Steven Van Zandt – aka Little Steven of the E Street Band, The Sopranos, etc. – was fed up and wanted to bring about a change. Seeing escalating drop-out rates in American high schools, coupled with increasing cuts to funding for arts-related educational programs, Van Zandt decided he needed to do something to help turn things around. His vision was to bring the thrill he experienced as a youth, listening to and learning about rock and roll and R&B music, to the classroom of today; to give teachers a deep, interactive way to present the history of rock and roll to kids who might not know where today’s pop music comes from. In doing this, he hoped to keep kids in school and engaged with American history itself.
In 2007, to raise the funds needed to bring his vision to life, Van Zandt founded the Rock and Roll Forever Foundation. Recruiting Dr. Warren Zanes, the former VP of Education and Public Programs at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Foundation set out to build a Web-based curriculum, free to middle and high school educators and students, that breathes life into the history of this uniquely American artform: Rock and Roll. The Foundation’s Board is packed with heavy hitters, lending the project some serious gravitas: joining Van Zandt’s cause are rock stars Bruce Springsteen, Bono, and Jackson Browne, along with famed filmmaker Martin Scorsese. The education publisher Scholastic (also a Boyle Software client) is on board as a partner, bringing the project directly into classrooms across the country.
After years of working towards his goal, this fall sees the realization of Van Zandt’s dream. Boyle Software is proud to play a part in the support and launch of Rock and Roll: An American Story in October. We look forward to the future and further assisting the Foundation in carrying forward its vision.
ABOUT THE ROCK AND ROLL FOREVER FOUNDATION
The Rock and Roll Forever Foundation is a 501(c)(3) created by Steven Van Zandt. Rock and Roll: An American Story is the Foundation’s national middle and high school curriculum initiative. Groundbreaking, geared toward national and state standards, interdisciplinary in scope, featuring legendary performers, the curriculum will be made available at no cost to every interested middle and high school in the Fall of 2013.
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