Saturday, January 21, 2012

Dear School Administrator . . .

I wrote this letter as a member of the Music Advocates of Carroll County.  We sent it to the principals at every middle and high school in our county.  Will it have an impact?  I don't know.  But I do know that doing nothing gets us nowhere.  Speak up!  Let our schools know that the community values arts education.

Dear Principal,

Happy New Year from the Music Advocates of Carroll County!  As the scheduling process for the 2012-2013 school year begins, we wanted to take a moment to thank you for your efforts to ensure that students have access to a high quality music education.

As the school principal, you wield powerful influence over the strength of the ________Music Program.  Your leadership makes it possible to:

  • Create schedules that give students access to music classes.
  • Offer curricular performing ensembles that meet consistently during the entire school year.
  • Offer opportunities for consistent, specialized instruction such as through sectional rehearsals.
  • Foster an environment where the accomplishments of music students are celebrated.
  • Educate non-music teachers about the value of the arts as core subjects.

In an era when there is so much pressure to raise standardized test scores, please know that many of us in the community value the arts and the richness of experience that these “non-tested” subjects bring to our young people.  We appreciate your efforts to strengthen the music program at _________.  We hope that as students begin the scheduling process, they will be given every opportunity to participate in a high-quality, standards-based, sequential program of music study.

Thank you for your support of our young musicians!


Sincerely,

Maggie Fischer
Music Advocates of Carroll County

School districts with strong arts education programs report that superintendents and school principals who collectively support and regularly articulate a vision for arts education are critically important to the successful implementation and stability of district arts education policies. (“Gaining the Arts Advantage,” The President’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities, 1999)

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