Danielle Ferguson

dbferguson@argusleader.com

The Brennan Rock & Roll Academy has announced it is closing, citing a recent passed ballot measure to eliminate short term lending as the reason.

The academy posted the announcement that it will host its last lessons on Dec. 23 on its website.

The announcement comes a week after owner Chuck Brennan announced Badlands Motor Speedway is for sale.

Brennan Rock & Roll Academy provides free music education program for children. The main focus is rock and roll instruments and vocals, with more than 200 lessons given every week.

Brennan had wanted to open a Brennan Rock & Roll Academy in every major city in the United States, he told Argus Leader Media in December 2013.

In the same 2013 interview, Brennan said he had raised more than half of the $3.6 million needed to operate the academy in Sioux Falls for the next 20 years.

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Amberly Koopman started piano lessons at the academy three years ago. Though she's played the piano since she was in elementary school, she said her time at the academy exponentially sharpened her skills.

She's the keyboardist for the band Minority Falls, a group made of students from the academy, and said she loves playing on stage with her best friends.

"It's honestly just a huge shock that we won't have a place like this anymore," Koopman, 18, of Sioux Falls, said. "I was expecting this place to last forever. It's a huge part of my life."

The most memorable moment so far for Koopman was being on stage with the band in front of a big crowd.

"The entire crowd was singing along and cheering for us and we felt like we were on top of the world," she said. "I hope we can continue as a band. It would be amazing to keep the academy alive through us."

Volunteer voice coach Paul Jennings taught a committed group of students. One day a week, he met with four students of different ages to sharpen their vocal skills in what he called a professional space for creative learning.

Jennings has been a coach since November, and his time with students is cut short with the academy's closing.

"It's frustrating," he said. "We have kids with no place else to go. This was their creative output. This was opening up new avenues for them. They won't have that anymore."

The kids didn't take it well, he said.

"The kids were crying," Jennings said. "They're upset. For some of these kids, this was their life. This gave them hope."

He's holding out hope the community steps up to help fund the academy for a few more months.

"It doesn't make sense for this to die," he said.

The academy issued the following statement:

Dear Students, Volunteers, Parents and Friends of the BRRA,

The Brennan Rock & Roll Academy was established to help children uncover and develop their love, passion, and talents through the power of music, and for the last 45 months we have done just that. With the help of 150 volunteer instructors our non-profit organization has provided lessons to more than 700 students all at no cost. These students have gained musical knowledge, self-esteem, confidence, hope and so much more!

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On November 8th, 2016, the voters in South Dakota overwhelmingly passed a ballot initiative to eliminate licensed short term lending. Dollar Loan Center, the key sponsor of the BRRA, was given only 5 days by the State of South Dakota to comply with this change of law. This has caused an incredible ripple effect across the state, and especially for the BRRA, our students, and our volunteers. The reality is, a large majority of our donations came, directly or indirectly, from Dollar Loan Center. Without a substantial and dependable source of funds to continue providing nearly 200 free lessons every week, the Board of Directors for the BRRA has made the difficult decision to dissolve the non-profit. The last lessons provided to our students will be held on December 23rd, 2016.

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The Board of Directors of the Brennan Rock & Roll Academy is confident that there will be many more lasting ripple effects in the coming days and years. Over the past four years our students have developed their musical passion and talents at the BRRA. We know that the investment we made in each student will continue to have a positive and enduring effect throughout their lives. We recognize that those ripples will be seen by our students continuing to study and play music, through the efforts of our advanced band Minority Falls continuing their journey, and as our students pay it forward by becoming volunteers. Each BRRA student truly understands the immeasurable influence their volunteer instructor had on their life, and we know they will be honored and humbled to make such an impact on the lives of others.

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The positive effects of the Brennan Rock and Roll Academy will multiply beyond what we could have ever anticipated when we began. We are extremely proud of everyone who has participated in this endeavor. Thank you for allowing all of us on the Board of the BRRA the opportunity to serve you. We will be forever grateful for the influence we had to change lives and raise rock stars!

AC/DC said it best: “For Those About To Rock…. We Salute You”!

Sincerely,

The Board of the Brennan Rock & Roll Academy