Press Room

All media inquiries should be directed to:
Dave Zibell, Old Town School Marketing Director
dzibell@oldtownschool.org
773-751-3351 (email preferred)

Multimedia, filming & access requests:
Dave Zibell, Old Town School Marketing Director
dzibell@oldtownschool.org
773-751-3351 (email preferred)

General inquiries:
Contact Us

RECENT NEWS

November 15, 2024
Old Town School of Folk Music Appoints Troy Anderson Executive Director & CEO

August 22, 2024
Old Town School of Folk Music presents Global Carnival at Jay Pritzker Pavilion

August 7, 2024
Ella Jenkins "First Lady Of Children's Music" Celebrates 100th Birthday (CBS2 Chicago)

July 18, 2024
Old Town School of Folk Music Names Welz Kauffman Next Executive Director & CEO

May 1, 2024
Illinois Arts Council Announces 2024 Artist Fellowship Award Recipients

March 14, 2024
DCASE Announces 2024 Millennium Park Organizations-In-Residence: Featuring Old Town School's Global Carnival

December 15, 2023
Old Town School of Folk Music Executive Director and CEO Jim Newcomb Announces Plans To Step Down After Five Years of Transformational Leadership

July 12, 2023
Old Town School Names Troy Anderson Senior Director Of Education

May 9, 2023
Mayor Lightfoot and DCASE Announce $10M in Grant Support to 77 Nonprofit Arts Organizations Through the Chicago Arts Recovery Program. Check out the full list of grant recipients here.

June 3, 2022
Old Town School of Folk Music and teachers union reach historic agreement.

April 12, 2022
Old Town School and Fretboard Journal Announce 2022 Fretboard Summit in Chicago's Lincoln Square

September 14, 2021
Old Town School to Join More Than 40 of Chicago's Cultural Icons for the First Time at Navy Pier for Chicago LIVE Again!

July 22, 2021
Joint Statement On Wage Increases, July 2021

July 2, 2021
Old Town School Teaching Artist Donna Herula's "Bang at the Door" nominated for Best Acoustic Blues Album of the Year

June 15, 2021
Old Town School Teaching Artist Reggio "The Hoofer" McLaughlin Selected One of Nine 2021 National Heritage Fellows by the National Endowment for the Arts

April 29, 2021
Old Town School Announced As One Of 22 Recipients Of Doris Duke Foundation For Islamic Art Building Bridges Grants Program. Old Town School Will Present "Ojalà!" Residencies For Muslim Artists Produced With Partnerships From Chicago Based Community Organizations.

March 10, 2021
Old Town School Statement Regarding the March 10, 2021 Press Conference and Open Letter to Administrators

November 23, 2020
Old Town School Is One of Ten Organizations Partnering With Reverb For The One Mic Reverb Shop. Paul McCartney, John Legend, Mavis Staples and More Partner With Reverb to Support Youth Music Education [Reverb.com]

October 9, 2020
Old Town School of Folk Music hosts Behind the Screens, an Online Community Appreciation Night Friday, October 16, 4-10pmCT

August 20, 2020
Square Roots Is Online In 2020! Shop Small Businesses, Stream a Free Concert Broadcast, and Support Two Lincoln Square Non-Profits At Squareroots.org [squareroots.org]

August 13, 2020
City Of Chicago Awards Old Town School New 2020 CityArts Grant (Department Of Cultural Affairs And Special Events [DCASE])

June 4, 2020
Standing in Solidarity Against Racism

May 14, 2020
Old Town School Re-Appoints Jim Newcomb as Chief Executive Officer

April 24, 2020
Square Roots Festival Announces Date Change - Aiming to Return To Lincoln Square August 28-30, 2020.

August 12, 2019
Old Town School and Columbia College Chicago Announce New Strategic Partnership, Old Town School to operate Sherwood Community Music School Increasing Arts Opportunities For South Loop Community.

May 15, 2019
Square Roots Festival Returns to Lincoln Square July 12 - 14, 2019

April 4, 2019
Wiggleworms Returns To Navy Pier June 21, Full Schedule of Free Arts & Cultural Events Announced

March 26, 2019
Introducing Our New CEO & Armitage Campus Update

February 15, 2019
Old Town School Appoints Jim Newcomb CEO. Board member, student and business executive to lead legendary non-profit in temporary strategic role

January 16, 2019
Statement On Old Town School Faculty Voting For Representation By Illinois Federation Of Teachers

January 3, 2019
Old Town School Executive Director Bau Graves Announces Retirement, Interim Director Appointed As Board Committee Begins Search Process

December 21, 2018
Year End FAQ - Clearing Up Misconceptions And Confusion Around Recent Activity At Old Town School

December 3, 2018
Old Town School Board Extends Discussion on Armitage Building Sale Through March 2019, Engages School Community

November 15, 2018
Macarthur Foundation Announces Grants for International Collaborations. Includes Old Town School for the creation of a hip-hop and jazz ensemble with emerging musicians from Chicago's Englewood neighborhood and Soweto Township in Johannesburg, South Africa.

