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Provide a brief <br />description of your <br />pre-pandemic core <br />arts-related <br />programming or <br />offerings. <br />Arts-related programming at Musical Empowerment consists of the <br />Music Mentorship Program (MMP) and the Instrument Lending <br />Program (ILP). The MMP consists of weekly 1-on-1 music lessons and <br />a final recital performance to celebrate the end of the semester. The <br />ILP is a way to prov ide free musical instruments for students to loan. <br />After 3 years of participation, the student retains full ownership of the <br />instrument. Pre-pandemic, most of the used instruments in inv entory <br />were collected v ia personal donations. <br />Core offerings at Musical Empowerment are made av ailable to <br />families from marginalized communities. This was the case pre- <br />pandemic as well as it is now. The difference now is that the low <br />income families who suffered from inequities pre-pandemic, are now <br />more v ulnerable than before. 88% of the Orange County families we <br />serv e receiv e free/reduced lunch and 85% are people of color. In <br />February of 2020, we had 180 students from Orange county and this <br />fall we serv e 130 pairs. In an organization-wide surv ey conducted in <br />early September 2020, we learned that 60% of our families hav e had <br />an infection in their home and 40% hav e suffered job loss. <br />North Carolina’s <br />“stay at home” order <br />(Executive Order <br />117) had a profound <br />impact on the arts <br />sector. Describe the <br />specific steps your <br />organization took to <br />comply with <br />Executive Order 117. <br />Students (families) & Mentors (v olunteers): <br />Prior to the closure, music lessons between college mentors and <br />their students were conducted 100% in-person. Following the <br />executiv e order, ME announced that in-person lessons were no <br />longer permitted. W e instructed our college mentors to support their <br />students v irtually by checking-in during normal lesson time, asking <br />about their feelings, using music as a healing tool, and serv ing as a <br />beacon of support (with less emphasis on musical <br />proficiency/teaching). <br />At the close of each semester, chapters host a recital for their <br />students to showcase their talents and perform what they’v e been <br />working on. All spring recitals were cancelled. An optional v irtual <br />recital was organized in May for children who wanted to perform and <br />share their progress on the Musical Empowerment Youtube channel. <br />In June, Musical Empowerment announced that lessons would <br />remain v irtual for the fall semester. <br />Prior to the start of the fall semester, it became clear that many of the <br />families enrolled in Musical Empowerment programming were lacking <br />adequate hardware and connectiv ity to make the transition to online <br />learning with their mentor. This led to an initiativ e to prov ide support <br />for families who needed better access to their online lessons and <br />v irtual mentorship. Closing the digital div ide for these families <br />included a community needs assessment, computer/hardware <br />sourcing, connectiv ity troubleshooting and deliv ery. 100% of the <br />Orange County families who requested support for v irtual learning <br />receiv ed hardware and connectiv ity. <br />Mentors v oiced concerns about their lack of experience and <br />confidence in hosting online music lessons. Staff offered training <br />sessions, online teaching resources, a liv e Q&A teaching Panel <br />DocuSign Envelope ID: 40EC29D4-5762-44A5-B7B9-F904DE8FA5BE