Joe Broom Named Davidson Fellow
2014 AQF Scholarship recipient and euphonium player, Joe Broom, has been honored by the Davidson Institute of Talent Development as a 2015 Davidson Fellow for his project, “Music as Voice: Presenting the Mosaic of Life.” He is one of only 20 students from across the country to receive this honor.
VIRGINIA STUDENT AWARDED FOR USING MUSIC TO IMPROVE AND ENHANCE LIVES Joe Broom to be Awarded $10,000 as a 2015 Davidson Fellow
Reno, Nev. – The Davidson Institute of Talent Development has announced the 2015 Davidson Fellows. Among the honorees is 18-year-old Joe Broom of McLean, Va. Joe won a $10,000 Davidson Fellows Scholarship for his project, Music as Voice: Presenting the Mosaic of Life. He is one of only 20 students from across the country to receive this honor.
After being diagnosed with bacterial meningitis at nine months old, Joe Broom’s parents were told to expect the worst. The illness delayed his speech development, and left him without a way to fully express himself. He discovered his voice again during one summer packed with speech and music therapy, but it was not until joining the band that he found his current voice, through a metal mouthpiece and a brass instrument nearly as big as he was — the euphonium.
The euphonium is a unique instrument that has augmented Joe’s personal voice. When he performs, he is able to connect to an audience on a much deeper level than in a conversation. In fact, Joe has found that the audience’s response allows his performances to evolve from a monologue to a dialogue. “I compare performance to a relationship; the harder I work before I am with an audience, the better we are together,” Joe said. As a 2015 Davidson Fellow and a 2015 United States Presidential Scholar in the Arts, Joe is the first euphonium player to earn both honors.
A recent graduate of Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, Joe will attend the University of Michigan as a music performance major. He infuses music into education and public service; as founder of Chamber Unique (ChU) TM, a network of young musicians, Joe created a performance series for an arts and wellness program serving seniors with neurological conditions. He also designed and taught a six-part Saturday workshop for elementary school students. The workshop, “Full STEAM Ahead: Adding the Arts to STEM,” integrates music, science and math concepts — turning STEM into STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, ART, & Mathematics).
“We are thrilled to recognize the 2015 Davidson Fellows not only for their incredible projects, but also for the journey they forged to reach this point,” said Bob Davidson, co-founder of the Davidson Institute. “Every year I am amazed by the breadth and depth of the Fellows’ accomplishments. With nurturing, gifted students like these will be among those who will solve the world’s most vexing problems.”
The 2015 Davidson Fellows will be honored at a reception in Washington, D.C., on September 29, 2015.
The Davidson Fellows Scholarship program offers $50,000, $25,000 and $10,000 college scholarships to students 18 or younger, who have created significant projects that have the potential to benefit society in the fields of science, technology, engineering, mathematics, literature and music. The Davidson Fellows Scholarship has provided more than $6.2 million in scholarship funds to 266 Fellows since its inception in 2001, and has been named one of the most prestigious undergraduate scholarships by U.S. News & World Report. It is a program of the Davidson Institute for Talent Development, a national nonprofit organization headquartered in Reno, Nev. that supports profoundly gifted youth.