At the Holiday Party, we announced that Cole won the Core Value Award Nomination challenge, submitting the highest number of nominations in the entire network. As the winners of this challenge, they got to choose a charity that will receive a $1,000 donation from the DSST network. Here’s why they chose Youth On Record to receive this donation:

Youth on Record has developed a curriculum that helps at-risk students — both in Denver Public Schools and residential treatment centers — re-engage with the educational system by contracting with working musicians who teach the students various aspects of music production via for-credit courses. These classes provide an incentive that keeps students committed to education while providing valuable skills for careers in arts production. Youth on Record has been donating the expertise of their staff to work directly with young musicians at Cole for the past four months, and the organization has been working closely with the music department to build partnerships that will bring music into the DSST: Cole building as well as bring groups from Cole to the wider Denver music community.