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DocuSign Envelope ID: 16AB4DFA-7125-42E6-B3E7-C6B53151B77C t A - continued <br /> Provider's Outside Agency Application <br /> MAIN APPLICATION <br /> 2. AGENCY INFORMATION <br /> Please provide the following information about your agency (Limit of 2 pages total): <br /> A. Years in Operation, Date of Incorporation (Month/Year) <br /> Voices Together was incorporated on January 12, 2006. For the past ten years, we have been <br /> serving of children, teens, and adults living in North Carolina. <br /> B. Agency's Purpose/Mission <br /> The mission of Voices Together is to empower individuals with developmental disabilities to <br /> transform their lives. Voices Together address critical life skills that enable students to make a <br /> healthy transition to an independent, healthy adulthood. <br /> Voices Together music therapy model, VOICSS, has been coined a best practice. Seamlessly <br /> integrating music and language development, our program promotes critical communication skills <br /> while helping develop student's social/emotional education. For a decade, we have brought our <br /> innovative curriculum into exceptional childrens' classrooms in Central North Carolina. Our program <br /> has achieved remarkable results in developing students' pivotal social, emotional, cognitive and <br /> self-management skills. <br /> C. Types of Services the Agency Provides <br /> Our current programs include VT in the Community, VT in Education, VT in Training, and Voices <br /> Youth Connection. Using a specialized music therapy approach, Board Certified Music Therapists <br /> use music as a tool to help improve social, cognitive, and emotional health to effect positive change <br /> in people's lives. Believing our approach is a best practice William R. Kenan, Jr., Charitable Trust <br /> has funded the initial phase of a national replication project that will change the classroom and the <br /> lives of thousands of students. <br /> D. Agency's Experience with Similar Programs as the Funding Request <br /> For a decade, Voices Together Board Certified Music Therapists have been providing weekly <br /> programming for students in Central North Carolina. Music Therapy is the clinical and evidence- <br /> based use of music interventions to accomplish non-musical goals. Public schools and agency <br /> administrators have labeled Voices Together a best practice. The North Carolina Department of <br /> Education, The Autism Society of North Carolina, and the ARC of North Carolina have all endorsed <br /> Voices Together programming. There is also qualitative and quantitative data that show students <br /> participating in weekly 45-minute sessions over a period of six to twelve months have shown <br /> significant improvement in their academic and social development. <br /> In 2014, lead by Dr. Geraldine Dawson of the Duke University Bass Connection, a research study <br /> was conducted to measure the efficacy of Voices Together in Education program in public school <br /> special education classrooms. This project is part of strong collaborative partnership with Duke <br /> University. <br /> Findings of study: "A study conducted in Durham Public Schools by Duke researchers in 2015 <br /> showed that provision of the Voices Together program resulted in significant increases in <br /> communication skills among children with developmental disabilities. The mean improvement <br /> reflected a change from one word to phrase speech. "- Dr. Geraldine Dawson <br /> Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences' Pediatrics, Psychology and Neuroscience <br /> Main Application 1/25/2016 1:42:01 PM Page 5 • f 211 <br />