Why is Kanawha Schools' strings program in jeopardy?
Editor:
My daughter returned to school to discover that her beloved strings program is in jeopardy due to "budget cuts." I'm unclear if it's Kanawha County Schools or the West Virginia Symphony Outreach program to blame, or if it's both! What I do know is that the strings program is what helps my daughter thrive at school.
The program has helped her locate peers that share her passion. It gives her an outlet for her emotions, helped her overcome her fear of performing and helped her handle the concepts of winning and losing.
Her teacher of four years has became a dear and trusted confidant. Her teacher is one of the most dedicated educators I've ever came across through my 18 years of parenting! He makes himself available to help his students anyway he can; he helps hold fundraisers for disadvantaged students eager to learn classical music, insures they have different opportunities to compete, challenges them daily, counsels them about daily issues, inspires them with his stories of where their greatness can lead and recently presented John Adams Middle School with two first-place wins!
In this day and age, with all the pressure from peers to act out inappropriately, pressure from teachers to get the grades for public funding, bullying, the miscellaneous distractions at home and the media's unobtainable perception of what beauty is, why can't children have one place for peace and comfort?
After Kanawha County "misguidedly" decided to loan every child an iPad (the concept is great, but they lack proper parental controls and supervision), I felt it might not be the place for my child. The strings program/teacher is the only reason I decided to return my child to public school this fall, with her own iPad.
Although, I could ask him for personal lessons, she would miss out on all the wonderful experiences and advantages the full program can offer.
As for Kanawha County Schools, they have money for fancy iPads for each middle school and high school child but they can't afford a good teacher's salary? Do I even need to list the advantages of playing a musical instrument vs. playing a sport?
Jennifer Mosteller
Charleston