Guitar In Our Schools

Through the Guitar In Our Schools (GIOS) program, we work with un- (or under-) funded music programs at metro area K-12 public schools to support guitar classes where they exist and help create them where the full-time music teaching staff and school administration have identified a need.

We provide visits by touring international artists to give masterclasses or mini-concerts, residencies by skilled and experienced local teaching artists, and material support (curriculum, guitars, accessories). 

Our Work

We are currently working with two schools.

For the fourth year in a row, we are partnering with Roosevelt High School in Minneapolis to support music teacher Nick Wilson (band, orchestra, general music) and his two-semester program of guitar classes. Our September concert artist, Bokyung Byun, visited the combined classes the day before her Sundin Hall concert to play for the students and engage in some spirited Q&A. She had previously visited Roosevelt in 2019, during her first appearance on our concert series. We’re glad to be back at Roosevelt and hope that we can help Nick with his plan to start a guitar orchestra at Roosevelt in the near future. Ryan Picone, the newest member of our GIOS teaching team, is at Roosevelt once a week for the entire 2022-23 school year.

Our second current partner is Harding High School in St Paul and the two Beginner Guitar classes created there by Band Director Jennifer Greupner. Our energetic visiting teacher (Ben Abrahamson) did wonderful work with the students there last year. Ben's back this fall, every week, helping both classes work toward year-ending projects featuring their own compositions and performances.

In addition to these schools, we hope to resume our partnership with Southwest High School and its guitar department, which is now headed by Jared Waln, who was a member of our GIOS team of visiting teachers in 2020 and 2021. We are also looking to launch at least one new partnership in 2023.

Demographics of the Students We Serve

Roosevelt High School

Hispanic 33.7%; African American 32.6%; White 25.2%; Asian 3.5%; American Indian 2.6%; Two or more races 2.3%; Pacific Islander: 0.1%; Free/discounted lunch recipients  68.1%.

Harding High School

Asian 55.4%; African American 19.8%; Hispanic 14.7%; White 5.7%; Two or more races 2.3%; American Indian 2.2%; Free/discounted lunch recipients: 75.1%.

Our Partners

This year, we received grant funding support from the Augustine Foundation, the Minnesota State Arts Board, and the D’Addario Foundation (which also provided product donation support.

Our Teachers

Ben Abrahamson has performed across Minnesota, including several Minnesota Guitar Society events, and beyond. He’s a part of the Acoustic Guitar Showcase, a member of the flamenco community, and an active teacher. He’s also known for his original music and an innovative series of video interviews with emerging artists in various musical styles, available on his YouTube channel.

Ryan Picone is a multi-instrumentalist who holds a master’s degree in music performance from Arizona State University and also studied at the CSI Conservatory in Lugano, Switzerland, where he received a certificate of completion. A guitarist for over 22 years, he has been teaching and playing professionally for over 14 years. He has performed in Italy, Switzerland, Turkey, and all across the US. His teaching background includes classroom guitar for students from kindergarten to undergraduate, studio teaching, and presenting masterclasses. As a performer, he has a special interest in the “Hot Club” style of jazz pioneered by Django Reinhart. For our team, he’s visiting the guitar class at Roosevelt High School once a week, working one-on-one with students and coaching them as a group.

Milena Petković has established a reputation as a classical guitar soloist, in duos with both Maja Radovanlija and Ben Kunkel. and as the newest member of the internationally known Minneapolis Guitar Quartet. She holds degrees from the University of Novi Sad (Serbia), Indiana University, and the University of Minnesota. She was featured in a Showcase concert for our Society in 2019, and can be found on YouTube in a performance of Asturias recorded for MPR. On the faculty of both the St. Paul Conservatory of Music and St. Joseph's School of Music, she has been part of the GIOS team from the start. Although she is on leave from our program for the fall, we hope to have her back in spring, an place her with a new partnering school.