by Richard Holmes

Created on: March 27, 2009

More and more high schools, both public and private, are feeling the money crunch in recent years. Certainly in the past year that situation has been intensified. Often, the courses that fall to the cutting room floor are programs in art and music. Almost all states require some minimal coursework in art and music for all students. But most schools have had a history of going above and beyond the minimum by offering elective courses to interested students. As elective courses, though, they are susceptible to being dropped when school finance becomes an issue.

This is unfortunate. Moreover, it is educationally unsound. When art and music programs are eliminated, a segment of students is shortchanged. For those students, the tradionally required courses which they take do not represent their strengths. Quite the contrary, they may represent their weaknesses. For them, the availability of art and music programs allows them to not only enjoy their high school experience but it also helps them develop their talents with a possibility of that becoming their life's work. To deny these students these opportunities is an out and out injustice.

This is not to deny the economic realities of today. But school administrators need to look elsewhere in attempting to find ways to close the budget gap. Elimination of bona fide curricular content is not the way. One could argue that there are plenty of other areas that could be reduced or dropped, areas that are not curricular, at least not in the ordinary sense of the word.

One such area that is always brought up by parents, teachers, administrators is the area of extra-curricular activities. The most costly of these is, of course, interscholastic sports. This is a hot button issue with both proponents and opponents. Most would acknowledge that sports programs serve a valuable purpose in high schools. I, myself, as a school administrator had to often defend the budgetary implications of our sports programs. Countless times I have seen the beneficial effects of student participation in sports. I have personally witnessed dozens of students complete high school who likely would not have if it were not for their participation in sports. However, if it came down to having to choose between maintaining a high school orchestra or continuing an athletic program, the proper choice is, to me, obvious...Art and Music stay...Football and Baseball go. Frankly, I have never have had to make that choice. But, more often than not, I have witnessed the opposite happen in other school districts. Football stayed and Music went. That borders on criminal.

I urge parents to watch your children's school programs. You must be vocal when art and music programs are in peril. Remember...you have more power, especially in numbers, than you might think. All good high schools have strong art and music programs...period.

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