New York City is home to more jazz venues than any other city in the United States, maybe the world. Many of the city's best known venues and performance spaces are located in the West Village while others line the streets of Midtown and Uptown Manhattan. Nestled away in the East Village on E. 7th Street between 1st Avenue and Avenue A is a little place called the University of the Streets. The space has been in operation since the late 1960s, founded by the late Muhammad Salahuddeen. The University of the Streets is different from other "venues" in NYC because its original focus centered around the idea of a program, where kids and teenagers in gangs could find an escape and a place to better themselves.