Teaching for Change helps teachers infuse go-go music in the curriculum with classroom workshops led by musicians, free lessons, and professional development. Go-go originated in D.C. during the mid- to late-1970s and has remained the city’s soundtrack for generations. While many bands got their start in D.C. schools, decades later it was not in the D.C. history textbooks and only the teachers who grew up in D.C. were familiar with the music.
To help address that gap in the curriculum and bring go-go to D.C. classrooms, Teaching for Change launched the Teach the Beat project in 2011 in collaboration with local go-go artists and the authors of The Beat: Go-Go Music from Washington, D.C.,Kip Lornell and Charles Stephenson Jr.
It began when Teaching for Change hosted a The Beat author event at its bookstore at Busboys and Poets in 2009. During the Q&A, teachers asked about lessons to bring the book to the classroom. Another teacher noted that despite go-go’s roots in D.C., it was not addressed in the curriculum.
The Beat co-author and former go-go band manager Charles Stephenson Jr. invited Teaching for Change to work on a plan to support teachers and students. The work began by convening teachers and go-go artists at the Anacostia Museum for a planning session, a proposal to the D.C. Commission on the Arts and Humanities, and house party fundraisers with featured guest and Teach the Beat advocate, Chuck Brown.
The project went public with a dynamic citywide, full-day seminar planned in collaboration with D.C. Public Schools offices of music and social studies.
Close to a hundred music and social studies teachers learned from leading artists and scholars in go-go, including Christopher “Geromino” Allen, Sugar Bear, Ju-Ju, Sweet Cherie, JB, Stanley Cooper, Kenneth Carroll, Melvin Deal, David “32” Ellis, Thomas Sayers Ellis, Donnell Floyd, Natalie Hopkinson, Kip Lornell, Maurice Shorter, and Charles Stephenson. D.C. Public Schools director of music Ben Hall and social studies specialist Scott Abbott helped plan the seminar.
Next came a Teach the Beat website to make lessons and other resources freely available to teachers. Poet and professor Thomas Sayers Ellis donated the photos for the site and historian Marya McQuirter wrote bios for an introductory lesson that has been used in classrooms and professional development.
Most rewarding are the classroom workshops led by go-go teaching artists. William “JuJu” House and Cherie “Sweet Cherie” Mitchell-Agurs lead the effort, with frequent participation by Matt “Swamp Guinee” Miller and “Uncle Devin” Walker. Occasional workshops have been by Gregory “Sugar Bear” Elliot and John “J.B.” Buchanan. Funding for these classroom sessions is provided every year by the Ben’s Chili Bowl Foundation, for two years by the D.C. Commission on the Arts and Humanities, for one year by the D.C. Office of Cable TV, Film, Music and Entertainment (OCTFME), and individual donors.
In the summer of 2021, Teaching for Change was invited by the DC Public Library to produce a three-part “Sound of Summer” program that children could access remotely during the pandemic. Two program specialists joined the team, thanks to the OCTFME funding.
Teach the Beat
Teaching for Change helps teachers infuse go-go music in the curriculum with classroom workshops led by musicians, free lessons, and professional development. Go-go originated in D.C. during the mid- to late-1970s and has remained the city’s soundtrack for generations.
While many bands got their start in D.C. schools, decades later it was not in the D.C. history textbooks and only the teachers who grew up in D.C. were familiar with the music.
To help address that gap in the curriculum and bring go-go to D.C. classrooms, Teaching for Change launched the Teach the Beat project in 2011 in collaboration with local go-go artists and the authors of The Beat: Go-Go Music from Washington, D.C., Kip Lornell and Charles Stephenson Jr.
The Beat co-author and former go-go band manager Charles Stephenson Jr. invited Teaching for Change to work on a plan to support teachers and students. The work began by convening teachers and go-go artists at the Anacostia Museum for a planning session, a proposal to the D.C. Commission on the Arts and Humanities, and house party fundraisers with featured guest and Teach the Beat advocate, Chuck Brown.
The project went public with a dynamic citywide, full-day seminar planned in collaboration with D.C. Public Schools offices of music and social studies.
Next came a Teach the Beat website to make lessons and other resources freely available to teachers. Poet and professor Thomas Sayers Ellis donated the photos for the site and historian Marya McQuirter wrote bios for an introductory lesson that has been used in classrooms and professional development.
Most rewarding are the classroom workshops led by go-go teaching artists. William “JuJu” House and Cherie “Sweet Cherie” Mitchell-Agurs lead the effort, with frequent participation by Matt “Swamp Guinee” Miller and “Uncle Devin” Walker. Occasional workshops have been by Gregory “Sugar Bear” Elliot and John “J.B.” Buchanan. Funding for these classroom sessions is provided every year by the Ben’s Chili Bowl Foundation, for two years by the D.C. Commission on the Arts and Humanities, for one year by the D.C. Office of Cable TV, Film, Music and Entertainment (OCTFME), and individual donors.
In the summer of 2021, Teaching for Change was invited by the DC Public Library to produce a three-part “Sound of Summer” program that children could access remotely during the pandemic. Two program specialists joined the team, thanks to the OCTFME funding.
In 2023, the D.C. basketball team Capital City Go-Go, partnered with Teaching for Change to bring go-go artists and education activities to their games. They also helped with fundraising for more classroom visits.
Posted: February 15, 2024