On July 21 at 12:00 PM KMFA radio station in Texas will broadcast a recording of Remembering Margaret Perry, a memorial concert held in honor of the founder of Armstrong Community Music School.

According to KMFA, “Margaret Perry, founder of the Armstrong Community Music School, was a force unlike any other in the Central Texas music scene. She was a treasured member of KMFA’s Community Advisory Board and a frequent guest on the station’s programs. When the Austin musical community came together to celebrate Margaret’s life in a music-only program of works hand selected by her, KMFA was there to capture the event.”

In announcing the broadcast, the president and general manager of the station shared her thoughts on Margaret’s legacy: Margaret and her remarkable team created music classes for every age and ability, but that’s just the beginning. A guitar program for veterans builds community through the healing power of music. Free enrichment programs brighten the lives of mothers and children at SAFE Alliance and the Todos Juntos Learning Center. There are classes for the Travis High School Child Development Center, music lessons for visually impaired children, and We Are The Chorus, a singing ensemble for adults with developmental disabilities.

In honor of Margaret's remarkable legacy, the National Guild has launched the Margaret Perry Leadership Fund. Donate here.

You can learn more and listen to the broadcast here.

 

Following a nationwide search, Kate Sheeran, an accomplished educator and academic administrator, new music champion, and professional musician who has served since 2015 as provost and dean of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, has been chosen as the new executive director of Kaufman Music Center in New York.  She will assume the new position in mid-August.

Sheeran, also a former Assistant Dean at Mannes School of Music at The New School in New York, succeeds the retiring Lydia Kontos.  Over nearly 40 years of leadership, Kontos took what was once called the Hebrew Arts School and spearheaded its growth and transformation into Kaufman Music Center, a multi-faceted education and cultural institution that is home to New York City’s premier stage for contemporary classical music, the favored stage for chamber music and many other performances, the largest community arts school in New York, and the top-rated K-12 public school in the city and the only one with music as a core curriculum discipline.  

“Kate not only possesses an outstanding range of skills, but also brings with her a unique perspective as both an educator and an administrator, as a musician and a new music advocate, and as an outsider and an insider,” said Cathy O’Rourke, president of the Kaufman Music Center Board and chair of the Search Committee, noting that Sheeran has performed at Merkin Concert Hall, Kaufman’s performance space, and that during her tenure at Mannes, she worked in partnership with Kaufman on a number of initiatives.

About Kaufman Music Center

Kaufman Music Center stimulates appreciation of and participation in music through music performance and education in ways that awaken creativity, advance innovation and create a sense of wonder among performers, students, teachers and the public at large. At Kaufman Music Center, music lovers – from curious fans to renowned performers – come together to explore their musical passions.

Bob Welch, executive director of the Gadsden Community School for the Arts, recently contributed an article to The Gadsden Times that described his experience advocating on behalf of his community for arts education. He detailed how vital the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) has been for the Gadsden community, and why federal funding for the arts is invaluable for Alabama.

"The NEA has made significant contributions to the arts in Alabama at large and even in our smaller community of Gadsden. In the past five years, the NEA awarded 74 direct grants to nonprofit and governmental arts organizations and programs in Alabama. Five of these came directly to our congressional district so that 20,400 adults and children could experience the arts. Specifically, a multi-day workshop series conducted by Marshall County called Melodies and Musings has received generous grants from the NEA for five consecutive years. This series helps retired senior citizens learn more about the district’s heritage through music education."

Read the full article here.

A new book in the child development field features Art Expression Inc. in its discussion of the therapeutic benefits of art on traumatized children.

Edited by Adrienne D. Hunter, MEd, Donalyn Heise, EdD, and Beverley H. Johns, MS, Art for Children Experiencing Psychological Trauma (Routledge), is a guide for art educators and school-based professionals that explores the benefits of art on this vulnerable population.

