Spring Ridge Middle School Students Attend The Alvin Ailey Performance At The Kennedy Center

LEXINGTON PARK, Md. – In 2020, as the founder and CEO of the Carolyn E. Parker Foundation, I had this vivid dream of taking 8thgrade girls, attending Spring Ridge Middle School, to the Kennedy Center to experience the Alvin Ailey performance, explore the upcoming Kennedy exhibit and enjoy fine dining at Tony & Joes Seafood Place, located in Washington, DC. On Saturday, 11 February 2023, with the devotion and tireless effort displayed by the leaders of the Carolyn E. Parker Foundation and financial support of several committed sponsors, a dream once deferred was most humbling realized. 

Through youth development, the Carolyn E. Parker Foundation remains a catalyst for positive change at the individual, community, and county levels.  The Carolyn E. Parker Foundation, Inc., a nonprofit operating in St. Mary’s County, on behalf of youth in the county, raised funds for Project Kennedy Center, an experiential learning opportunity for eighth graders attending Spring Ridge Middle School. 

Moreover, Project Kennedy Center is an arts infusion field trip that offered 22 young ladies an opportunity to embrace the fine arts. Additionally, Project Kennedy Center builds on our work to partner with other public and private organizations to achieve positive youth outcomes, despite any social, economic, and personal challenges that undermine youth well-being and pathways to adulthood. 

The arts are a basic and central medium of human communication and understanding with a direct correlation between the fine arts, and basic learning that enhances student achievements. Also, research shows the fine arts stimulate learning and improve overall academic performance, teaching important skills that prepare the whole person for college and later life. Overall, the entire trip was simply amazing, and the students had an epic time…truly a phenomenally fabulous time. 

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