The collaboration between The Academy, a program of Carnegie Hall, the Juilliard School and the Weill Music Institute in partnership with the New York City Department of Education (ACJW) and Skidmore College, comprises two five-day residencies in October and February that involve professional composers, academy fellows and guest musicians and includes informal outreach performances throughout the campus, compositional readings, coaching sessions, outreach to local schools and organizations, a pre-concert lecture/panel, and a final performance by the Ensemble ACJW, featuring original works by the resident guest composer.

The ACJW residency was born from a proposal developed by Carnegie Hall and the Juilliard School to improve arts education in New York City public schools and to train a new generation of professional musicians dedicated to arts education. In this program, post-conservatory fellows present a series of public concerts in various ensemble configurations to hone their performance skills. With the initial help of a New York State Music Fund grant, Carnegie Hall expanded this series to include four performances dedicated to new music, two held at Carnegie Hall and two at Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs: the Carnegie Hall Premieres.