October 25, 2018
A Letter to Our Community from Our Executive Director and Board Chairman

October 22, 2018
Old Town School of Folk Music seeds endowment through sale of Armitage building

September 13, 2018
100 Years Of Englewood Music Inspires New Concert That 'Echoes' Neighborhood. "Quantum Englewood" will premiere at Lindblom Math & Science Academy Saturday.

April 12, 2018
Gallagher Way Announces 2018 Summer Programming.
Schedule to include new and enhanced programs featuring Wiggleworms from Old Town School at Gallagher Way and more.

April 5, 2018
The European Union Grants Old Town School Nearly 300,000 for Two-Year Program Showcasing Diversity Of Europe's Musical Offerings. Getting To Know Europe Grant Is One Of The Largest In School's History, Programming To Include Multiple EU Artist Residencies, Concerts & More.

April 2, 2018
Old Town School of Folk Music names Rashida Phillips to new position of Deputy Director

February 21, 2018
The Old Town School of Folk Music at 60: Music tonight and every night since 1957

November 29, 2017
Melissa Mallinson, Old Town School Education Outreach Program Manager, Joins 30 Other Chicagoland Nonprofit Leaders In The 2018 Allstate Foundation Nonprofit Leadership Program

October 30, 2017
Old Town School Receives 4th IncentOvate Grant for 2018 "Year Of Creative Youth" (City of Chicago)

June 5, 2017
Old Town School of Folk Music Explores Musical History Of Chicago With Soundtrack Of The City Summer Concert Series

June 1, 2017
Square Roots Festival Returns To Lincoln Square July 7-9, 2017

March 29, 2017
RICKETTS FAMILY ANNOUNCES COMMUNITY AND RETAIL PARTNERS FOR "PARK AT WRIGLEY" DEVELOPMENT Wrigleyville's New Town Square features Old Town School of Folk Music, Green City Market Farmers Markets and Music Box Theatre Movie Nights, plus exciting retail, food and beverage offerings

February 2, 2017
All Are Welcome at Old Town School, A Statement From Exec. Director Bau Graves

December 19, 2016
Old Town School Awarded 2017 IncentOvate Grant from Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events

December 12, 2016
Old Town School of Folk Music Launches 60th Anniversary Year with First-Ever New Year Kickoff

December 8, 2016
Old Town School Awarded 2017 Joyce Award

September 26, 2016
A little art, a lot of power (Crain's Chicago Business)

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RECENT PRESS

The Old Town School of Folk Music Tunes in to Digital Times (Chicago Tonight, WTTW)

Old Town School of Folk Music goes virtual in wake of COVID-19 (Fox32 Chicago)

Old Town School of Folk Music Embraces New Ways of Learning (WDCB/The Arts Section)

Accordion Class Presses On Virtually (CBS Chicago)

Coronavirus sends dinner parties, doctor visits and music lessons online - and there will be no going back (Chicago Tribune)

Así se ha tenido que adaptar esta escuela de música para poder dar clases en línea por el coronavirus (Univision Chicago)

Zoom over to these online classes (Chicago Reader)

How Music Teachers Are Adapting to the Awkward Reality of Virtual Lessons (Vice)

Old Town School of Folk Music's New Deputy Director Says, "It's Time for the Black Woman" (The Chicago Defender)

Chicago's Honor Roll: Heroes for Kids in Need (ConsumersAdvocate.org)

Which Charities Are The Big Winners In The City Budget? (Crain's Chicago Business)

Through Three Neighborhoods, Revisiting Chicago's Charms (The New York Times)

Music: Old Town School of Folk Music (See Chicago TV)

Old Town School of Folk Music celebrates 60 years (wgntv.com)

Old Town School To Celebrate 100 Years Of Chicago Musical History (dnainfo.com)

Funkadesi Celebrates 20 Years on 12/3 (Broadwayworld.com)

77 Beats Gives Final Performance (Chicago Maroon)

Seun Kuti preview in the Chicago Reader (Chicago Reader)

The Flatlanders convene for more magic-making (Chicago Tribune)

Fall's Best Concerts & Music Festival (Chicago Reader)

Visiting Old Town with Jim Post and a few happy ghosts along for the ride (Chicago Tribune)

Pape Cheikh Diouf & La Generation Consciente - Concert Preview (Chicago Reader)

Sarah Jarosz Gets Personal On Latest Release (Chicago Sun-Times)

Bela Fleck Has The World On A String (Chicago Tribune)

Robbie Fulks Enters New Emotional Territory on "Upland Stories" (Chicago Tribune)

Lucinda Williams Not Afraid To Explore Uncomfortable Places (Chicago Tribune)

Patti Smith Delivers Uplifting Show At Old Town School (Chicago Tribune)

A Conversation With Thurston Moore..and more things to do in Chicago this week (Chicago Reader)

Ushering In Spring With The 2nd Annual Nocturnal Journal Baseball Roundtable - With Chris Farrell (WGN Radio)