BRIDGING COMMUNITIES THROUGH MUSIC: My Journey and Call to Action

As part of our regular thought exercises, my team and I often ask ourselves: What is the essence of Keys 2 Success? While this has changed as we have grown, fundamentally it is about communities coming together to achieve a greater good. Given today's widespread divisions across the country, Keys 2 Success takes a deliberate approach to counteract this trend by fostering unity.

First, let me introduce myself...

I am a Malaysian immigrant of Chinese descent. Born in Malaysia, I moved to America with my parents when I was twelve years old. I learned to play the piano in Malaysia, and my story as an immigrant has been particularly fortunate and privileged.

Upon arriving in America, my mother had the inspired idea to contact Juilliard to see if my twin sister and I could join their junior pre-college program. This led us to connect with the director of the pre-college division in the 1970s and 1980s, which opened numerous doors for us. My sister and I were given opportunities to perform, and we felt a sense of belonging in this country. Ultimately, I chose to attend MIT to pursue a career in engineering, where I thrived, spending eleven years there to complete my PhD in electrical engineering. I began my career in semiconductors, working for various companies until a pivotal moment in 2016 prompted a career change.

To provide some context, most of my engineering career was based in New Jersey. During this time, my husband and I lived in a suburban commuter town in central New Jersey, with many residents commuting to Manhattan. Although we often bypassed Newark, it was only about ten miles away. Given my upbringing as an immigrant in Queens, New York, I recognized the value of urban exposure. My husband and I wanted our children to have similar experiences, so we decided to attend church in Newark, which marked the beginning of my social education.

Despite growing up in New York City, my privileged upbringing meant I was not fully aware of social inequities. However, returning to Newark with my children made me realize that opportunities, such as learning an instrument or participating in extracurricular activities, heavily depend on one's zip code. Troubled by these disparities, I observed their impact on academic achievement for over a decade.

In 2014, after more than ten years of setting aside my piano ambitions, my former piano teacher from MIT invited me to join him as a soloist with the Boston Pops. This unexpected opportunity made me reevaluate my life. In 2016, after much reflection, I decided to leave my engineering career and start a nonprofit organization, Keys 2 Success. This organization uses music to create pathways to success for children, providing them with various options as they grow up. The journey of Keys to Success began with a few students I met, and I would bring a portable keyboard to their school and teach them in the lunchroom. Fast forward eight years to today, and our program now serves over 200 students, providing daily lessons and enabling them to thrive and perform in significant venues.

Having experienced the benefits of traditional systems firsthand, I understand the importance of combining these proven methods with innovative approaches. At Keys 2 Success, we integrate the strengths of traditional teaching systems, such as individual attention and intense practice, with new strategies tailored to our students' needs.

The Strengths of Traditional Teaching Systems

• Individual Attention: Private lessons are essential for in-depth progress, beyond the foundation provided by group lessons.
• Intense and Frequent Practice: Achieving a high level of proficiency requires multiple hours of daily practice.
• Working with Master Teachers: This apprenticeship-like approach offers invaluable insights and guidance.
• Significant Performances: Providing students with opportunities to showcase their skills.
• Group Identity: Helping students see themselves as classical musicians, fostering a sense of identity integral to their development and commitment.

Innovative Approaches in an Urban Environment

These elements are crucial, but translating them to an urban environment like Newark, where classical music training has been largely absent for decades, requires a new set of criteria. For Keys 2 Success, the following innovations have been essential:

• Neighborhood Location: Instead of choosing locations based on where parents can afford lessons and value music education, we assume that interest in classical music will exist due to its benefits for brain development and enjoyment. We look for areas where children are already gathered and where there is no other programming, as these students have the unique luxury of time to practice if given the right setup and coaching.
• Mobile Classroom: We avoid setting up a central location that requires students to travel, as mass transit in Newark can be challenging. Instead, we adopt a dispersed model with nine sites and a mobile classroom that transports instruments to various locations, including outdoor and indoor sites without storage.
• Daily Lessons: Recognizing that most students come from rent-burdened households where space is limited, we ensure that students have access to practice centers. We set up practice locations in community-friendly churches and public housing community centers, where staff support the lessons and draw in numerous students. This allows students to practice daily without the burden of traveling.
• Group-Based Lessons: In areas where classical music has not been prevalent, we focus on developing a new sense of identity through group-based lessons. While maintaining individualized attention, we use methods like sound isolation with headphones or smaller groups to ensure that each student progresses at their own pace.

