OCTC Capital Bluegrass & Traditional Music Programs Receives $20K Gift
Owensboro, KY (10/06/2025) — Owensboro Community & Technical College (OCTC) is honored to announce a significant milestone for the OCTC Capital Bluegrass and Traditional Music Program. The Bluegrass Music Initiative (BMI) formally presented a $20,000 gift to support a state-of-the-art recording studio that will enrich the student experience and provide a dedicated space for learning and creativity.
"This achievement would not be possible without the generous and ongoing support of the BMI," said Steve Johnson, who leads the Initiative. "I want to express special gratitude to BMI's private funders, Mike Simpson and Matt Hayden, as well as the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame, whose vision and commitment continue to elevate bluegrass music throughout our community and region."
Johnson added, "We are deeply grateful to our local Kentucky General Assembly Delegation for their unwavering advocacy. House Caucus Chair Representative Suzanne Miles, Senator Gary Boswell, Representative D.J. Johnson, and Representative Scott Lewis championed the funding in House Bill 1 for the Bluegrass Music Capital Initiative during the 2024 General Assembly. Their leadership, combined with oversight from the Kentucky Tourism, Arts and Heritage Cabinet, has brought us to this momentous occasion."
Dr. Scott Williams, OCTC President, commented, "I want to recognize the dedicated professionals whose tireless work has been instrumental in advancing this program: Sydney Warren, Executive Director of the OCTC Foundation, Inc.; her predecessor, Mike Rogers; Scott Napier, who is spearheading development of the Capital Bluegrass and Traditional Music Program at OCTC; Dr. Meredith Skaggs from the Humanities Department; award-winning sound engineer Steve Chandler; Steven Mojen of Dark Shadow Recording in Nashville; and the entire Capital Bluegrass Advisory Board."
"Thanks to these individuals and many others, we will soon provide our students and the next generation of bluegrass music industry professionals with a world-class facility-a place where they can learn, develop their talents, and prepare for successful careers in this vibrant musical tradition," added Scott Napier, program coordinator.
Photo caption: The Bluegrass Music Initiative (BMI) presented a $20,000 gift to OCTC supporting the Capital Bluegrass and Traditional Music Program studio. Pictured (left to right): Representative D.J. Johnson, Senator Gary Boswell, Deborah Filman of BMI, House Caucus Chair Representative Suzanne Miles, Adam Englehardt with the Bluegrass Hall of Fame and Museum, Steve Chandler, Scott Napier, and Steve Johnson of BMI, celebrating the announcement.
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Owensboro Community & Technical College is one of the sixteen community and technical colleges that make up the Kentucky Community & Technical College System. OCTC serves the KY counties of Daviess, Hancock, Ohio and McLean. OCTC has three campuses in Daviess County and a Center and Annex in Hancock County. OCTC strives to serve the communities in the service area by providing associate degree education for transfer, state of the art technical education for students focusing on entering the workforce, customized business and industry solutions through the Workforce Solutions division, and adult education and business and industry testing through the SkillTrain unit.
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The Kentucky Community and Technical College System is the Commonwealth's largest postsecondary institution with 16 colleges and more than 70 campuses. We also are Kentucky's largest provider of workforce training and online education. Through partnerships with business and industry, we align our programs to meet the needs of local employers. We help students fulfill their dreams of creating a better life through programs that lead directly to jobs or help them transfer to one of our four-year partners.
Connect with OCTC: Owensboro.kctcs | Facebook.com/owensboroctc | Twitter@OCTC_Tweets | Instagram OwensboroCTC
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