New Partnership with City, Board of Education and Harding High School

We are excited to announce that on February 21, Neighborhood Studios launched a new project in partnership with the City of Bridgeport Youth Services Department, the Bridgeport Board of Education and Harding High School. The free program is called Friday Night Live, and will be only for Harding High School students, and held at their school every Friday, 6 - 10 pm, until the end of the school year.

Neighborhood Studios will be the overall program supervisor and will provide music production, dance and creative arts instructors for the program. Harding faculty and administrators will provide staffing for the coordinator, gym staff, guidance, and classroom monitors. Most importantly, teens will have a voice in the types of classes and activities offered.

"This is a great companion project to our Conservatory program, " stated Frank Derico. "Some teens may not want to go to a place they are unfamiliar with, but they would go to a program at Harding. With the inclusion of basketball and eventually other team sports like soccer, we will reach youth we don't normally work with.

"That's what's important - providing a safe place for teens who sometimes don't have one."
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​The program started with about 30 students the first night, and will grow as word of mouth spreads. In the future, the program will have special movie nights, guest speakers, a student lounge, performances and a basketball tournament.