Give In-School Music Education to NYC Youth

Last week Education Through Music’s teachers rang in the last day of classes for the 2019-20 school year – a year that was unlike any other.

We are proud of the progress made by our students across New York City, and of how music teachers continued to push for quality music education during the crisis at hand. In the face of so much change happening in the world, our teachers remained committed to our mission to bring high-quality music education to students, no matter their backgrounds or circumstances.

As NYC schools shut down in March, ETM program staff and music teachers took on the challenge of transforming our model in one of meaningful remote music education. Teachers provided continuous, quality music instruction through the end of June, leveraging digital tools for live instruction and video lessons, providing activities tailored to their students. While in-person classes, concerts, and the ETM Festival weren’t able to go forward, learning and growing were still plentiful.  

With creativity, hard work, and resourcefulness, our teachers more than rose to the challenges in front of them. As ETM teacher Brittany Harris shared, “Teaching remotely has been a huge learning experience, but what’s teaching if you aren’t challenged with something new every year?” Bringing her work into students’ homes showed Brittany the power of families coming together through music. “Music has always been important, but I think now everyone can truly see what it does.”

Thanks to our teachers and staff - and supporters like you - ETM brought music into the lives of 36,000 students in 2019-20. Now, we are hard at work planning for next year and the new challenges that lie ahead. Whatever school looks like in the fall, we are confident that students across the city will continue to be engaged in music learning led by ETM teachers. And we look forward to sharing more of their stories with you!

By giving to Education Through Music, you are making unique, meaningful learning possible for thousands of students—students who would otherwise have little or no access to music education. Thank you for driving equity and access for so many young learners. Don’t forget to share this report with a family member or friend to let them know the incredible difference supporting ETM can make!