Our Mission and Our History

Highbridge Voices was founded in 1998 by the Highbridge Community Development Corporation (HCDC), an organization that has provided housing opportunities for low- and moderate-income families of the South Bronx since 1992.  As a result of its presence, HCDC became aware of two issues facing the Highbridge community – an acute lack of tuition-free after-school opportunities for middle school and high school students and the absence of music programs in the local public and parochial schools. In response, Highbridge Voices was established in a converted parking garage beneath an HCDC housing project. While Highbridge Voices was initially considered a program of HCDC, it became an independent nonprofit organization, incorporated in 2001.

The mission of Highbridge Voices is simple – to inspire excellence in the lives of children of the Highbridge community through their active participation in the performing arts.  Through the rigorous training required to study and perform classical vocal music at a professional level, students learn lessons about self-discipline, delayed gratification, and teamwork.  The program then facilitates the transfer of these lessons into other aspects of the students’ lives - academic performance, character development, and interpersonal relationships. Highbridge Voices teaches children to have high expectations of themselves in everything that they do, from the singing of art songs to the mastery of school work. Highbridge Voices evaluates its effectiveness as an organization based on student academic achievement, musical performance, and character development.