Program has awarded almost half a million dollars in scholarships since its
inception in 2003!
Gold Coast Jazz is pleased to announce that this summer and for the upcoming school year, they will distribute $72,000 in scholarship awards. Thirty students have been recommended to receive a scholarship from this year’s Jeanette M. Russell Jazz Scholarship Competition, held on April 12, 2025. Students who submitted applications were selected to perform in a live audition before a panel of judges. Scholarships are applicable for jazz camp tuition expenses for eligible high school students and for college tuition expenses for those students majoring in jazz.
Beginning in 2003 and due to the generosity of Jeanette Russell, the Gold Coast Jazz Society established a program to provide scholarship support to students wishing to further their musical studies in jazz. 2025 marks the 22nd year of this exceptional program, one of the larger jazz scholarship programs provided by a non-profit jazz organization.
“Without the funding help of Jeanette Russell, the O’Connor Family Foundation and Terri Pattullo, we would not be able to help so many students fulfill their dreams to study jazz. We're very grateful for these resources for our scholarship program,” said Pam Dearden, Executive Director of the Gold Coast Jazz Society. “It has been rewarding to know that we assisted so many talented students, many of whom have gone on to have successful careers as professional jazz musicians.”
Jazz camp scholarships are made possible with the financial assistance of the Elizabeth and Daniel O'Connor Family Foundation. College scholarships are made possible with a gift from Teri Pattullo in memory of jazz musician and educator, Brian Pattullo.
Scholarship students from the New World School of the Arts in Miami include: Zachary Balding, trumpet; Anthony Bell, tenor sax; Cristian Cabrera, trombone; Flavio Carrillo, trombone; Ryu Chan, guitar; Andy Fernandez, trombone; Wyatt Gaviria, baritone sax; Lincoln Gonzalez, piano; Juan Leyva, alto sax; Veronica Margues, drums; Alex Ramirez, tenor sax; and Benjamin Riggio, alto sax. Students from Dillard Center for the Arts include Quincey Dubois, tenor sax; Gregory Hammond, trumpet; Dwayne James, drums; and Madison Krushall, baritone sax. Other students include Gregory Gittelsohn, trombone from Cypress Bay High School; Julian Pratt, bass from North Broward Preparatory, and Nathaniel Ratchford from Alexander Dreyfoos School of the Arts. These students will attend summer jazz camps at the Brevard Music Camp, the Brubeck Jazz Summit, Florida A & M University, Interlochen Center for the Arts, Litchfield Jazz Camp, Skidmore Jazz Institute, and University of Miami Frost Intensive.
Several students are eligible to receive an award for tuition assistance for the upcoming college year. These students are either graduating high schools seniors or students currently enrolled in a college or university jazz program and include: Caiden Collins, tenor sax, Florida International University; Jolie Demesmin, voice, Osceola County School of the Arts; Erwin Dorsainville, tenor sax, University of West Virginia; Austin Helbling, piano, University of Central Florida; Andres Benitez Jaimes, sax, Palm Beach State College; Endia Sparks Hardy, piano/clarinet, Huston-Tillotson University; Dylan Montealegre, trombone, Dillard Center for the Arts; Jacob Perry, guitar, Florida International University; Enzo Pulley, drums, New World Schools of the Arts; James Ratchford, tenor sax, John Hopkins/Peabody Conservatory; Eva Rodriguez, bass, New World School of the Arts.
Jeanette Russell, whose estate established the program, was affectionately known as “Lady Jazz,” She achieved success in New York City as a fashion designer, was an avid jazz fan and frequently assisted jazz musicians in need. Betty O’Conner’s father, Robert Friedman, was nationally known as a composer of "big band" jazz music, achieved the pinnacle of success in business and industry as the President and Chief Executive Officer of The National Machinery Company in Tiffin, Ohio. Brian Pattullo was a jazz guitarist and music educator who lived in Fort Lauderdale. The love of jazz by all of these people lives on through this scholarship program.
The Gold Coast Jazz Society is a not-for-profit organization that is dedicated to perpetuate and advance jazz through performances, education and outreach activities. For more information or to donate to the scholarship program, call 954-524-0805 or go to www.goldcoastjazz.org.
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