Finance Fundamentals by Michael Craft Johnson
With vigilance, planning, and organization, you can help ensure that the music plays on
To survive and thrive, school music programs depend on more than dedicated teaching and a throng of well-trained, enthusiastic students. If your program is to have a firm foundation that can safely support your future efforts, it's crucial not to overlook the hard realities of funding and financing.
"But," you protest, "I'm a music teacher." Granted, your calling, training, and passion may seem far removed from the realm of balance sheets and budget battles, but it's your program that's at stake, so you will need to take the lead — fiscally as well as musically.
Don't panic. While the economic aspects of school music can be daunting, you'll find it helpful, when examining the issues that confront your program, to divide them into manageable categories. Let's look at four challenges that can affect programs everywhere: general funding, crisis intervention, special initiatives and budget management.
General funding
The "big picture" is well-known to all music educators. School districts everywhere are looking for ways to cut spending, and arts programs are often viewed by accountants as
expendable targets.
But the accountants are mistaken. You already know that "music is basic," that "music makes you smarter." You also understand that cutting music programs is a false economy — music teachers deal with large numbers of students, so when a district cuts its music program, those music students will end up somewhere, usually in other, smaller classes, which the district will need to staff with additional teachers. "No music" is a "no win."
Your watchword, therefore, must be vigilance. Know your school board as well as your administrators, and waste no opportunity to demonstrate the quality and value of your program. Make yourself indispensable, both as a knowledgeable resource and as the public face of a music program that's the pride of your school.
The good news is that the public — and therefore politicians — have begun to get the message delivered by tons of research in recent years, proving that early, sequential music education helps young minds develop critical-thinking skills that apply to all fields of learning. On March 1, 2005, the U.S. House of Representatives, acting on the recommendation of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, expressed unanimous support for the value of school-based music education. On a voice vote, the House passed Congressional Resolution 45, stating that music instruction "is an important component of a well-rounded academic curriculum and should be available to every student in every school."
The bad news is that in many districts, this worthy goal is still wishful thinking. As noted by Rep. Danny K. Davis of Illinois, "Local budget cuts are depriving approximately 30 million students of an education that includes music. It is not only at the local level, but the lack of federal funding as well."
The Education Commission of the States, a nonpartisan, nongovernmental organization, keeps policymakers abreast of what's happening in each state by gathering, analyzing and disseminating information about current and emerging issues in state education policy. The ECS has taken a strong stand in support of putting arts education front and center in public schools, and this past July in Denver, the group hosted a national forum on this topic. For a wealth of information regarding research and advocacy, visit www.ecs.org, then click on "Arts in Education."
Crisis intervention
There are times, however, when vigilance isn't enough, when despite our best efforts, music programs find themselves suddenly in jeopardy. You could awake one day to read in the morning paper that your school board, confronted by the need for yet another round of budget cuts, is planning to pull back on the arts — or eliminate them entirely. Then what?
It's not just your job that's at stake. Kids in your community are about to be deprived of an educational experience that can enrich them with lifelong benefits. Both you and your music program are now in crisis mode.
The most important thing to remember is that you're not alone. Chances are, you'll discover an outpouring of passionate support. The students, their parents, your band-booster group and the community at large can easily be rallied, often without prompting, to defend music education at school board meetings and in the local press. Elected officials who wish to remain in office will always listen, especially when they sense a groundswell of opinion on an issue.
So it's important that your collective efforts at crisis intervention be not only impassioned and heartfelt, but also well organized and well informed. For comprehensive guidelines on saving threatened programs, visit the music-advocacy website of the Music Education Coalition at www.supportmusic.com.
Special initiatives
Even secure, well-funded music programs sometimes have special needs that fall outside the scope of an existing budget. From time to time, your program could find itself in need of any number of endless items such as instruments, uniforms, risers, or sheet music.
Your watchword should be planning. Anticipate future needs, and have them accounted for in ongoing budget presentations. This common-sense approach removes the element of surprise from your program's finances for both you (good) and your administrator (better), which allows you to focus on turning your students into musicians.
But even the best-laid plans cannot account for the unpredictable. Such twists of fate can be unlucky (a bus or a van breaks down beyond repair) or fortuitous (you've been invited to march in the Rose Bowl Parade). Your program needs a significant infusion of funds, and fast. You have three options, and you may need to depend on all of them:
1. Go begging. Approach local businesses or other benefactors who have a history of helping out and who appreciate the goodwill generated by positive publicity. You might start with the local newspaper or radio station, either as a possible source for outright funding or as a partner in spreading the word of your urgent need.
2. Student fund-raising. There is no shortage of ready-made programs that can have your kids hawking pizza, chocolate, poinsettias — you name it — in no time. You'll find plenty of ads for these services in any of the music-educator magazines.
3. Let your band boosters do it. They exist for these challenges and will rally to your cause with missionary zeal, so this is by far your most appealing option. If your program does not already have the backing of an active band boosters group, it's time to light a fire and suggest to some interested parents that they might enjoy the camaraderie of banding together in support of school music. For inspiration, ask them to visit www.conn-selmer.com/parents, then click on "Helping Your Child."
Budget management
As a musician, you may feel uneasy in the role of your program's chief financial officer, but that's what you are. By embracing this role on a day-today basis, you can more efficiently navigate your program through routine funding issues and be better prepared for the unpredictable.
Your watchword should be organization. You don't need a business degree, but you do need to stay on top of your program's various record-keeping duties. More and more directors have discovered an innovative tool that can help.
The Charms Music Office Assistant is an Internet-based program developed by Dorian Business Systems, designed to help the music educator organize and communicate efficiently. It keeps track of students, their instruments, uniforms, fees, forms, and much more. Charms helps manage fund-raising projects throughout the year and can keep a running balance of activity funds and booster-club accounts. It organizes your music library and posts special events on an online calendar that is available to students and parents over the Internet.
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In short, Charms gives music teachers more time to teach. For more information, visit www.charmsmusic.com.
Currently, schools can get a free three-year subscription to the Charms Music Office Assistant by participating in the Conn-Selmer Lease/Purchase Program, which provides a cost-effective way for schools to afford new school-owned band and orchestra instruments and equipment. For more information, see your local Conn-Selmer dealer or visit www.conn-selmer.com/toolset.
So remember those watchwords: vigilance, planning, organization. If you faithfully apply them to all aspects of your program's funding issues, you'll find that anyone — even a music teacher — can rise to the financial challenges of tight times.
Michael Craft Johnson, editor of Keynotes, is an 18-year veteran of the marketing departments of Conn-Selmer and Leblanc. He can be reached at michaelcraft@acronet.net.
