Bring 37 years of marching percussion excellence to your school.
BK Steppers is a cultural institution — not a residency vendor. We partner with schools across NYC and beyond to build drumline programs that last, develop students who thrive, and give young people a real pathway from their first practice pad through professional performance careers.
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Four ways to work with BK Steppers.
Every school partnership starts with a conversation about what your students need and what your building can support. Here’s the range of what we can deliver, from a single assembly to a full-year residency.
- Elementary, middle, or high school
- In-school day, after-school, or Saturday delivery models
- Culminates in student performances at school events, festivals, and public showcases
- NYCPS Arts Office aligned
- Full ensemble or small group configurations
- Interactive Q&A component available
- Assembly-length or festival-length formats
- Single sessions or multi-day series
- School-based, district-wide, or multi-school
- Delivered by working teaching artists and Pro Line members
- School-based or hosted at BK Steppers venues
- Single class or workshop series
- Prepares students for competitive ensembles and college auditions
A school partnership that doesn’t end at 3 PM.
Most arts education vendors deliver a program and leave. When your students finish, so does the experience. That’s not how BK Steppers works.
What most vendors offer
A residency runs its course. The teaching artist packs up. Students who fell in love with drumline have nowhere to go next — unless their next school happens to have a program too. The pipeline breaks at every grade transition.
What BK Steppers offers
Your school residency is one entry point into a 37-year cultural institution. Students who love it can continue at the BK Steppers Drumline Academy every Saturday, audition for the BK Steppers Drumline, perform at the Battle of the Drumlines, and follow the pathway all the way to the Pro Line and professional careers.
A vendor your budget can actually use.
BK Steppers holds a Provisional Award Recommendation Letter for MTAC — the NYC DOE Office of Arts and Special Projects’ pre-qualification list for arts education vendors. What that means for your school:
Pre-Qualified
MTAC pre-qualification means NYC public schools can contract with BK Steppers using standard arts education budgets, without a lengthy competitive procurement process.
If your school already funds arts programming through the NYCPS Arts Office pipeline or discretionary school-level arts allocations, you can move forward with BK Steppers on a much shorter timeline than most vendors require.
Not sure whether MTAC contracting is right for your situation? Our team walks every school through the options in the initial conversation.
From first inquiry to first day of class.
Every partnership follows the same basic path. Here’s what to expect.
Public schools. Independent schools. Community organizations. Everyone.
Current and recent BK Steppers school partnerships include:
Whether your school has an existing music program or is starting from zero, whether you’re a Title I public school or a well-resourced independent school — there’s a way to work with BK Steppers.
Questions from principals, APs, and arts leads.
Grades K–12. Our residency curriculum is tiered by developmental readiness, so we adapt what we teach based on the age and prior experience of the students in front of us.
Elementary students focus on rhythm foundations, basic technique, and ensemble listening. Middle school builds real drumline repertoire. High school moves into competitive-level playing, HBCU-style tradition, and college marching band preparation.
No. BK Steppers works with whatever your school has — including nothing at all. Many of our best programs started with bucket drums, practice pads, or simply hands and body percussion.
If your school wants to invest in a proper drumline instrument package over time, we can advise on what to buy in what order. But the first day of class doesn’t require a purchase order.
The most common format is one 45–60 minute session per week, delivered by a BK Steppers teaching artist, for a full semester or full school year. Sessions can happen during the school day, after school, or on Saturdays.
We can also deliver more intensive models — daily instruction blocks, week-long intensives, or hybrid formats. The right structure depends on your master schedule and your goals.
Pricing depends on the program format, number of sessions, group size, and contracting path (MTAC vs. direct school contract vs. foundation-backed). We hold detailed pricing conversations by phone rather than publishing a rate card, because the right number depends on the specifics of what your school needs.
Every proposal is transparent about what’s included, and we work within existing school arts budgets whenever possible.
Yes. Every BK Steppers teaching artist and contractor completes background checks and fingerprinting per NYC DOE and NYS Department of Education requirements before entering any school. All required documentation is on file and available to school partners on request.
BK Steppers also maintains a Youth Protection Policy and Safe Space Policy governing conduct expectations across every program.
Yes. BK Steppers is a formal partner with the NYCPS Arts Office, is MTAC pre-qualified, and delivers programs aligned to the NYC Blueprint for Teaching and Learning in Music.
Our teaching artists are experienced with the reporting cycles, student engagement documentation, and outcome tracking that NYCPS-funded programming typically requires.
BK Steppers maintains general liability insurance, professional liability insurance, and other coverages standard for arts education organizations working in NYC schools. Certificates of Insurance naming your school or district as additional insured are provided as part of every contract.
The earlier the better — fall semester bookings are typically confirmed by early summer, and spring semester by late fall. That said, if you’re reading this and your semester is already underway, get in touch. We’ve moved fast for schools before.
Let’s talk about your school.
Tell us a little about your school, your students, and what you’re trying to build. We respond to every inquiry within two business days.
The first conversation is a 15–30 minute discovery call — no commitment, no pitch. Just a chance for us to understand your situation and for you to hear how BK Steppers might fit.