History

History

IMW was founded in 2006 by Mike Simons with a carful of instruments, a volunteer gig at a neighborhood social service agency, and a hunch that a pop-music education program would be a fun and effective way to keep youth productively engaged during after-school hours. He quickly discovered that such a program also develops life skills, builds self-esteem,establishes a sense of belonging, and creates community. After incorporating as a 501(C)3 Tax Exempt Non-Profit Organization the following year, IMW set our sites first on the parks, and then on the schools, where we discovered that our “After-School of Rock and Pop” increases student engagement in the school community for participants, while also improving attitudes and behaviors inside the classroom. Flash forward 5 years and IMW currently operates ten programs at eight school and park district sites across the city of Chicago, serving 125 youth during each session on a year-round basis (450 total slots per year). Since its inception, the students of IMW have formed over 30 rock and pop bands, playing shows ranging from local arts nights to Lollapalooza.