Stowe Arts Academy Presents 'Voices of Freedom' Award to Welz Kauffman, 4/28

Stowe Arts Academy University Preparatory has selected Ravinia Festival President and CEO Welz Kauffman to receive its prestigious "Voices of Freedom" Award. The prize goes to an individual whose work stands out in providing creative and educational outlets that empower students to build a better world. Kauffman was chosen by Stowe's local School Council to receive the prize for developing Ravinia Festival's REACH*TEACH*PLAY educational programs.

Previous recipients of the "Voices of Freedom" Award include Mayor Richard M. Daley; Illinois Supreme Court Justices Anne Burke and Thomas Kilbride; Chicago Library Commissioner Mary Dempsey; and Dolores Huerta, co-founder of the United Farm Workers of America.

Kauffman will receive his award at a special musical luncheon at 11 a.m. Wednesday, April 28, at the school, 3444 W. Wabansia, Chicago.

Kauffman recently was selected to lead a team of Illinois decision-makers-including leaders from the Illinois Arts Council, Illinois Arts Alliance and the Illinois State Board of Education-at a multi-state Education Leadership Institute convened by the National Endowment for the Arts. The goal is to develop public education with an arts core, and Illinois' specific mission is to strategize ways that the arts can prepare students for the 21st century.

As President and CEO of Ravinia, he is responsible for the programming and the business management of North America's oldest music festival. Under the umbrella REACH*TEACH*PLAY, Kauffman has expanded Ravinia's educational and community activities to serve more than 75,000 people with programs that include a free music conservatory in the underserved community of Lawndale, resident artist/teachers in several Chicago schools and the newest program, a student orchestra-called REACH-at Hibbard Elementary School in the Albany Park neighborhood.