Speak Up For Strings - Thanks for Emailing the School Board: Keep The Emails Coming

MMSD's School Board meets tonight to discuss the 2006-2007 school budget. There are no public appearances on tonight's agenda, but the Madison community can continue to email the School Board in support of elementary strings at: comments@madison.k12.wi.us. Thank you to the parents and community who have attended the public hearing and who have sent emails to the School Board in support of elementary strings for Madison's 9- and 10-year old students.

Cutting elementary strings will hurt low-income children! Keep the emails coming in support of about 550 low-income children who signed up for elementary strings - no other organization in Madison or Dane County offers an academic year long class that teaches this many children how to play an instrument. Madison School Board: Let's work together to enhance this learning experience for our children; not tear it down and not tear it down before hearing from and working with the community.

I support restoring elementary strings to 2x per week, and I support forming a community task force on elementary strings and fine arts education to build fine arts education in Madison, not continue to tear it down. I reject late spring reports from the District administration that are clearly biased against this course and have not engaged teachers, music professionals, the community in the preceding 4 years! It's not a administrative staffing issue, but it is poor, poor planning. We've had revenue caps since the early 1990s, and the Superintendent has been cutting fine arts since 1999 with no long-term plan in place, no community task force formed.

Call for an end to unfair cuts to elementary strings - cut 50% last year. No other high demand, highly valued course has been targeted in any year let alone year in and year out for cuts for 5 springs!

The state needs to take action on school financing; Madison needs the MMSD School Board to take action on elementary strings and fine arts educationl. Work with the community - please start now!

Posted by at May 15, 2006 9:45 AM
Subscribe to this site via RSS/Atom: Newsletter signup | Send us your ideas