The Urban Youth Harp Ensemble (UYHE), a program dedicated to providing free, expert harp instruction to students across Atlanta, was recently honored on The Kelly Clarkson Show as part of the show’s “Honor a Rad Human” segment.

As part of the recognition, The Kelly Clarkson Show partnered with the Guitar Center Music Foundation to present a $5,000 donation to support UYHE’s mission of making music education accessible to young musicians. The donation comes as UYHE celebrates its 25th anniversary of impact in arts education.

“As we celebrate 25 years of the Urban Youth Harp Ensemble, this recognition from The Kelly Clarkson Show is incredibly meaningful and an affirmation of the future we initially sought to build for our students,” said Roselyn Lewis, UYHE executive director and co-founder. “To now see our students performing on a national stage and to have our work honored in such a powerful way is beyond anything I could have imagined.”

During the segment, Myron Leonard, an 11th-grade Drew Charter School student and dedicated UYHE harpist, underscored the impact of UYHE’s programs with his performance of the exposition of the first movement of Concerto in B-flat by Handel on a Lyon & Healy Style 23 Concert Grand harp.

“To know that something I played moved Kelly Clarkson to tears was a moment I’ll never forget. It reminded me how strongly my craft has grown and why organizations like UYHE matter so much to students like me,” Leonard said.

Leonard and Lewis were also joined by the organization’s instructor Dr. Jennifer Betzer.

UYHE looks forward to using the generous donation from The Kelly Clarkson Show and the Guitar Center Music Foundation to expand its reach and continue providing world-class harp instruction to students of all backgrounds, as the organization works toward its $75,000 fundraising goal in celebration of this milestone year.

Click here to view the full segment.