
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