YOUTH ORCHESTRAS OF SAN ANTONIO
YOSA changes kids' lives through music.
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
YOSA School Partnerships
YOSA is committed to working with public and private schools throughout greater San Antonio. Some school partnerships involve classroom and school visits by YOSA faculty and staff. YOSA’s most comprehensive school partnerships are with the Roosevelt High School Compact in NEISD and the Edgewood Independent School District.
YOSA’s newest community resource, the YOSA Invitational, provides an opportunity for local middle school and high school bands and orchestras to practice, perform, and record at San Antonio’s most prestigious performance venue, the Tobin Center for the Performing Arts, free of charge.
YOSA Orchestras
YOSA Orchestras, our performance component, are made up of 9 orchestras (YOSA Prelude Strings, YOSA Capriccio Strings, YOSA Sinfonietta, YOSA Repertory Strings, YOSA Concertino Strings, YOSA Flue Choir, YOSA Symphony, and YOSA Philharmonic and YOSA Sympnoic Winds) that serve young musicians ages 8 to 20 from 135 schools across San Antonio.
YOSA Summer Symphony Camp
As the largest music day camp in the region, YOSA hosts more than 250 musicians over the course of three weeks. The program consists of five, one week-long sessions. In 2018, sessions include high school band and full orchestra, middle school string orchestra, pop/rock string orchestra, composition seminar, and string quartet seminar.
Where we work
Awards
Adventurous Programming 2013
ASCAP
Affiliations & memberships
League of American Orchestras 1977
External reviews
Photos
Videos
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
The mission of Youth Orchestras of San Antonio, the premier orchestral experience for youth citywide, is to enhance education, enrich the community, and transform lives by pursuing excellence in classical music in a stimulating, nurturing, and fun environment that is equally accessible to all youth. YOSA wants to change kids' lives through music.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
YOSA changes kids' lives through music by offering three different programs: YOSA Orchestras, YOSA School Partnerhsips, and YOSA Summer Symphony Camp.
ORCHESTRAS
Nine YOSA Orchestras rehearse weekly throughout the school year: YOSA Prelude Strings, YOSA Capriccio Strings, YOSA Sinfonietta Strings, YOSA Repertory, YOSA Concertino Strings, YOSA Flute Choir, YOSA Symphonic Winds, YOSA Symphony, and YOSA Philharmonic. The YOSA Philharmonic, comprised of the very best student musicians in the San Antonio region, performs professional-level repertoire in premier venues at home and abroad, collaborating regularly with internationally renowned soloists and composers.
YOSA School Partnerships
YOSA is committed to working with public and private schools throughout greater San Antonio. Some school partnerships involve classroom and school visits by YOSA faculty and staff. YOSA's most comprehensive school partnerships are with the Roosevelt High School Compact in NEISD and the Edgewood Fine Arts Academy in EISD.
The seven schools of the Roosevelt Compact, a project involving NEISD's Roosevelt High School and the two middle schools and four elementary schools that feed Roosevelt High, is funded by Rackspace. This school partnership includes extensive interaction between YOSA staff, teachers, and young musicians.
New in 2017, YOSA annually hosts 20 local high school and middle school bands and orchestras for performances at the Tobin Center for the Performing Arts. These school programs will have the chance to rehearse and perform in a premier venue at no charge.
YOSA Summer Symphony Camp
In 2018, YOSA has reimagined Summer Symphony Camp to provide more music education options for young musicians. During three weeks, YOSA will hold five, one-week camp sessions featuring opportunities for high school band and full orchestra, middle school string orchestra, pop/rock string orchestra, composition seminar, and string quartet seminar.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
YOSA traces its roots to the San Antonio Youth Symphony, created in 1949 by G. Lewis Doll, music director of the San Antonio Independent School District. This orchestra soon came to include musicians from schools outside SAISD. In the early 1960s, the Junior Youth Symphony was formed for younger students.
Now, YOSA is one of the most respected youth orchestras in the country. We are able to meet our goal to enhance education, enrich the community, and transform lives by pursuing excellence in classical music in a stimulating, nurturing, and fun environment that is equally accessible to all youth with the help of several friends in San Antonio.
Music Director Troy Peters has been with YOSA for 10 years. Well-regarded in his field, he has ushered YOSA through years of exponential growth. He reinvigorates the repertoire and provides the authority needed to support young musicians as they seek to better themselves and serve as a liaison between YOSA and the musical community in San Antonio.
Mr. Peters is joined by excellent faculty who are either professional musicians with the San Antonio Symphony or music educators at schools within San Antonio. These individuals work tirelessly to inspire YOSA's young musicians to better themselves and achieve musical excellence, regardless of status or situation.
The Board of Directors is dedicated to the mission of the organization and has recently developed a four-year strategic plan which establishes goals, objectives, and action steps in each of the areas of musical excellence and program growth, financial sustainability, school partnerships and outreach, rehearsal space and facility needs, and board development. The Board is active through gifts of time, talent and treasure and seek to better the organization.
Finally, YOSA is supported by staff, donors, and parents who are invested in the program because they are invested in the betterment of young musicians, children, and San Antonio in general. Parents are involved and volunteer their time to ensure that the program is the best it can be. YOSA works to maintain meaningful relationships with generous donors, and staff members continuously seek professional development opportunities to ensure they remain abreast of all changes in their prospective fields.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
The development and approval of the strategic plan by the Board of Directors has been useful in the measurement of accomplishments.
However, YOSA is proud to report that it is moving toward musical excellence, experiencing several sold-out concerts and anticipates larger audiences for performances in the Tobin Center for the Performing Arts.
YOSA is in the process of building its school partnerships programs and works to provide music education in low-income areas. School partnership growth has been slow but we are currently working to expand interest in the program and develop better relationships with school districts.
Finally, we are working toward cultivating donors and friends in order to retain consistent giving, which will support future growth opportunities.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
It is difficult to get the people we serve to respond to requests for feedback, Staff find it hard to prioritize feedback collection and review due to lack of time
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
YOUTH ORCHESTRAS OF SAN ANTONIO
Board of directorsas of 03/26/2024
Elizabeth Lorenz
Office of Charles Butt
Term: 2020 - 2022
Evin Nicole Eubanks
Ballet San Antonio
Elizabeth Lorenz
Office of Charles Butt
Donald Oroian
ADA Consulting Group, Inc.
Anne Zachry Rochelle
Zachry Foundation
Allison Balfour
Rackspace
Julian Trevino
Consultant
Matthew Mireles
St. Mary's University
Carla Flister
Hixon Properties Incorporated
Julie Berlin
Temple Beth-El
Edlyn de Oliveira
Palo Alto College
Rachel Woodson
Rackspace
Phyllis Nguyen
USAA
Gopinath Akalkotkar
City of San Antonio
Christopher Benson
New York Life
Jonathan Card
Card and Company Architects
Kamal ElHabr
San Antonio Independent School District
Alicia Grant
Norton Rose Fulbright
Natalie Karge
Valero
Brian Woodward
USAA
Rob Berberek
USAA
Edward Craner
HOLT CAT
Elizabeth Assunto Germany
Cubeta Law Group
Kris Brehm
Armanda Consulting
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
No data
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Transgender Identity
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data