These innovations allow us to preserve the traditions of classical music education while making it accessible and relevant to the communities we serve.

Building Diversity and Inclusion

The Board

We take a comprehensive approach to diversity, ensuring that our board represents a wide range of social and economic backgrounds and geographic locations. We view resources not only in terms of financial contributions or connections to specific communities but also in terms of credibility and the ability to open doors both within and outside our community. Our goal is to foster collaboration among people of all backgrounds, whether African American, White American, or others, to ensure that all necessary opportunities are available to our students.

The Staff

When selecting staff, we prioritize the ability to relate to students, recognizing the unique nature of the teacher-student relationship. Each student prefers a different kind of teacher, and we highly value local talent. Notably absent from our criteria is an emphasis on pedigree, such as the type of degree held or past performance venues. While we do value these accomplishments, our primary focus is on finding educators who can effectively connect with and support our students' learning needs.

We look for lived experience. I am fortunate to have had the luxury of time to understand life in Newark before starting this work. For those who want to jump in and be effective immediately, having lived experience is crucial to understanding where students are coming from. It's not about race or skin color, but about having the life experience to relate to the challenges faced by the communities we serve. Students sense authenticity and understanding in their teachers.

Of course, our staff must be skilled musicians. They need to read music and play their instruments well to teach effectively.

The Volunteers

Diversity among our volunteers is also crucial. Anyone involved in nonprofit work understands that volunteers and financial donors are the lifeblood of the organization. There's a strong inclination to make things comfortable for volunteers to ensure they return. However, at Keys to Success, we've chosen to prioritize our students over potential funding. We focus on creating comfortable spaces for our students, even if it means less comfort for our staff or volunteers.

These challenges often include working in unfamiliar environments and confronting our own egos. Our focus is not on showcasing our achievements, but on highlighting the untapped potential within the city. It doesn’t take much to tap into and develop this potential. In essence, we aim to starve the ego and feed the soul.

Leveraging Credibility for a Lasting Impact

For those of us associated with prestigious institutions like Juilliard, we carry a certain credibility. It would be a gift, an invaluable gift, to take our credibility and lay it as a cloak on organizations doing the work to raise up the next generation of musicians.

And guess what? When we all share the good news that classical music is for everyone, we will build the audiences we long to see at classical music concerts. Many of the students you see in my presentation today won't become musicians—90% of them aspire to be doctors, lawyers, and other professionals. They will return someday as audience members, supporters, and community leaders. By investing in relationships, we are ultimately investing in the preservation of something precious to all of us: classical music.

A Call to Action

So, what now? What can we do? While you’re not obligated to take any action, I have a few suggestions that I hope will resonate with you.

Firstly, if we truly believe that music is the universal language that brings healing and harmony across races and geographies, we must do more than just break travel barriers. It’s more than just providing transportation or organizing occasional trips outside of our communities. It’s about building relationships and fostering deeper connections.

Many programs already offer free tickets and access for students from inner cities to attend classical music events. This is a commendable first step. Organizations also often send teachers and students to master classes or single events. These efforts are valuable and should continue.

However, if you’re ready to take the next step, focus on building lasting relationships. Relationships take time. If there’s an organization in your town that you admire, spend time with them. Visit repeatedly until faces, names, and stories become familiar, and connections are made. I can guarantee that if that connection happens, you will not be able to stop talking about it, which is what is most needed.

Collective action is essential for shaping a harmonious future. By joining hands, we can work together to make the world a better place in 2024 and 2025.