Jazz Education Achievement AwardsJamal Dickerson | Hassan Sabree | Nasir DickersonCamden, N.J.Camden’s CulturalRenaissanceMany teachers go above and beyondthe call of duty. But when three youngteachers want to serve their hometown of Camden,N.J., which ranks as one of the most dangerouscities in the country, that work deservesa whole other level of recognition. For JamalDickerson, Nasir Dickerson and Hassan Sabree,the reward comes from paying forward whatwas given to them.Sabree and Jamal, both 36, met in fourthgrade and have been friends ever since. Sabree,Jamal and his younger brother Nasir, 29,all grew up heavily involved in the community.While in high school, Jamal and Sabree formedthe Unity Community Center, a youth organizationgeared towards helping inner-city youth.“When we went to college, we wanted to comeback to our city and teach,” Jamal said.He and Sabree studied music as undergraduatesat Morgan State University and laterearned their master’s degrees from RutgersUniversity. “We would use music as a vehicle toconnect with many of the troubled youth,” Jamalsaid. While Jamal has taught and served asband director at the Creative and PerformingArts High School since 2002, Sabree, who previouslytaught at Forest Hill Elementary School,now teaches at Camden High School.Inspired by Sabree and his older brother,Nasir soon followed suit, studying music at theUniversity of the Arts in Philadelphia. Accordingto his older brother, their mentor and formerMorgan Village Middle School teacher CharlesElliott made Nasir an interesting offer. “He told[Nasir] that he would wait to retire until mybrother graduated to take his position,” Jamalsaid. Once Nasir earned his master’s degree andtook Elliott’s place in 2006, the three of them seta larger plan into action: a vertically aligned music-educationprogram.Modeled after an educational conceptfound in the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001,vertical alignment is the consecutive instructionof one grade level to the next. “What we woulddo is work together and plan out the curriculumso that we know what we want them to workon from elementary to high school,” Jamal said.“We would have the high school students mentorthe middle school students. And then wewould have the middle school students mentorthe elementary school students.”The children who started out with Sabreeat Forest Hill Elementary not only became familiarwith their instruments but also with one another.“The most important thing was creatingpersonal relationships with the students,” Sabreesaid. “That’s where we lose the kids sincemost of them are not getting a strong influenceat home in terms of playing instruments.”According to Nasir, encouragement is crucialto his teaching philosophy. “We deal withstudents that have IEPs [Instructional EducationPlans] or special needs,” he said. “They’re reallygeniuses if you take the time to work with them.I don’t run from special needs classes. I actuallygo to them first.” Nasir added that he had beenclassified as a special needs child while in elementaryschool. His parents were told that hewould never learn how to read or write.In addition to the normal school year, thetrio’s students take part in an after-school program,a William Paterson University summercamp and bassist Christian McBride’s JazzHouse Kids organization. They’ve also formedtheir own ensembles, including the Little JazzGiants, who perform all over the country. As aresult, students such as Charlene Boone, JoJoStreater and Sadayah Galloway have studied atprestigious universities such as Oberlin College& Conservatory and Berklee College of Music.Jamal, Nasir and Sabree have helped painta different picture of Camden, but they are stillmindful of its problems. “Imagine what wouldhappen if people were to build relationships insome of our more affluent communities, wherethe students and their parents are engaged inthe learning process,” Jamal said.—Shannon J. Effinger
High School WinnerMichael Orenstein“Task”Berkeley High SchoolSarah ClineBerkeley, CAHigh School Outstanding PerformancesNick Lavkulik“B.E.T. On Yorke”Lawrence Park Collegiate InstituteKen HazlettToronto, Ontario CanadaSam Klein-Markman“Get Off My Lawn”Berkeley High SchoolSarah ClineBerkeley, CALiam Werner“S.B.K.N.”Montclair High SchoolJulius TolentinoMontclair, NJPerforming Arts High School WinnerLuca Ferrara“Gathering Of The Minions”Colburn School of Performing ArtsLee SecardLos Angeles, CAPerforming Arts High SchoolOutstanding PerformancesJames Francies“Distant Over Time”High School for the Performing &Visual ArtsWarren SneedHouston, TXBen Hickson“Purge Original Song”Booker T. Washington HSPVABart MarantzDallas, TXUndergraduate College WinnerGeorge Heid III“Emma Rain”Duquesne UniversityRoger Humphries, Kenny WashingtonPittsburgh, PAUndergraduate CollegeOutstanding PerformancesAndrew LeCoche“Tarzana”Purchase CollegeJohn AbercrombiePurchase, NYJUNE 2013 DOWNBEAT 121
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