Monmouth U, Asbury youth visit White House

A group of students from Monmouth University and Asbury Park High School traveled to the White House this week to meet First Lady Michelle Obama and participate in interactive workshops about gospel music.

The youth were among the more the 100 students from across the nation to attend the “History of Gospel Music” event on Tuesday that paid tribute to gospel music and its impact on American culture.

The workshop featured remarks from Obama and a panel of musical guests including Rodney Crowell, Rhiannon Giddens, Darlene Love, Lyle Lovett and Michelle Williams, who also appeared in the PBS music concert special “The Gospel Tradition: In Performance at the White House.”

The musicians discussed how their careers blossomed from growing up singing in church choirs.

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Robert Santelli, a Monmouth University alumnus and executive director of the GRAMMY Museum in Los Angeles, produced the event where he also spoke about the origins of gospel music and artists.

There were seven students from Asbury Park High School and 10 Monmouth University students who attended the event.

Eileen Chapman, associate director at the Center for the Arts at Monmouth University, said the students spent Monday attending workshops and sightseeing in Washington D.C. One of the workshops allowed the students to sing with the Howard University Choir.

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Chapman said Monmouth University was inspired to invite Asbury Park students join them on the White House trip after the Summit for Success event hosted last year by the Asbury Park Press. The event invited the community to discuss solutions to improve the success rate of Asbury Park youth.

“Really you see that you want to help make a change in someone’s life,” Chapman said. “And you know that the students of Asbury Park need to have some shooting star to guide them.”

Nicquel Terry; nterry@gannettnj.com; 732-643-4023