2023

Eastman Leadership Development (ELD)

Launched the annual one-day retreat in Rochester for local high school aged musicians to hone leadership and community engagement skills.

2022

Eastman Leadership Bootcamp (ELB)

Launched the annual online, interactive training program for early professionals in music or arts administration to continue developing leadership skills and tools.

2019

Master of Arts in Music Leadership (MAML)

Eastman graduated its first class from the Master of Arts in Music Leadership degree program.

2018

Eastman Leadership Academy (ELA)

Launched the annual, virtual summer experiences for upperclassman or graduate music students to learn skills needed to tackle the challenges facing the music world of today.

2018

Department Matching Grant

Developed a funding program for each Eastman department to request financial and logistical support to bring in guest artists for events, workshops, or panels.

2017

Eastman Leadership Conference (ELC)

Launched the first annual
3 1/2 day professional development opportunity for current and aspiring deans, associate/assistant deans, and department chairs of music schools to continue to develop their leadership skills.

2017

IML Grant and Mentorship Program

This grant was established in 2017 to support Eastman students in the development of musical projects, ideas, and/or research. The program offers both financial support and 1:1 mentorship to get the project off the ground. 

2016

Eastman Careers & Leadership Certificate (ECLC)

IML opened enrollment to a completely online, for-credit certificate for early professionals in the music field to advance their education in non-profit organizations and prepare them for a career in leadership.

2016

Eastman Case Studies

Volume 1, consisting of 5 individual case studies, was published. This annual, educational publication examines issues and challenges that face today’s music organizations and leaders, challenging the reader to make decisions in resolving them.

2013

Paul R. Judy Center for Applied Research

This center was created to research innovative ensembles, both in terms of symphony orchestra and chamber ensembles. The goal was highlight artist-centered ensembles that modeled change, while maintaining operational sustainability.

Click here to access the archived Paul R. Judy Center website.

2009

Center for Music Innovation and Engagement (CMIE)

CMIE served as a place for students to pursue their entrepreneurial ideas and find their place in today’s marketplace. It also hosted Eastman’s first online courses such as e-Theory; a course to prepare incoming freshmen for the music theory placement exams.

2009

Preparing the Generation “E” Musician 
Conference

The goal of this conference was to “envision the future” of Eastman curriculum. Students and deans engaged in developing new ideas, such as, entrepreneurial courses and projects, to be added to the curriculum.

2007

Entrepreneurial Leadership in Music Schools Workshop

At the 2007 NASM conference, Eastman used part of the Kauffman grant to host a pre-conference workshop to help create an educational environment that promotes creative and entrepreneurial thinking in musicians.

2006

The Eastman New Venture Challenge

A business plan competition was developed to provide the winning entrepreneurial student or team idea with $2,000 towards a possible venture capital investment. Individuals or teams pitched ideas to a panel of Eastman faculty and staff.

2006

Orchestra Musician Forum

In 2006, Paul Judy and the Symphony Orchestra Institute (SOI) gave Eastman $1.2 million to launch the Orchestra Musician Forum (polyphonic.org). The goal of this site was to provide research on improving the effectiveness of symphony orchestras during an ever-changing economy.

2005

Added Careers & Professional Development to IML

Recognizing the success of the IML and the needs of the students, the school administration merged the Office of Careers and Professional Development into the IML in 2005.

2004

Kauffman Foundation Grant Recipient

Growing support of entrepreneurship education attracted the Kauffman Foundation, which awarded Eastman a five-year, grant of $700,000. This funding furthered Eastman’s goals, enabling them to expand the ALP curriculum and present at national conferences.

2001

Institute for Music Leadership

In 2001, Eastman was the recipient of the Mellon Foundation three-year grant which allowed the school to join the Mellon Forum and create the Institute for Music Leadership (IML). This allowed Eastman to expand on its entrepreneurship, using the IML as the spearhead.

2000

Catherine Filene Shouse Endowment

In July 2000, the Arts Leadership Certificate Program was named in honor of Catherine Filene Shouse, in recognition of a major endowment grant from her foundation.

1996

Arts Leadership Certificate Program Developed

Created in 1996, this certificate and internship program originated as part of the “Eastman Initiatives,” the Eastman School’s comprehensive restructuring of its curricular and co-curricular program.