It’s been an interesting start to the semester, yet again, but we are resilient and we keep showing up for choir and our singers. Go us! However, there is always that chance for budget cuts, restrictions, or worse, canceled programs. With decreasing numbers, uncertainty, and pandemic fatigue, how do we move from survival mode to creating a vision and sustainability?
According to music educator and advocacy consultant Dr. John Benham, regardless of your situation, there is always a solution and someone to help. His key recommendation and requirement aligns well with our hearts as choral leaders and educators: always keep the student at the center of any discussion.
In this month’s Advocacy & Collaboration (A&C) curated episode on the Music (ed) Matters podcast (episode 89), learn about key issues and strategies for building, saving, and restoring music programs. Teaser: you’re going to learn about known cuts, hidden cuts, and all the tips to help navigate the politics that come with keeping music education alive and thriving.
Learn more about Dr. Benham at http://www.save-music.org/ or find his book at https://www.giamusic.com/
Listen wherever you find your podcasts or watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/zpoixZSjFzs.
Dr. Emily Williams Burch chairs ACDA’s Advocacy & Collaboration Committee. Dr. Burch has served in various positions for ACDA at the state, regional, and national level in a variety of roles, including co-programming chair and honor choir coordinator for the Southern Region ACDA conferences since 2014. You can subscribe to her podcast for music educators wherever you get your podcasts, or at EmilyBurch.org/podcast.
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