The Lewis Prize for Music — a creative arts philanthropy that invests in youth music programs to facilitate positive community change— is opening the application for its annual Accelerator Awards on May 18, 2021. Three multi-year awards of $500,000 each will be awarded in January 2022. 

The Lewis Prize for Music believes that music in the lives of young people is a catalytic force to drive positive change in our society. Accelerator Awards are open to Creative Youth Development (CYD) music organizations seeking to influence youth-serving systems so all young people have access to learning, creating, and performing experiences that reflect their culture and identity. 

Finalists and Awardees are chosen through a rigorous and comprehensive process that incorporates evaluation and input from diverse leaders in the fields of music, education, policy, research, philanthropy and community organizing. This includes young adult alumni leaders from creative youth development programs. 

The Accelerator Award application will open Tuesday, May 18, 2021. The deadline to submit an application is Friday, July 16, 2021. More information about the application process, guidelines and past Accelerator Awardees can be found at https://www.thelewisprize.org.

About the Accelerator Awards 

  • Three multi-year awards of $500,000 each will be awarded and announced in January 2022. 
  • The Accelerator Awards are open to Creative Youth Development music organizations seeking to influence youth-serving systems so all young people have equitable access to resources for them to thrive. 
  • The award application opens Tuesday, May 18, 2021. The deadline to submit an application is Friday, July 16, 2021. More information can be found at https://www.thelewisprize.org.

Have questions about whether this is right for you?
Join our upcoming webinar on June 24th.

Email us directly at any time.  Our team is happy to answer any and all of your questions.  ann@thelewisprize.org  or info@thelewisprize.org