According to the publisher, the book “aims to increase understanding of art’s potential to enhance learning for children living in crisis. … Included are successful models of art education for diverse populations, with specific attention to youth who face emotional, mental, behavioral, and physical challenges, as well a framework for meaningful visual arts education for at-risk/in-crisis populations.”

A chapter titled “Community-Based Art Programs, Collaborative Partnerships, and Community Resources for At-Risk Students,” co-written by Laura Saulle and HCEF founder Joe Lagana, details the work done by some of the Homeless Children’s Education Fund’s programming partners, including several pages devoted to Art Expression. Illustrations of children’s work from a “body maps of stress” art project conducted by Art Expression at an area shelter agency are also included.

“We’re very grateful and excited to be included in this scholarly work,” said Angela Lowden, Art Expression executive director. “Because we use graduate-level and masters-degreed art therapists and board-certified music therapists, we have the experience and expertise to deliver positive outcomes for children through components of art and music therapy.”

About Art Expression Inc.

Art Expression Inc. is a non-profit foundation established in 2001 by James and Angela Lowden as an expression of their passion for alleviating the social inequalities that exist among children of different abilities and backgrounds. The organization’s mission is to provide social and emotional learning through the arts and provide academic enrichment in an inclusive setting. Art Expression’s programming fosters creativity and imagination and enhances self-esteem for children in schools, homeless shelters and community organizations. Art Expression is a two-time finalist (2017 and 2013) for the National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Awards, distinguishing the organization as one of the top 50 arts- and humanities-based programs in the country and for which it received certificates of excellence from the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities.

The Yale School of Music (YSM) recently released a Declaration on Equity in Music for City Students, a document that calls for every student in every city in America to have access to an active music life. Based on the concepts of dignity and inclusion, the declaration asserts an active music life is a social, cultural, and educational right.

The document proposes a framework through which “ecosystems” of students, educators, families, professional musicians, and community partners can collaborate to create and ensure equity in music. The declaration can be used to initiate, continue, or reinvigorate conversations about the role music plays in the lives of students, both in- and out-of-school, in cities around the United States.

The full text, along with pertinent resources, compelling stories, and specific action steps, can be explored and shared at music.yale.edu/declaration.

About Yale Music in Schools Initiative

The Music in Schools Initiative at the Yale School of Music is a longstanding partnership between New Haven Public Schools and the Yale School of Music. It expands music opportunities for New Haven students and music educators, while simultaneously preparing Yale’s international body of graduate musicians to be teaching artists and cultural leaders. Teaching artists complement the work of full-time certified music educators during school hours, while also offering opportunities for students to participate in supplementary programs. All activities are centered around the core principles of mentorship and active music-making, and include in-school mentorship, all-city ensembles, vacation festivals, and an intensive summer academy.

Chad Cooper, executive director of the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music (Brooklyn, NY) and a National Guild trustee, moved into his current role after a 16-year career as a highly-paid Wall Street banker. The Wall Street Journal recently profiled Cooper, exploring what this transition has looked like and how the move to a nonprofit has provided personal fulfillment–if not the shorter hours that Cooper envisioned.

After making the switch, Cooper was struck by the day-to-day worries of an arts school director—"you don’t have to worry, as a banker, whether the elevator is going to break down”—and also by the dedication and resolve of staff members, many of whom are working for little pay. Ultimately, the transition has changed Cooper’s relationship to his work and to the Brooklyn community that he lives in.

You can read the full article here.

About the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music

The Conservatory’s main campus, in the heart of historic Park Slope, Brooklyn, is a comprehensive educational centers for over 1,000 students. The Conservatory offers a full range of lessons, classes and ensembles to students of every age and ability, and provides more than 200 merit- and need-based scholarships annually. The Conservatory serves more than 800 individuals living with disabilities and other significant life issues through its music therapy program, both on-site and through more than 20 partner sites in Brooklyn, Queens, Long Island and Manhattan. The Conservatory also provides music education to an additional 6,500 school-aged children each year through its Music Partners Program, offered in more than 40 public, private and parochial schools, youth centers and community-based organizations.