You’ve
heard them a thousand times, the little taglines that have followed
conversations about Rochester for years. Rochester “has a lot of
old money.” Rochester “is a
white-collar town.” Rochester “is an arts
and culture city.”
Here
are a couple of more recent ones: Rochester’s children
are the 11th poorest in the country and the poorest in New YorkState.
That
child-poverty rate is the impetus behind the Rochester Education Foundation’s
current campaign, “Spring for Music,” designed to get
musical instruments into the hands of more Rochester students.
The
CitySchool
District doesn’t have enough instruments to
offer lessons to every student who wants them. And some of what it has is old:
Two instruments originally donated by George Eastman are still in use. So the
foundation — an independent, non-partisan group formed to support community
partnerships and raise resources for city students — is seeking donations of
instruments and cash.
It’s
the first project of this size for the two-year-old organization. “This is a
problem we all need to address,” says REF’s executive director, Patricia Braus.
“Our goal is to bring the resources of this entire area together to help city
school kids.”
“Almost
anyone can have some level of musical achievement,” says Braus, “but first,
they need an instrument.”
The
case for music in the schools is a strong one; studies have shown a correlation
between students who study music and those with high grades. EastHigh School music teacher
Priscilla Brown is convinced of music’s importance, even without the research.
“Whenever honor roll is announced,” she says, “I can go right down the list and
pick out my band students. They are learning to read and interpret another
language, and it requires total engagement.”
General music
education is offered for all students in the Rochester school
district, beginning in kindergarten, and band is available for students
beginning in 4th grade, for students who want to participate — when
instruments are available. But there are only 4,000 instruments for the
district’s population of about 34,000 students. School 8, for example, has only
15 instruments for 594 students.
“We’re
not even close to meeting the need,” says the district’s arts director, Debbie
Harloff. “We never throw out an instrument, and we never have one just sitting
around unused.”
The
district rents the instruments to students on a sliding scale; the poorest
students pay $10 a year. And those students, says Harloff, are the majority.
Few city parents are in a position to help pay for instruments, and that still
leaves maintenance, sheet music, music stands, and other items that students
need.
Play
that next to the situation in the Brighton school district.
In addition to general music education, Brighton offers a
variety of musical activities after school. And, says Leslee Maybee, Brighton’s visual and
performing arts director: “Our program is open to anyone who wants to play, and
no student is denied access to an instrument.”
“Parents
and the schools provide students with instruments,” she says. “We have enough
for a student body that’s close to 3600.”
In the city, as in Brighton, some parents
are able to afford to buy instruments for their children. Others are not. And
their children are often the ones most at risk for truancy and dropping out of
school: the children who may benefit most from music lessons.
REF
co-founder Ellen Leopold says it angers her when people debate the Rochester district’s
need for more money. “Children who come to school hungry or tired or in pain
due to lack of dental care are going to have more problems learning than
children who come to school without those problems,” she says. “The fact is, it
does take more money to educate
children who come from poor backgrounds.”
And
that was the tipping point for getting REF off the ground. “When Rochester’s children
were ranked the 11th poorest in the nation, I was shocked,” says Leopold. “I
thought there would be more said about it. When nothing happened, I just
couldn’t believe it. That’s when I thought, we need to do something,”
REF’s goal for Spring for Music is to get donations of at least 250
instruments and to raise enough money to get them cleaned and repaired. “We
think that this entire community will respond more if we provide them with
better information,” she says. This is not just about getting instruments for a
bunch of kids. And it’s not just their future. It’s ours, too. It’s the future of this community.”
REF
is not a new concept. In fact, Rochester is late in
the game. The Brighton and Rush-Henrietta school districts
each have their own foundations, and similar organizations have been created
across the country. Their goal is to be advocates by raising money and pooling
resources to help students and faculty. But there’s a substantial difference in
the way urban and suburban foundations can attract support.
Suburban
schools not only operate in more affluent communities, but they also often have
the luxury of being able to rely on parents and grandparents who are alumni of
that district themselves. Most urban schools, on the other hand, operate in
poorer neighborhoods. And students’ families move frequently.
REF
hopes to fill in the gap. Says Leopold: “We see ourselves as being a bit like
the RUMP Group and the advocacy role they play for business. We see a need for
supporting these kids and leveling the playing field. They simply do not have
the same advantages, through no fault of their own. And the question is: Are we
going to do something about it?”
REF
is already planning its next venture: a community-wide focus to jump-start
literacy skills in the K-2 years.
People
interested in donating instruments to the Spring for Music
campaign may drop them off at city libraries and the George Eastman House. A
full list of drop-off sites can be found at www.rochestereducation.org.
Financial donations can be sent to the Rochester Education Foundation, Spring
for Music, 500 East Avenue, Rochester14607.
This article appears in May 4-10, 2005.
