blog post 6

What to do about getting money for a music program? This is a question I never really put much thought into until class last Monday. But starting a music program is very expensive. Not all of the time will a new teacher start his/her new job and have everything perfect and in perfect conditions. So the new teacher might not have to figure out how to buy a new band but figure out what the band is missing and obtain it. Some things needed for a music program are, the instruments, P.A. System, stands, chairs, practice books, sheet music, pencils etc. And don't forget money for when the instruments break! This starts to add up to a lot of money, where is it coming from?

We cant rely on just Mom and Dad to fork over the thousands of dollars needed to start or maintain a music program. Especially in low income areas, some parents cant afford to spend extra money in music when they are trying to pay for their house. I can think of two places where this money should come from, the community and the administration. As mentioned in class we the music educators should know about much we would need that year for our program and how much we will need to have it grow. Administration sees us as the professionals in the situation and we as music educators need to professionally state how much we need to administration in order to obtain funds. The other way of getting money for programs is through community performances and fund raising. Getting the community involved is super important. The school BOCJ should not just represent the school but represent the community. If you the music teacher takes the school band to play out in the community once or twice a month and even hold alumni concerts, community members will start to get involved and enjoy the music programs and be more inclined to donate support.