DEJF Education Program

The DEJF Education Program includes collaborative education initiatives for students of all ages in support of music education, notably jazz, as a vehicle to cultivate the whole child, as well as contributing to core literacy while developing creativity, innovation, imagination, and discipline. The goal of the DEJF Education Program is to:

• Ensure that each year more than 2,000 students in Washington, DC will know about the important role our nation’s capital plays in American history and culture, and the unique contributions Duke Ellington made to jazz music.


• Engage students with the improvisational fun and surprise of jazz, helping to encourage creative thinking and build confidence.


• Empower young people to experience music as a source of personal enrichment and as a vehicle for constructive human expression.


• Promote a greater appreciation for jazz.

Current programs include free student concerts as well as interactive master classes in partnership with the DC Arts and Humanities Education Collaborative, the Recording Academy, The Smithsonian Institution, The Kennedy Center, THEARC, The Atlas Performing Arts Center, the Washington Performing Arts Society, Voice of America, the Sitar Arts Center, Duke Ellington School of the Arts, Howard University, The George Washington University, Children’s National Medical Center, and the historic Lincoln Theatre.

DEJF Education Initiatives
DEJF Jazz for Education: The DEJF Jazz for Education initiative, in partnership with leading institutions in Washington DC including the Office of Community Partnerships for DC Public Schools, will present music performances, workshops, student concerts and other programs to DCPS students. Key activities to date include: 1) "Beautification Day," as the official day for a citywide "spruce up" of DC public school buildings and grounds in preparation for school opening; 2) 2009 MLK Day of Service; 3) DC Arts and Humanities Education Collaborative’s Arts for Every Student Program; and 4) an arts integration workshop with DCPS parents on the importance of arts integration in our nation's schools.

DEJF Jazz for Healthy Kids: The DEJF Jazz for Healthy Kids initiative, in partnership with leading health organizations such as Children's National Medical Center (CNMC), will present music programs in support of good health and well-being for all young people. DEJF will partner with CNMC to present music performances at CNMC during the 2008 and 2009 festival seasons. Arts programs at CNMC are designed to expedite the healing process while educating patients about the arts. In addition, DEJF will partner with Smith Farm to present two jazz performances at the Healing Arts Gallery during each festival season. Smith Farm is a Washington, DC-based nonprofit health, education and creative arts organization that serves individuals, families and communities affected by cancer and other serious illness. The Healing Arts Gallery is dedicated to promoting the arts as a tool for healing and looks forward to working with the DEJF to expand its programs to include more jazz music. Jazz for Healthy Kids programs will help to promote wellness and rehabilitation while educating young people and adults about jazz.

DEJF Mission

• To expose the broadest demographic of people to jazz, with an emphasis on presenting jazz to over 2,000 students each year;


• To promote jazz as a significant musical form of arts education as well as a vehicle to cultivate the whole child;


• To celebrate Washington DC’s rich jazz legacy as part of America’s musical landscape and the enduring legacy of Washington, DC’s native-born jazz legend, Duke Ellington; and
• To honor jazz greats.

DEJF Overview
DEJF honors the legacy of jazz in Washington, DC, and creates opportunities for young and old, resident and tourist, as well as national and international jazz fans alike to celebrate America’s music in our nation’s capital.

The DEJF is a highly anticipated event in the District of Columbia for its impressive mix of local, national and international artists, and its presentation of more than 100 programs and performances at 35 to 40 diverse venues in different neighborhoods throughout Washington, DC. A hallmark of the DEJF is the all-day free concert on the National Mall, which in 2007 attracted more than 25,000 people.

Overall, the annual Duke Ellington Jazz Festival enhances Washington, DC’s cultural landscape, helps boost the local economy and enriches the lives of Greater Washington, DC area visitors and its residents.

Cultural Enrichment

• DEJF, the largest music festival in the city, honors and celebrates Washington, DC’s cultural richness – both past and present.


• DEJF, as a world-class jazz festival, is a significant contributor to the cultural and economic pulse of our nation’s capital, attracting local residents and visitors.


• DEJF highlights the historical context of the rich diversity of jazz and Washington, DC landmarks.


• DEJF showcases the U Street corridor as DC’s own jazz district, similar to 18th and Vine in Kansas City, the Fillmore in San Francisco, and Storyville in New Orleans.


• DEJF continues to experience a tremendous growth in popularity, rapidly expanding to become one of the world’s greatest cultural celebrations.

Economic Development

• The Washington Business Journal estimates that the economic impact of the DEJF “will be significant” (April 1, 2005).


• DEJF generates important economic activity for Washington, DC, attracting increasingly large numbers of local residents as well as tourists to its festival menu of free and ticketed events, adding revenue streams to clubs, restaurants and hotels, and boosting other business income.


• Other cities such as San Francisco, New Orleans, and Newport with long-standing traditions of music festivals attest to their generating several million dollars in additional income for their cities.


• In only its 3rd year, DEJF welcomed over 40,000 jazz fans. In a survey of 2007 festival-goers, 98% said they plan to come back in 2008.

Fun for the Whole Family

• Jazz is entertaining and enriching for the whole family.


• DEJF’s Jazz ‘n’ Families Fun Day includes concerts and interactive activities that engage children and parents alike.


• DEJF believes that by exposing children to jazz at an early age, they will become jazz fans for life.

DEJF Education Collaborative Partners
THEARC
Atlas Performing Arts Center
Children’s National Medical Center
DCPS and the Office of Community Partnerships
DC Arts and Humanities Education Collaborative
Duke Ellington School of the Arts
The George Washington University
Harman Arts Center
Howard University
The Kennedy Center
The Lincoln Theatre
National Academy of the Recording Arts and Sciences
Smith Farm for the Healing Arts
Smithsonian Institution
University of the District of Columbia
Voice of America
Washington Performing Arts Society