Winooski Middle & High School students showcase new music equipment
Music teacher Mikayla Kelemen and Winooski middle school students experiment with DJ mixers and new computer-based music equipment. Photo by The Winooski News.
Last spring, Winooski Middle & High School was awarded $15,000 through the Educate and Innovate Initiative to upgrade their computer-based music program, allowing students to create and produce their own music, beats and audio recordings.
On Tuesday, students and music teacher Mikayla Kelemen showed off the new equipment and what they’ve been working on to leaders of the Agency of Education and Department of Liquor and Lottery, the organizers and funders of the initiative.
The equipment includes new computers, DJ mixers, loop machines, microphones, and a sound booth. Kelemen said the upgrades help reach students who aren’t necessarily interested in the traditional music-class setting, such as chorus or orchestra.
“There are students here who want to be rappers, who want to make beats, but there wasn’t a place for that,” Kelemen said. “We have a lot of students who have been doing music outside of school anyway, so it's great to be able to bring them into the mix here.”
Kelemen, who spearheaded the grant application, said one of her favorite parts about the new equipment is how it has allowed students to come out of their shells and share their culture.
“There are students who I've never heard speak before because they aren’t comfortable with English,” said Kelemen. “They’ll come in and just be a diva with a song, and it's in Swahili or their native language – and that’s awesome.”
The Educate and Innovate Initiative is an annual grant opportunity for Vermont schools, facilitated by the Agency of Education and funded by Vermont Lottery profits.