Get on board: Music education is a must
By Frappa Stout USA Weekend Magazine
1/24-26/2003 USA Weekend Magazine
A studio on wheels hits the highway to inspire students. And Justin Timberlake's foundation has the same goal. How can you show your support?
Justin Timberlake was born with raw talent, but he needed music lessons to hone his skills. Because his school didn't have a good music program and his family didn't have a lot of money, his career could have been nothing but a pipe dream.
"If I hadn't urged my mom to take me to [private] voice and guitar lessons, I wouldn't be here," says the 21-year-old, whose family scraped together the cash for his classes. At age 11, he appeared on TV's "Star Search" -- and lost. "Growing up in a small town outside of Memphis," he says, "there wasn't a lot of music education around." Last February, the teen idol, a judge of our USA WEEKEND-John Lennon Songwriting Contest for Teens, started the Justin Timberlake Foundation to provide grants to schools that need music programs. "I want to give a kid who has the same aspirations as I did that outlet," he says.
And they need it now more than ever. The U.S. Education Department's latest National Assessment of Educational Progress showed that only 25% of eighth-graders take part in music classes. Tough times and a growing focus on academic testing have meant less time and money for music. But there's hope, as the push for arts education draws support from all corners -- from big stars to inner-city teachers to non-profit groups -- and they all do their part to force legislators to pay attention.
One vehicle for change (and it's literally a vehicle) is the Educational Tour Bus of the John Lennon Songwriting Contest, our partner in the teen contest. The bus, a state-of-the-art studio on wheels, kicked off its sixth year of visiting America's schools last weekend in Anaheim, Calif. From there it travels to Las Vegas, Boston and Florida, among other places, inviting kids on board to write, play, record and mix songs. The idea: to excite them about music so they'll push for programs in their schools.
Parents who remember their own school-band days are on the front lines. Frustrated by a lack of response from school officials, parents in the Plymouth-Canton School District near Detroit saved their award-winning marching-band program by forming a Music Boosters group and charging dues to raise funds. In Columbus, Ohio, a group called Communities in Schools created a music program for inner-city kids to help improve the district's 47% graduation rate. Now 450 kids take music classes weekly, and executive director Sara Neikirk says test scores already are up. "These kids often don't feel appreciated, so music gives them a support group," she says. "That's a first step toward feeling positive about academics."
Kids also can become activists. This month, the American Music Conference, an advocacy group, launched a teen Web site, themusicedge.com. VH1's Save the Music Foundation gets the word out with its annual Divas Live concert. Timberlake got 15,000 fans to sign his on-line petition to save school music by appearing on MTV's Total Request Live last summer. And to pave the way for his hometown's next superstar, he gave $50,000 to his elementary school, E.E. Jeter in Millington, Tenn., to help start a music program there. "I want to instill in everybody that music education is something we should nurture," Timberlake says. "Music is a foundation to learn from -- whether kids want to be musicians or not."
For more information on the current song lyric contest and rules:
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