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RI Music Educators say rescue funds plan for schools neglects music and arts education
RI Music Educators Call on State, School Districts to Fund Music & Arts Education – With hundreds of millions of federal funds going to schools, RIMEA calls on the state and school districts to prioritize the health and wellness of students
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The Rhode Island Music Education Association (RIMEA) called on state leaders today to prioritize funding for music and arts education as part of the state’s plan for investing American Rescue Plan funds. Rhode Island is one of only two New England states to neglect the arts in their state Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Funds (ESSER) plan submitted to the U.S. Department of Education. RIMEA has requested that the Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE) address funding for the arts and music with local school districts through specific guidance.
“Unfortunately, this lack of mention of the arts in Rhode Island’s state plan is likely the reason that a number of school administrators are declining or ignoring music and art teachers’ specific requests to use ESSER funding to support arts learning loss programs, including materials, professional development, and staffing,” said David Neves, Advocacy Co-Chair at RIMEA.
“Funding for music and the arts is of particular importance considering the toll the pandemic has taken on children and teenagers,” said Patricia Kammerer, RIMEA Advocacy Co-Chair. “Music, and indeed all of the arts, and extracurricular activities provide students with an outlet to channel their passions and talents and alleviate the pressures in their daily lives.”
The lack of specific attention and guidance from RIDE is causing confusion for administrators, music educators, students, and families, and is going to result in a lack of consistent and equitable programs statewide. This despite US-Ed’s own statements that ARP funds are providing nearly $122 billion to States “to support the Nation’s schools in safely reopening and sustaining safe operations of schools while meeting the academic, social, emotional, and mental health needs of students resulting from the pandemic.”
Neves added, “Not only can ESSER funds be used to support music and the arts, but they should be used in this manner due to the documented power of arts education to directly support the social, emotional and mental health of our students during these challenging times. Meanwhile, these funds could also address the massive loss of music learning over the last 18 months.”
About
The Rhode Island Music Education Association (RIMEA) is the state chapter of NAfME, the National Association for Music Education. Its mission is to provide professional development, leadership, and support for the state’s music teachers to promote quality music instruction and experiences for all students in Rhode Island as part of a complete education.
After coming from a state with strong music programs, including band. Orchestra, choral, and the ability to stage musical productions using the synthesis of these programs, I was disappointed with the overall lack of string instruction in particular. Only a handful of RI public schools offer string instruction for those interested in pursuing violin, viola, cello and bass, leaving such students with private instruction and RIPYO as their only option.
Instead, RI public schools are now pushing the toxic Marxist critical race theory tenets on innocent children as young as kindergarten. This garbage, pushed by faux scholars like Ibram Kendi and Robin Diangelo and filtered through radicalized schools of education is now insinuating itself into K-12 education with disastrous results with the aid of highly politicized teachers’ unions and compliant and clueless school boards. There is nothing positive about CRT that attempts to divide Americans by race for political gain. It is outrageous that positive avenues of expression like music education are neglected while millions are spent to advance toxic and divisive CRT, including fees to race grifter consultants who are milking our gullibility all the way to the bank. And even more outrageous, teachers jobs are being threatened for standing up against CRT and moms are being attacked by unions for daring to question this hateful curriculum. It’s no wonder RI is a political cesspool.