Tony Bennett And Exploring the Arts Announce Over $300,000 In Student College Scholarship Awards For New York City Public High School Graduates In 2012

NEW YORK, June 11, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Exploring the Arts (ETA), the nonprofit organization established by singer Tony Bennett and his wife Susan Benedetto, announce the distribution of over $300,000 in college scholarships to New York City graduating high school seniors in 2012.  Through Exploring the Arts' "Tony Bennett Scholarship" program 43 12th graders at ETA Partner Schools in New York City  - all public high schools - will be awarded funds to help pay for their freshman year at 4-year colleges. Recipients will be attending such liberal arts colleges and conservatories as Rhode Island School of Design, The Boston Conservatory, Spelman College, Smith College, New York University, and North Carolina School of the Arts, along with a variety of CUNY and SUNY schools.

Additionally, ETA has also awarded 51 rising 11th and rising 12th graders at ETA Partner Schools approximately $60,000 through its Susan's Summer Scholarship program, which underwrites the cost for students to study the arts at pre-college/pre-conservatory summer programs for teens. Awarded students will be attending programs at the School of Visual Arts, Fashion Institute of Technology, New York Film Academy, The Ailey School, Earl Mosley's Institute for the Arts, Pratt Institute, and Litchfield Jazz Camp, among others.

Since Exploring the Arts' inception they have awarded over half a million dollars in college scholarships and $100,000 in summer arts scholarships.

Exploring the Arts (ETA):
Founded in 1999 by legendary American singer and painter, Tony Bennett and his wife, Susan Benedetto, Exploring the Arts' mission is to strengthen the role of the arts in public high school education. ETA programs connect private funders, individual artists, and cultural institutions to Partner Schools to achieve greater equality of resources and opportunity for youth of all means and backgrounds. For more info, please visit: www.ExploringTheArts.org.  Tony Bennett and ETA's initial endeavor was the founding of, in association with the Department of Education of NYC, the Frank Sinatra School of the Arts -- a state of the art NYC public high school offering an extensive arts education curriculum located in Tony's hometown of Astoria, Queens.

ETA's Partner Schools:
All 14 ETA Partner Schools are public high schools located throughout New York City's five boroughs. This 2011-12 school year, the student body across all 14 schools was approximately 80% black and Latino; the majority qualified for free or reduced-price lunch; 66% of students lived below the poverty line; many will be the first in their families to attend college. The complete list of ETA Partner Schools:

• Brooklyn Community Arts & Media High School
• Brooklyn High School of the Arts
• Celia Cruz Bronx High School of Music
• Frank Sinatra School of the Arts
• High School of Art & Design
• Professional Performing Arts School
• Susan E. Wagner High School
• Talent Unlimited High School
• Urban Assembly Bronx Studio School for Writers & Artists
• Urban Assembly Media High School
• Urban Assembly School for Design & Construction
• Urban Assembly School for Law & Justice
• Urban Assembly School for the Performing Arts
• Urban Assembly School of Music & Art

www.exploringthearts.org
www.tonybennett.com
Follow Exploring the Arts on Twitter at @ETA_NYC

SOURCE Exploring the Arts

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