RSVP to Linda.Pacheco@qc.cuny.edu
The Louis Armstrong Educational Foundation and Queens College School of Education Partner to Present the First Louis Armstrong Summer Teaching Institute for New York City and Long Island Educators July 15 – 19, 2024
Corona, NY, July 10, 2024 – The Louis Armstrong Educational Foundation (LAEF) and the Queens College School of Education announce the Louis Armstrong Summer Teaching Institute, their first-ever five-day Institute for secondary educators. Participants will work with curriculum experts and be immersed in the life and legacy of the legendary entertainer through the newly digitized Armstrong archives at the Louis Armstrong House Museum in Corona, Queens.
Each day will be packed with musical experiences, hands-on workshops, archival research, a documentary screening and keynote presentations, leading each group of educators to finish the week with strategies and lesson plans that they can implement to enhance their existing history, English and arts curriculum. The goal is to connect their individual classroom practice within the constellation of Louis Armstrong, one of America’s first pop icons and diplomatic titans.
Participation in the institute is free and by invitation only for the pre-selected regional educators. The schools represented are Newtown High School, the World Journalism Preparatory School, Harlem Village Academy West Middle, Somers Middle School, William Cullen Bryant High School, P721Q, Grover Cleveland High School, Long Island City High School, Walter G. O’Connell Copiague High School, J.H.S. 217 Robert A. Van Wyck, Louis Armstrong Middle School IS 227, and Information Technology High School.
The week’s schedule, which runs from 9:00 am – 5:00 pm daily, features the topics:
- Monday, July 15: Armstrong: His Life, His Values and His Music
- Tuesday, July 16: The Real Ambassador: Louis and Cultural Exchange
- Wednesday, July 17: Black and Blue: Armstrong and the Civil Rights Movement
- Thursday, July 18: A Story of My Own (ways to implement the life and legacy of Louis Armstrong into teaching practices)
- Friday, July 19: A Wonderful World
Hailed as one of the most influential and popular musicians in modern music, trumpeter Louis Armstrong (1901-1971) rose out of poverty in New Orleans and became, in the words of music and cultural critic Albert Murray, “the Prometheus of jazz,” as the genre’s first major soloist and vocalist, who invented scat-singing. Growing up in the Crescent City, Armstrong heard music from the Caribbean – especially Cuba – and was greatly influenced by the exceptional Cuban trumpeter Manuel Perez of the Olympia Brass Band. In 1930, Armstrong’s recording of the Cuban standard “El Manisero” (The Peanut Vendor)” sold a million copies and was a precursor to the birth of modern Latin jazz in the 1940’s by Bebop Pioneer Dizzy Gillespie, arranger/ trumpeter Mario Bauza and percussionist Chano Pozo.
The Queens College School of Education—home to internationally recognized faculty and 149 education programs—seeks to prepare educators to teach in urban settings as members of an increasingly global, diverse, and inclusive society who are dedicated to advancing the fundamental principles of equity, excellence, and ethics. Signature programs include Time 2000, Computing Integrated Teacher Education, Literacy, Special Education, World Languages, and Mental Health and School Counseling.
The Louis Armstrong Educational Foundation, Inc. (LAEF) was founded and funded by Louis and Lucille Armstrong in 1969 to give back to the world “some of the goodness he received.” The mission of the organization is to preserve and promote the cultural legacy of Louis Armstrong by fostering programs, lectures, and other educational events to assist those interested, gifted and talented in the field of music, primarily jazz. Today the Foundation is a major source of funding for programs to expose and educate adults and children in the history of American jazz and has provided solid financial support to institutions across the nation.
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Media Contacts:
Carolyn McClair (for Louis Armstrong Educational Foundation)
(212) 721-3341 | Info@CarolynMcClairPR.com
Maria Matteo | Queens College
Maria.Matteo@qc.cuny.edu
Queens College produces more education graduates who become principals, teachers, and counselors for the city’s public schools than any other college in the metropolitan area. The college contributes to the local talent pool as a powerful economic engine and a leader in tech education. Students from across the country and around the world are attracted to study at the Aaron Copland School of Music. Its renowned faculty and alumni include nationally recognized composers, conductors, and performers who have received over 100 Grammy Awards and nominations.
Queens College enjoys a national reputation for its liberal arts and sciences and pre-professional programs. With its graduate and undergraduate degrees, honors programs, and research and internship opportunities, the college helps its more than 20,000 students realize their potential in countless ways, assisted by an accessible, award-winning faculty. Located on a beautiful, 80-acre campus in Flushing, the college has been cited by Princeton Review as one of America’s Best Value Colleges for four consecutive years, as well as being ranked a U.S. News and World Report Best College and Forbes Magazine Best Value College thanks to its outstanding academics, generous financial aid packages, and relatively low costs. Visit our homepage to learn. more.