[ti:These Jazz Students Play for Justice] [ar:Doug Johnson] [al:Education Report] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]This is the VOA Special English [00:03.14]Education Report. [00:05.43](MUSIC) [00:13.64]Each year, George Mason University [00:16.38]in Fairfax, Virginia, [00:18.37]presents a jazz concert. [00:21.11]Around one thousand two hundred people [00:24.29]attended this year's concert in October. [00:27.88]Yet when the program first started, [00:31.11]the student musicians played to [00:34.10]an almost empty theater. [00:36.44]Ed Weiner was one of the few people [00:39.18]in the audience when the school [00:41.03]held the first jazz concert [00:42.97]ten years ago. [00:44.82]ED WEINER: "The quality [00:45.81]of the performance was outstanding, [00:47.80]but I was shocked to see [00:49.79]the poor attendance." [00:51.39]So he did something about it. [00:54.13]He found a way not only [00:56.72]to increase attendance, [00:58.41]but also to raise money [01:00.90]for the community. [01:02.39]Ed Weiner is a lawyer. [01:05.28]He organized the concerts [01:07.77]into a program called Jazz 4 Justice. [01:12.84]The performers include students [01:15.73]and employees from the university, [01:18.73]along with guest musicians. [01:21.46]The concert raises money [01:24.50]for the Fairfax Law Foundation. [01:26.94]The local group uses some [01:29.97]of that money to provide [01:32.21]free legal services [01:34.00]to people in the community. [01:36.54]The foundation also supports [01:40.22]programs to help young people [01:42.86]learn about the legal system. [01:45.40]These include courthouse tours [01:49.08]and education about the legal [01:51.92]and health effects of drug [01:54.66]and alcohol abuse. [01:55.95]Foundation officials say [01:59.48]the yearly concert brings in [02:01.67]about fifteen thousand dollars. [02:04.26]Five thousand of that goes to [02:07.65]George Mason University [02:09.44]for scholarships for students [02:11.53]in the jazz studies program. [02:13.82]Jim Carroll directs that program. [02:17.50]He says Jazz 4 Justice grew slowly, [02:21.63]each year becoming larger and larger. [02:25.41]And he says all the credit [02:28.16]really goes to Ed Weiner. [02:30.35]JIM CARROLL: "He has done so much [02:31.74]to help this program. [02:32.64]He is the guy who is out there [02:34.38]on the streets selling tickets, [02:35.42]building our audience, [02:37.22]so on and so forth." [02:38.26]Mr. Weiner says the idea is to [02:41.30]provide a meaningful experience [02:43.39]for the young musicians. [02:45.13]ED WEINER: "We want to keep [02:46.18]the focus on the students. [02:48.42]This is part of their education [02:50.72]and they really see that their talents [02:52.81]can be turned into very good projects [02:56.06]and doing good for the entire community." [02:59.24]Trombone player Amy Loudin agrees. [03:06.06]AMY LOUDIN: "It's all for a good cause, [03:08.15]so I feel glad to be a part of that." [03:10.29]Ed Weiner says he hopes Jazz 4 Justice [03:17.36]can be copied in other communities [03:19.75]in Virginia and across the country. [03:23.03]And that's the VOA Special English [03:32.04]Education Report. [03:34.48]Join us online at 51voa.com [03:38.96]and on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube [03:42.74]at VOA Learning English. [03:45.72]I'm Doug Johnson.