The Michael Bolton Charities Beyond Trauma Youth Music Therapy program is having an impact – on individual lives and the life of our collective community. The End of the Year Evaluation Report, 2021 explains how:
“In-depth conversations with the music therapists indicated that the benefit of the music program reaches farther than the instantaneous rise in positive emotions after the session. Because of the intimate involvement and unwavering dedication of the music therapists, some of the students now have plans to attend college, to record their music, or to learn playing an instrument. They also improved expressing (positive) emotions toward others, and regulate their emotions, feel better about themselves, and function better in school and at home.”
Further amplifying the progress being made, a music therapy student in New Haven shared this reflection on the program’s impact: “I feel like I get to really express myself with music. I've gone to therapy and counseling and it never really worked for me, but this is one of the best therapies I've gotten. It feels like home."
Data indicates that while just under 17% of participating students in music therapy sessions described themselves as “proud” prior to the session, more than twice as many, 41%, did so after taking part in a session. And the percentage of students whose self-descriptions included only positive emotions jumped by nearly 25 percentage points, to 8 in 10 students, a statistically significant increase. 
