FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
03/24/2004
For the third consecutive year, the Williamsport Area School District is among 100 communities in 30 states who have been named the Best 100 Communities for Music Education in America. The list, which represents an annual snapshot of music education at its best, stands in relief against a backdrop of widespread education budget cuts that threaten these and other music programs across the country. It is based on a nationwide survey conducted earlier this year by The American Music Conference and several partner organizations in the fields of music and education.
The Best 100 Communities for Music Education program is designed to acknowledge this commitment and inspire others in the process. Thousands of public school and independent teachers, school and district administrators, school board members, parents and community leaders, representing communities in all 50 states, participated in the Web-based survey during January and February.
By calling attention to communities that are doing well, the AMC wants to make sure people understand the commitment necessary from communities that demand a quality education for their children-and how many other communities aren't so lucky. Music education currently faces a crisis in America, as budget cuts and a new emphasis on standardized testing threaten to marginalize arts programs. These cuts and demands seem to fall under the path of irony as new studies have shown that students who participate in music appreciation programs have demonstrated higher levels of proficiency in mathematics assessments and fare better on SAT exams.
How fortunate are students who participate in Williamsport Area School District's music programs? Currently, up to 28 million American students do not receive an adequate music education. According to the Music Education Coalition, the current round of budget cuts could lead to curtailment of programs depriving as many as 30 million students-more than 60 percent of those enrolled in grades K-12-of an education that includes music. The results of this survey show that successful music programs are to be found in communities that balance measurable resources, such as budgets and buildings, with less tangible assets-such as the will to make quality music education a reality.
The Best 100 list, along with background information on music education and the survey, can be seen in its entirety at www.amc-music.org.
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