John Lennon Educational Tour Bus Visits Centennial High School in Compton
Edited by Staff Writer
The John Lennon Educational Tour Bus visited Centennial High School in Compton on Tuesday, June 25th. During the visit, students had the opportunity to learn about professional audio and video studio operations. Candice Boggerty, Centennial High School Audio Production Instructor, was on hand to give a bus tour and show the high-tech recording equipment. “Today, the students come together in this bus studio and write, record, engineer, and complete a musical composition of their own.” Candice said, “And they get to showcase it at Burbank’s AME (Arts, Media Education) conference tomorrow. Many great artists have recorded and toured on this bus, including Stevie Wonder, Black Eye Peas, and Wu-Tang Clan. I teach students at Centennial High Audio in a two-year class where the first year is mainly an introduction to audio production, and the second year is work-based learning. Our goal is to prepare these students for audio and video engineering careers and keep them in a job where they can work in the community. Hollywood is the center of the entertainment industry, and we want to allow them to work right here in their backyard.”
The John Lennon Educational Tour Bus is a state-of-the-art mobile recording and multimedia production facility. Several Centennial and Dominguez, High School scholars, worked with the onboard crew of producers.
CUSD Board member Dr. Ayanna Davis visited the John Lennon Educational Bus and was impressed with what it brings to the students and the Compton community. “I truly believe this is a pure example of 21st-century education in Compton,” stated Dr. Davis. Many of our students want to get into the music industry but are limited in their knowledge of what it takes to make a recording behind the scenes. Exposure is one of the greatest gifts we can offer students in Compton. With the John Lennon Educational Tour Bus and the classes that Candice Boggerty is teaching, the students are getting exposure to a field that students before them never had the chance to be exposed to. This will be a continuous project, and we look forward to what we are doing to affect the future of our students. I am very proud to be on the school board and part of the many innovational projects at CUSD.”
Centennial High School Principal Mr. Bobby Walker beamed with pride as his school hosted the John Lennon Educational Bus Tour. Mr. Walker commented, “This is a wonderful opportunity for our students to become engaged in Audio Production and CTE. We thank our board of trustees and our Audio Training teacher, Candice Boggerty, for helping to bring the John Lennon Educational Bus Tour to Centennial. This is another round of opportunities that our students richly deserve.”
The bus began a residency at the AME Institute (Arts, Media, and Education) annual conference in Burbank, courtesy of the Dolby Institute, where it hosted the Centennial scholars and demonstrated their completed project.
Through CUSD’s robust Career Technical Education (CTE) department, the school district offers various opportunities for scholars to learn about exciting businesses, such as music and entertainment, better preparing them for life after graduation.
CUSD Superintendent Dr. Darin Brawley was also at Centennial for the bus tour. “We are very excited about experiencing an audio production studio on wheels,” commented Dr. Brawley. “We are also excited about Candice and what she is doing with the students at Centennial. This goes to show all the great things that are happening in our school district. This is not the Compton of old; this is the new Compton, where we provide our students with plentiful and bountiful experiences in education for them to pursue whatever their interests may be. We are a STEAM-focused district with endless opportunities for our students.”
CUSD is drawing on Compton’s rich musical history with audio production classes in all high schools and will open a cutting-edge performing arts center at the new Compton High School next year.
The John Lennon Bus is a state-of-the-art mobile audio-video studio traveling the country to schools, colleges, and universities. It focuses on providing experiential opportunities and information on careers in music education, music products, and the music business. Many students tour the Bus and learn about the workings of a professional audio and video studio.
Inspired by John and Yoko’s vision of embracing creativity and imagining peace, the Lennon Bus is committed to providing young people, communities, and schools across the nation with explanatory tours of the on-board studios, workshops, interactive experiences, and hands-on opportunities to create original audio, video, and broadcast projects that reflect their ideas and concerns.
The newly wrapped, newly equipped Lennon Bus has been on tour this year, making stops across the U.S. and Canada, with the esteemed RZA and hip hop pioneers Wu-Tang Clan using the newly installed Dolby Atmos studio and Genelec monitors. The Bus is proud to be a proponent of sustainability with the help of Battle Born Batteries, which provide green power to the Bus.
This Fall, the Bus will visit Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), middle and high schools, and other venues.
The Dolby Institute was established to educate, inspire, and empower the next generation of content creators. Collaborating with schools, colleges, and organizations worldwide, it aims to train professional, emerging, and underserved creators. The institute strives to equip artists with access to Dolby’s industry-leading content-creation tools through various educational programs, strategic partnerships, workshops, and events. Building on Dolby’s rich history of innovation in entertainment, its educational initiatives are designed to provide the resources and guidance necessary to foster artistic expression.
About the John Lennon Educational Tour Bus:
The John Lennon Educational Tour Bus is the premiere non-profit mobile recording facility that provides hands-on experiences for students of all ages. In its 26th year of touring, the Lennon Bus features a Dolby Atmos studio with the latest audio and video technology, gear, and products. The concept began as an offshoot of the John Lennon Songwriting Contest, providing opportunities for professional and amateur songwriters worldwide; proceeds help support the Lennon Bus. The Lennon Bus travels across the U.S. and Canada year-round, providing free tours and workshops at schools, colleges, and universities, festivals, on tours with headlining artists, and at major industry conferences. Lennon Bus Europe began providing these same opportunities to the young people of Europe when it launched in Liverpool, UK in May 2013.
The Lennon Bus is made possible by Yoko Ono Lennon and the following sponsors and contributors: Apple, Inc., The Dolby Institute, Battle Born Batteries, NAMM Foundation, Westlake Pro, Gibson Gives, Audio-Technica, Genelec, Apogee, Roland, Epiphone, Triple G Ventures, Triad-Orbit, Reason Studios, Solid State Logic, Neutrik, Blackmagic Design, Grace Design, Avid, Universal Audio, and Flock Audio.
About the AME Institute Burbank
The Arts Media and Entertainment Institute (AME Institute) is a leading educational non-profit dedicated to training AME educators and strengthening the pipeline from public education to the creative industries. 2024 Sponsors for AME Institute events include Adobe, BRIC Foundation, Certiport, CVL Economics, CA Film Commission, Dolby, Editmentor, Foundry, Soundtrap, Toon Boom, USITT, Visit Burbank, Wacom Technologies, Woodbury University, and Wix. The AME Institute is supported through the Snap Foundation and Sony Pictures Entertainment funding.
