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Under artistic director and founder Francisco J. Núñez, YPC provides NYC children ages 7-18 with a unique program of music education and choral performance.
"We are exceedingly grateful to the First Lady and the President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities for the incredible acknowledgment this award gives to the Young People's Chorus of New York City," Núñez says. "The fact that the First Lady is presenting the awards to the children of these organizations is so telling. At a time of severe cutbacks in arts education, here is the White House saying, 'This is important.'"
Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History
For six semesters, 18-year-old Sandoval attended the Gilder Lehrman Instituate of American History's Saturday Academies program, and it has helped him achieve high scores on his standardized history tests, including AP and SAT II exams.
"Gilder Lehrman Saturday Academies have helped me gain a better understanding and deeper insight on topics in American history and sharpened my understanding of the past and its effects on the present," says Sandoval, a senior at All Hallows School in South Bronx who is set to graduate second in his class come spring 2012.
The nonprofit institute helps students, teachers, scholars, and history enthusiast in the U.S. cultivate a love of American history through a range of programs and resources, including traveling exhibitions, teacher seminars, and development programs.
"History education is critical not only to academic success, but to good citizenship," says James Basker, president of the institute. "Gilder Lehrman Saturday Academies help develop the minds and realize the potential of today's students and tomorrow's leaders. We are thrilled to receive this prestigious honor."