American String Teachers Association COVID-19 Resources (7/10/2020) The American String Teachers Association convened the ASTA COVID-19 Task Force on May 21, 2020, to create planning guides for string teachers as they prepare to resume string instruction in classrooms and studios in the fall. ASTA is providing suggestions for classroom teachers, ensemble directors, and studio teachers as they navigate the following instructional situations during… Continue Reading
Music Education in Wisconsin – Letter to School Administrators (7/9/2020) Today the Wisconsin Music Strong coalition released a letter to our state's school administrators and school board members. As Wisconsin state music associations, music education non-profits, music business owners, music educators, and administrators, we are here to help educators to figure out the “how” of music education for this fall. We are committed to ensuring… Continue Reading
WSMA Wisconsin Education Forum with School Administrators (7/7/2020) WSMA is hosting our next Wisconsin Education Forum on Wednesday, July 15 from 1:00 - 2:30pm. During this 90-minute event, learn more from four Wisconsin school district administrators about how they are approaching Fall 2020 planning and what suggestions they offer about effective communications between educators and administrators when discussing complex topics. Forum guests include… Continue Reading
COVID-19 Aerosol Study Update (7/3/2020) Preliminary results for woodwinds and brass instruments are scheduled for July 10th while preliminary results for debate, singing and theatre are expected by July 25th. Guidance to be available shortly afterwards. (Update: National Federation of State High School Associations, July 3, 2020). More information>> Continue Reading
Wisconsin Performing Arts Education Consortium COVID-19 Guidance (7/2/2020) Wisconsin School Music Association (WSMA), Wisconsin Music Educators Association (WMEA), Wisconsin High School Forensic Association (WHSFA) and Alliance for Wisconsin Theater Education (AWTE) are a consortium of Wisconsin educational performing arts organizations, working with Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (WI DPI) and Department of Health Services (DHS) to provide health and safety guidance for COVID-19.… Continue Reading
ACDA Releases COVID-19 Response Committee Report (7/2/2020) On June 15, 2020 the American Choral Directors Association released the "ACDA COVID-19 Response Committee Report. As shared in the report introduction, the authors endeavor to provide resources for all choral musicians, to advocate for themselves and their profession, to guide their thinking with sample instructional models, and to point themselves in the direction of… Continue Reading
WMEA Joins Other State MEAs in NAfME Advocacy Webinar – June 17 (6/16/2020) NAfME has developed a series of Professional Learning Community webinars to deliver timely and targeted topics presented by experts during COVID-19. This format offers educators the opportunity to engage with webinar presenters live, as well as reference recordings at a later time. All webinars are free and open to the public. Wednesday, June 17 at… Continue Reading
NAfME Statement – What We Believe: Black Lives Matter (6/4/2020) As a nation, we are hurting again. Still. Racial injustice is real, and ongoing, and increasingly evident as COVID-19 disproportionately affects Black communities, and as we are again seeing videos of Black lives ending. We see it. And we reiterate: Black Lives Matter. We are listening. As teachers, we hear our students’ pain. As the… Continue Reading
The Latest Science on COVID-19 and Singing – Jerry Hui (6/2/2020) As we learn more about the virus SARS-CoV-2, there are more discussions in the news, social media, blogs, and other places that cite scientific research. Some research is relevant, some is not; much is misinterpreted. Sometimes anecdotes are passed off as generalized observation themselves, or oddly as a way to disprove general observation; none excites… Continue Reading
Wisconsin Music Educators Association (WMEA) COVID-19 and Position Statements (6/1/2020) The Wisconsin Music Educators Association has released the following COVID-19 statement: "It is the position of Wisconsin Music Educators Association that, despite the challenges associated with the current COVID-19 pandemic, all children deserve equal access to a credible and well-rounded education that includes high-quality study of music and the arts, regardless of the mode of… Continue Reading