President’s Message

by Anne Fennell, CMEA President

Hello and Welcome to 2023!

It’s a new year, the start of anything and everything with a free and new beginning for everyone! So, today is the perfect opportunity to pause and thank each of you for your individual and collective contributions to music education in 2022 because it created the foundation for all that is possible for 2023. I feel so grateful to be a member of CMEA with this creative family of music educators and supporters. Music education is alive and thriving in California because of your continued passion, resilience, dedication, and desire to bring music to all of your students.

The start of the year means that CASMEC (embed www. casmec.org) is just around the corner, February 15 – 19th, and we are looking forward to an exciting few days of sharing and learning. There are fantastic sessions each day and on Thursday, February 16th we hope you can join us for our CMEA General Session from 2:00-3:50 PM with updates, introductions, and a special keynote – so save this session on your CASMEC app! Additionally, for the first time EVER, we are having a joint CASMEC Kickoff and Celebration (embed https://casmec.org/about-the-conference/ awards-reception/) honoring 2023 award recipients with CAJ, CBDA, CCDA, and CODA. This is going to be a party with recognitions, signature cocktails, hors d’oeuvres, and music, like no other party in the history of CASMEC! Will you join us for both!

We also welcome 2023 and the passage of Proposition 28 Arts and Music in Schools - Funding Guarantee and Accountability Act this past November. I want to thank everyone who supported and nudged their family and friends to vote for this historic legislation, because every effort made the difference. We will now have consistent funding for arts educators to expand their programs, support students’ creative endeavors, create that position that has been missing for years, and have the money for professional learning and supplies!

We should feel proud, knowing that 64.4% of the voters recognized the value of arts education and that each of you are valued for all that you provide for your students, as well as for the culture of your school and community. The general public sees you and knows the importance of music education and all that music gives to our communities.

It’s actually a bit surreal knowing that funding and resources will be available each year for the arts in schools. For decades, arts education has been largely defined by minimal funding and program cuts, along with a scarcity mindset, so it’s almost hard to believe that money will be available every year. But it’s true, the money is here to stay, and it’s marked solely for arts education. In addition, site administrators will be held accountable for their spending so the money can’t be used for other educational purposes. Now, the work begins, to ensure we use the funds with a plan in mind to support the long-term growth of what is possible in music and all arts education, and it’s going to take a bit of time and work to ensure we are doing right by all children. As you know, CMEA hosted open zoom meetings in November and December, to answer questions and brainstorm ideas, in regard to the initiative’s implementation, and we will continue to support each of you as we can. To be ahead of the curve, you can find current funding estimates for every school in California on the School Services of California (https://www.sscal. com/ ) website. You can also click here (https://docs.google.com/ document/d/1RiriaZIA9XJ60MpBobDszkYMOiQKRDGDRQFM ps6u3mc/edit?usp=sharing) and follow the steps to create an account with your school email address. With this information and estimated dollar amount you can be prepared and help create a plan to meet the needs of the students. While many programs have been sorely underfunded, it’s hard not to make quick purchases, and the reality is that the funds are to be shared across all arts. So, we encourage you to collaborate with your peers in the arts and your site(s) to: • Identify short and long term needs of your students (ask the students!) • Identify short and long term needs of the programs and supplies • Meet with teachers in your school and district to identify gaps and needs in arts courses • Meet with site administrators and provide guidance or a draft plan given student, teacher, and program needs - from materials to professional learning and the hiring of either partial or full-time educators • Brainstorm possibilities! If your site is small and isn’t receiving enough money for a full-time educator, consider sharing a teacher between sites, ask the district to match the funds to create a full-time position, or ask the district to hold these funds (they can be held for up to 3 years) until the money is accumulated.

Whatever you do, think long term to support current needs as well as build for the future - it’s a delicate dance. While we don’t know who our students will become, we can, at the very least, provide them with a rich foundation and education to prepare them for their future in all that they choose to be.