Award-Winning Artists Celebrate the Continued Success of Education Through Music-Los Angeles at November Gala

Education Through Music-Los Angeles (ETM-LA), a 501(c)3 nonprofit, hosted their 17th Year Celebration Benefit Gala last night, the evening of Wednesday, November 30th, 2022 at the Skirball Cultural Center.

The star-studded musical evening featured a celebration of three honorees: Mike Knobloch, President of Music and Publishing at NBCUniversal; Educational Leader Dr. Jacqueline Sanderlin of Why Not Incubator; and Juan Rodriguez, a Music Educator at Frost Middle School in Granada Hills, CA. ETM-LA recognized each of the honorees with a 2022 Shining Star Award, which is given annually to distinguished leaders whose musical contributions to the ETM-LA community have positively changed the lives of the youth.

Hosted by Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr., the event featured performances and appearances by GRAMMY Award-Nominated artist Gavin DeGraw (accompanied by BBE All Stars, as well as honoree Mike Knobloch for a special final song), Academy Award-Winning actress Goldie Hawn, Remi Wolf, ETM-LA Choir Students, & additional special guests.

Constantly championing youth education, the entire ETM-LA team believes that music education is a right that every student deserves access to, and continues to keep their vision at the core of their organization's values. Honorary Chair Members of ETM-LA include Taylor Swift, Chris Martin, Justin Timberlake, Pharrell Williams, HAIM, Snoop Dogg, Anna Kendrick, Hans Zimmer, Danny Elfman, John Legend, Tracee Ellis Ross, Jennifer Hudson, Ryan Tedder, and Harvey Mason Jr. Additional champions and past gala attendees include Ed Helms, Bono/U2, Chris Meledandri, Rickey Minor, Common, Cynthia Erivo, John Williams, Michael Giacchino, Christopher Lennertz, Brian Tyler, John Debney, Alan Menken, Blake Neely, Germaine Franco, Lorne Balfe, Zach Robinson, Arturo Sandoval, Steve Aoki, and J.J. Abrams.

Executive Director of ETM-LA Victoria Lanier shared her appreciation and pride in what the program has accomplished thus far. "I am deeply grateful for our Shining Star honorees and everyone who joined us in support of our 17th Year Benefit Gala," she said. "We appreciate everyone's efforts to further our mission to expand music education programs in under-resourced schools. It truly takes a village; and together, one school at a time, we are helping to ensure that all students can receive the life-changing benefits of music education to reach their fullest potential."

Since its creation, the nonprofit organization has now reached approximately 19K students through 45 schools across Los Angeles County. They continue to partner with under-resourced schools in order to provide music as a core academic subject. The gala was ETM-LA's largest to date, raising over $750,000 to further its mission.

Honoree Mike Knobloch noted how ETM-LA's mission resonated with him on a personal level. "Can you imagine not having music classes in grade school?," he reflected. "I can't, and I wouldn't be who I am today had music not been part of my education. ETM-LA is an amazing organization that has been making a real impact on so many students' development for years. As ETM-LA's Shining Star Artist honoree this year, I am genuinely honored and passionately committed to the important work that they do."

By engaging both the parents and the community, ETM-LA prides itself on bringing music education to the forefront of learning. The 17th Year Celebration Benefit Gala is yet another example of the quality of work and support that goes into the entire ETM-LA community, and proves once again just how much they value authenticity and direct support for youth in under-resourced schools. ETM-LA encourages global community members to learn more about their work via their website: https://etmla.org/

ETM-LA partners with both elementary and middle schools to provide yearlong music instruction for every child in the school and is based on the ETM model (New York). With a shared vision of ensuring that every child has access to high quality musical education, ETM-LA has seen the success of their organization through the countless youth that have benefited from their programming. ETM-LA believes that every child deserves the opportunity to expand their knowledge and academia through music, and that music education can support learning efforts in other key subjects including mathematics, science, and language arts.ETM-LA began programming in 2 schools reaching 800 students its first year to a planned 45 schools reaching approximately 19,000 students this 17th year.

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