trinity church chorister program

Trinity Choristers

An after-school outreach program of Trinity Church

Wonderful things are happening in Asbury Park!

It is coming back from past economic decline into present and future recovery.

But many Choristers live in yet-to-be-developed areas.

The Chorister Program has an important mission to unite the many and diverse areas of Asbury Park

Children in Asbury Park face

significant challenges:

30.1% of Asbury Park families lived below the poverty rate in 2007

82.5 % of poor families were female-led with no husband present

Some Asbury Park statistics(source: City-Data.com)

39.6% of children in Asbury Park live below the poverty rate

Asbury Park School statisticsSource: NJ Department of Education

NJASK (New Jersey Assessment for Skills and Knowledge) tests for 2007-2008 showed that:

In 6th Grade, 14.2 % of Asbury Park students achieved full or advanced proficiency in Language Arts compared to 57.3 % for the state of NJ overall. Math scores for full or advanced proficiency were 29.5 % of AP students compared to 72.2% for the state of NJ overall.

In 8th grade, 29.4 % of Asbury Park students achieved full or advanced proficiency in Language Arts compared to 81.4 % for the state of NJ overall. Math scores for full or advanced proficiency were 14.9% for AP students compared to 67.7% for the state of NJ overall.

The differences are pretty striking when you see it on a graph.

Asbury Park Schools HSPA (High School Proficiency Assessment) Test Results 2008

Things do not seem to improve by 11th grade.

AP High School: 25.9 % LA, 14.8 % Math / NJ Overall: 83.4 % LA, 75.4 % Math - For full or advanced proficiency

Trinity Chorister Program:

Working for Change

Working for change: by shaping the lives of the young people (and future leaders) of Asbury Park

Benefits of Trinity Choristers:

• Build self esteem• Teach self discipline• Self respect grows with accomplishment• Develop respect for their community• Encourage positive involvement in the community• Practice working together for the common good• Trains focus and attention, leading to better performance in school

How?

Working for Change:Exploring Music Summer CampA camp for neighborhood children to discover possibilities, where local musicians volunteer their time – Cost to the Program: $1500

Cost to campers: Free

Working for Change: Free Piano Lessons for Choristers

Free piano lessons are offered to all Choristers – About half of the Choristers take advantage.

They are offered on-campus, which offers another connection to the Trinity community

Individual donations from members of the community are the main source of funding, which takes constant work to keep up enough to go on.

How Piano Lessonsare done at Trinity

40 lessons per year at $20 per lesson are available to each Chorister

Lessons take place at Trinity

Trinity buys the lesson books

The cost comes to roughly $850 per year per student – but with no charge to the student.

If the student has no piano or keyboard, we loan one, or help find a donated piano.

Supporters are encouraged to sponsor one student for the whole year

Currently, 13 students are taking lessons

But there are another 11 on the waiting list

Working for Change:Homework Help and Mentoring

Trinity Choristers have three dedicated volunteers, who come every Thursday afternoon beginning at 2:30 PM. They are present when Choristers arrive after school is out.

They help with homework, as well as supervise those with homework, but don’t need assistance. They also will work with Choristers on certain musical concepts, enriching and enhancing what they learn in rehearsal.

After homework is finished, they enjoy getting to know our Choristers through supervising them in games and other activities until it is time for rehearsal to begin.

Because so many Chorister families do not own cars, our volunteers also help with transportation when the Choristers travel. Trinity does not own a bus or van, so logistics are important!

They also stay through the rehearsal that follows, making sure all Choristers have the music they need, and monitoring the rehearsal behind the scenes by answering non-rehearsal related questions, supervising bathroom breaks and other needs.

Working for Change:RSCM Camps – a huge boost

The whole choir benefits from kids returning with elevated standards, positive culture, friendships with others outside their community, and the great repertoire that they have shared.

Raleigh Girls’ Course 2008

Kings’ Course, Wilkes-Barre, PA 2008

Sending kids to RSCM camps for a week each summer helps them both musically and socially.

By interacting positively with girls and boys from all over the country, our Choristers’ world begins to look bigger, and they learn they have value in that bigger world.

The cost of camp for each Chorister is $550, but the benefit is incalculable.

Two Trinity Choristers at Duke University Chapel, RSCM Course 2006

Working for Change: Annual Chorister Retreat in Port Murray, NJ

• Building teamwork skills• Developing music reading skills• Learning new music• Relaxation and Recreation in a safe environment

Over 3 intense days in the mountains, Choristers on retreat work at:

Working for Change: Building community

within our community

Ice Skating and Pizza

A Visit from England with Ms. Katherine Dienes of Guildford Cathedral

Christmas Caroling at the Arcade

Asbury Park Kwanzaa Celebration

Working for Change: Travel –

to broaden horizons, and connect to the larger world

St. John’s Cathedral, Wilmington, DE

With the Maryland State Boychoir

Baltimore, MD – Maryland State Boychoir Festival and Aquarium trip, 2006

With the American Boychoir, Princeton, NJ

At Trinity, Wall Street

With St. Bartholomew’s, New York

Trinity Choristers rehearse together once a week, on Thursday afternoons.

They sing about two times per month, and sometimes more often, particularly at Christmas time.

Piano lessons are scheduled at the mutual convenience of the family and the teacher, usually on Mondays and Thursdays.

They are also occasionally an intergenerational choir, often singing with adults who serve as positive role models.