INSIDE NEWS > Page 20 Shiloh Music Center Turns 50 > Page 23 Sam Ash Music to Close All Stores Nationwide > Page 24 Woodwind & Brasswind to Join Music & Arts
Aiming to respond to this crisis is the Teach Music Coalition, a collective impact campaign formed to address short- and long- term challenges facing the music educator workforce. Its mission is multifaceted; aiming to retain experienced educators, support and mentor new educators, and attract diverse talent to music education. By providing re- sources, advocating for policy changes, and fostering partnerships between educational institutions and communities, Teach Music strives to ensure that every student has access to high-quality music education. BRIDGING THE GAP Teach Music emerged from the pandemic in 2021 as Bob Morrison, a nationally rec- ognized arts education leader and founder of Teach Music, started receiving reports from college educators across the country that they were seeing a rapid decline in student enrollment. “The National Association of Schools of Music identified that there was a 14% decline in the number of students entering college to become music educators over the past decade,” Morrison said. “[The] second issue is that experienced teachers are leaving the profession at an accelerated rate coming out of the pandemic. The other thing that became apparent was that there’s a lack of diversity in our music education field. Cur- rently, about 93% of all music educators in the U.S. are white — and that’s not reflective of the diversity that exists in our community.” Morrison’s vision was clear: to harness the collective expertise and resources of national organizations to construct a plan aimed at increasing the number of quali- fied music educators, while also providing support to current educators. “What we’re talking about is addressing the traditional undergraduate music edu- cation majors,” Morrison said. “We have to identify early stage students that show promise in becoming a music educator, so that support and resources are provided for those
The Teach Music Coalition seeks to ensure that every student has access to high-quality music education and aims to inspire the next generation of music educators. — By Kimberly Kapela TACKLING THE MUSIC EDUCATOR SHORTAGE Bob Morrison
I t’s no secret that schools in the U.S. are grappling with a shortage of music educators. This shortage is the result of multiple factors, including the departure
of experienced educators from the field, a lack of diversity among music educators and a decline in the number of students pursuing careers in education.
14 I MUSIC INC. I JUNE 2024
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