KEYS & GCTYO get $50,000 Music Education Grant from Fairfield County Community Foundation

KEYS Music (Kids Empowered by Your Support) and GCTYO (Greater Connecticut Youth Orchestras) in Bridgeport, CT, received a $50,000 Arts Education Grant from Fairfield County Community Foundation for KEYS’ general operations and GCTYO’s access and enrichment initiatives. The funds subsidize music education for underserved students in Bridgeport and surrounding Fairfield County towns.

KEYS & GCTYO, together reaching 930 CT students annually, have partnered to provide music lessons, instruments, ensembles, and summer camps to students with no other access to these transformative opportunities. KEYS serves 600 Bridgeport students through 21 in-school BPS sites and afterschool, Saturday & summer programs at the University of Bridgeport. GCTYO prepares young musicians for the next level of their training through a rigorous orchestral program built on a progressive ladder of ensembles and summer intensive. Grants and donations to KEYS & GCTYO support operating costs, teaching expenses, and instrument supplies; KEYS receives no funding from BPS and offers all programs tuition free. Both organizations rely on institutional grants & individual donations to fulfill their missions. KEYS & GCTYO hold offices at the nOURish Center at 2200 North Ave., in Bridgeport.

Karen Scott, KEYS Executive Director, remarked, “As a leading grantor for our KEYS music program, FCCF helps provide equitable access to music education in the Bridgeport community. Through this generous grant, we are able to offer free music education and to strengthen our presence throughout Bridgeport by expanding meaningful opportunities for under-resourced students and their families.”

Christopher Hisey, GCTYO Music Director, shared, “Reaching young people with the benefits of music is at the heart of GCTYO’s mission. Our partnership with KEYS is an opportunity to advance our mission by providing more students with access to high-level ensemble training, leading to personal and developmental growth, confidence, and long-term engagement in the arts. This brings our two organizations into closer alignment, benefiting the communities we serve. We are deeply grateful to FCCF for their generous support in helping us build and strengthen this work.”

KEYS, founded by Rob Silvan in 2004, has created arts access for nearly 7,000 Bridgeport K-12 students, and since 2020 has graduated 130 students to sustain a 100% graduation rate. In 2025, seniors averaged 7 years at KEYS with 60% continuing to higher education. GCTYO, founded in 1961, serves more than 320 young musicians from approximately 40 towns across Connecticut annually. Throughout its history, GCTYO has remained committed to accessibility and inclusion, increasingly prioritizing financial assistance and outreach so that dedicated young people from diverse communities, especially nearby Bridgeport, can fully participate and thrive.

Fairfield County’s Community Foundation promotes philanthropy as a means to create change in Fairfield County, focusing on innovative and collaborative solutions to critical issues impacting the community. Individuals, families, corporations and organizations can establish charitable funds or contribute to existing funds. The Community Foundation is in compliance with the Council on Foundations’ national standards, and has awarded $180 million in grants to nonprofits in Fairfield County and beyond. For more information, visit www.fccfoundation.org.

At KEYS, we envision a world in which every child has access to the transformative experience of studying and playing music, regardless of circumstances. When students in our community are denied this opportunity due to arts-starved budgets and limited family resources, KEYS steps in to close that gap. Visit www.keysmusic.org and the KEYS 2025 Impact Report here.

Greater Connecticut Youth Orchestras (GCTYO) brings young musicians together to achieve the highest standard of music performance in a welcoming, inclusive, and safe environment. Our holistic approach to education fosters growth, learning, confidence, and both social and emotional awareness, which prepares students for a full and balanced life. Visit www.gctyo.org and GCTYO Impact Report.