Building Urban Peace in partnership with the courts and schools

PACTROCKS is a successful, interactive music workshop that started in 2006, as part of the PACT Urban Peace Program. The program was designed as an educational, skills-based community arts program for youth in conflict with the law and quickly branched out to serve disenfranchised youth, youth in low-income areas as well as those in need of positive, creative self esteem building experiences in the community.

This program is a mixture of an R&B/hip-hop concept and a traditional rock quartet (Bass, Guitar, Drums, Keyboards, and Vocals). It takes place over seven weeks and consists of a three-hour class each Saturday.

During the seven week program the youth learn to perform two cover songs and one original song usually about their own personal life experiences.  The program also provides a basic education in the music industry (business and marketing sessions with guest speakers, recording sessions and discussions with guest artists, and performances in schools and at community benefit concerts.)

The culmination of the project (and as part of the graduation celebration) sees the youth perform a music concert for community members that may include parents, family, friends, teachers and probation officers. Money raised by selling tickets to each PACTRocks performance goes directly back to funding future sessions of the project.