Klarinet Archive - Posting 000580.txt from 2001/05

From: Josh <eliazor@-----.net>
Subj: Re: [kl] School Board
Date: Thu, 24 May 2001 18:39:29 -0400

unfortunately I do not agree with your school district. I think they have
real problem. In New York this would not be. Your school district should
know that music is very important.

Josh
----- Original Message -----
From: "Jeff Young" <kay10@-----.net>
Subject: Re: [kl] School Board

> Well, I have been a long time reader, but I have never actually posted on
> this, but this topic got me to. There have been problems with the school
> board in my school district also. However, the problems are a little
> different. What is happening is this: The Athletic Department at my
school
> is telling band and choir students that the letters that they earn in band
> or choir are not as important as athletic letters, so therefore the
students
> that have band and choir letters are being required to get a different
> letter jacket. As you can probably see, there are a lot of upset band
> students and parents of students in the music program. This has gone
before
> the school board twice, and they have not made a decision. The problem is
> that the wrestling coach and the athletic director have both been there
> FOREVER (like over 30 years for the wrestling coach and the A.D. went to
HS
> there), and they do not want to see anything changed. Unfortuantely they
> are teaching to many students at my school that the students who are in
band
> or choir do not work as hard as students that are in a sport.
>
> Ok, I'll stop ranting now :o)
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "William Wright" <Bilwright@-----.net>
> To: <klarinet@-----.org>
> Sent: Thursday, May 24, 2001 4:39 PM
> Subject: [kl] School Board
>
>
> > Our most recent school board was interesting because (in summary) the
> > Board had previously been asked to choose between offering a salary
> > increase to teachers vs. eliminating instrumental music & librarians.
> >
> > My comment was: "Let's look at this from a different point of view.
> > You (the Board) have been asked to choose between: (1) offering some
> > teachers a small salary increase and firing other teachers in order to
> > pay for it; or (2) leaving all salaries unchanged and not firing any
> > teachers at all. Does this way of looking at it change your decision?"
> >
> > I saw some surprised faces.... you mean that people who help kids with
> > books and musical instruments are.... teachers?.... well.... ....maybe
> > they are.... hmm...."
> >
> > Fortunately, Staff had already (before the meeting) faced the music
> > <pardon the pun>. They had come up with a tentative budget that
> > retains music and librarians. So the crisis in my district appears to
> > be resolved for this year.
> >
> > But the underlying assumption really caught my attention. Music
> > programs aren't part of 'teaching'.
> >
> > The prejudice is obvious once you see it, but it had slipped through the
> > system unnoticed when the budget items were being described as 'salary
> > vs. instrumental music'. It was quite an eye-opener to me.
> >
> > One item that helped was a high school girl who received a $20,000
> > scholarship for her artistic skills (mostly painting, but also dance &
> > stage). In a separate ceremony conducted by the same Board a few
> > minutes before the budget came up for discussion, the young lady had
> > received standing ovations from the Board and audience. It was
> > difficult for them to cheer one moment and to contend the next moment
> > that art was without educational value.
> > Someone who was (allegedly) knowledgeable had stated that this
> > girl's paintings were going to be worth money someday. One teacher
> > stood up and drooled publicly about a $20,000 scholarship and what he
> > could do with an extra $10,000 in his science budget. He stated that
> > he owned one of this girl's paintings from 7th grade, and he offered to
> > sell it and to donate the money to the school. The fellow appeared to
> > be 100% serious that a speculator might want to buy the painting in
> > hopes that it would be worth big bucks if the girl succeeds. Imagine
> > owning one of Mozart's grade-school manuscripts or one of Picasso's
> > grade school paintings.
> > All of this highlighted the idiocy that music can't be a valuable
> > (monetarily) skill.
> >
> >
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