Be Part of the Music Aims to Enroll ONE MILLION New Students
Annually in School Music Programs Nationwide
Music advocacy group Be Part of the Music today announces the launch of its program, which aims to inspire one million new students to enroll in America’s public school music programs annually.
Be Part of the Music has developed an innovative approach to changing our public schools through participation in music programs by distributing free customizable recruitment and retention materials for teachers, parents and students. These visually-oriented materials, which are desinged for today’s media savvy students and parents, are designed to communicate the importance and the appeal of music in an effective and meaningful way. As a part of the project, Be Part of the Music has produced over 45 documents and 27 videos which help students and their parents better understand the different ensembles and instruments that are available but the profound impact they can have on a child and school community. These web based resources are available to students, parents, teachers, administrators and community members free of charge via their website at www.bepartofthemusic.org.
Based on the program Be Part of the Band (www.bepartoftheband.com), which increased enrollment in band programs across the United States by 20 percent, Be Part of the Music seeks to surpass that success for choir and orchestra programs. When fully implemented, the goal is to increase enrollment in school music programs by over one million students annually. If we can increase enrollment by just ten students in each and every one of America’s over 100,000 elementary schools, we can easily exceed our lofty goals.
“Music is the key ingredient that makes the school experience better,” said Scott Lang, founder of Be Part of the Music. “Many studies prove that students involved in music programs have higher test scores, higher academic performance and lower drug and alcohol abuse levels, just to name a few benefits.”
In the next eighteen months, the team plans to add retention components designed to keep students in music as they advance in age, hoping to keep students engaged in music making through the difficult teenage years.
Sponsors include Yamaha Corporation of America, Jupiter Instruments, Fred J. Miller Inc., French Woods Fine Arts Camp, NAMM, Music for All, American String Teachers Association and the National Association for Music Education.
For more information about the program, please visit
www.bepartofthemusic.com.
Media contact: Scott Lang, 480.577.5264/
scott@scottlang.net