Budget Cuts

This past weekend I received word from my mother that the Waukesha school district wanted to cut the 4th-5th grade orchestra programs and the 5th grade band program. When I heard that one again these programs were up on the chopping block I was up hauled. Waukesha has its roots in music and we have some of the best music programs in the nation. We have attended nation competitions and have won them. These cuts will not only eliminate those music programs but they are also cutting up to eight music teacher positions. The biggest problem that I have with the music program going under budget cuts is that these programs are self sufficient. Each school in the district has a parent organizations made to raise money for the directors and the schools. My second big problem with the cuts is that it is part of Waukesha's heritage to have music. Waukesha is the birthplace Les Paul. Now for those of you who do not know of him, he is the inventor of the Electric Guitar. Now take a moment to think about where we would be if the Electric Guitar was never invented or invented years later. We would not have all of the music styles that we have today.
Now let's take a look from the students perspective. In my high school of around 1,400 students 600 of them participate in a music program. The band program caters to 400 students per year. That is over a quarter of the student body. To me that is a significant amount of students compared to all the smaller clubs. Music also helps for some students to find an expressive artistic outlet during the day, a break, or simply something they really enjoy. No matter what the attitude towards music is from each individual student, it is proven to stimulate the mind and to help the mind develop. Students who are proficient in music are also very proficient in other areas of schooling. Music also teaches students about how to work together in a very large group. It takes a coordination of many students to pull together a concert. Also no matter what the race, ability, or personality of the student is, everyone has to work together. In the band I student conducted we had a deaf percussionist and he was a great player. I had to use a signer to talk to him but he was always there willing to rehearse.
Music can cater to every student and it is a large percentage of the student body. We need to keep the fine arts around to help develop well rounded students ready for all aspects of life and when have you ever heard someone say I hate all music.