A Story of Advocacy: The Snoqualmie
Valley School District Music Coalition Matt Wenman & Carol Reitz
Reprint from Voice (Washington Music Educators Association)
Once upon a time in a choir room not so far away (in North Bend, Wash- ington, as a matter of fact) there was a music teacher who had a conversa- tion with his piano accompanist about advocacy. What was it? How could they most effectively advocate for their music program? How could they implement positive, practical change to not just their program, but the whole school district? How could they move beyond their local boosters group, which was knee-deep in planning the next fundraiser, to a district-wide, uni- fied effort to support music education? This conversation, as it turns out, was exactly how the Snoqualmie Valley School District (SVSD) Music Coali- tion started. No committees, no meet- ings, not even a coffee appointment at Starbucks, just a decision between a teacher and a parent to start a district- wide, K-12, music advocacy effort.
For the practical “how to” informa- tion on the music coalition model, we looked to John Benham’s “Music Advocacy: Moving From Survival to Vision.” Carol (the accompanist) had learned about the book at the 2011 Northwest pre-conference advocacy session in Bellevue. Combining Dr. Benham’s instructions with our unique situation, we outlined the process to start the coalition: develop a mission statement, agree on the coalition’s strategic operating principles and set up communication tools (in our case, a website and a Facebook page).
Getting started: be strategic! The first step in the process was to get all the music teachers on board with the coalition and develop a
mission statement. We used one of our district-directed “collaboration” days to discuss the focus, goals and strategic operating principles of the group. Carol skillfully (and bravely!) facilitated the meeting. The teach- ers played a vital role in developing the mission statement: “To ensure equal access to music education for all students K-12 in the Snoqualmie Valley School District.” The strategic operating principles we chose to use are clearly outlined in Dr. Benham’s book as “The Eight Strategic Errors to Avoid” (we only have seven). It is vitally important that anyone involved in an advocacy effort operate on the same set of agreed principles to ensure a consistent and unified message. We took Benham’s “Eight Strategic Errors to Avoid” and turned them into posi- tive statements to use as the principles we chose for the SVSD Music Coali- tion. They are as follows:
•Think Long-Term, District-Wide, K-12, all music programs included. Do not limit the coalition to a single local school, a single curricular component or a single year. Stay focused on all students, K-12, in all music organiza- tions, over several years. It takes time to establish positive relationships and good communication with decision makers.
•Goal: To Educate and Inform. Educate decision makers, coalition members, community members and music vendors about the impacts of music-program policy issues, bud- get decisions and the value of music education. Our goal is NOT to raise money; leave that to the boosters and PTSA.
•Parents Take the Lead. Do not limit advocacy activities to music teachers or control by music teachers. Teach- ers must actively support the efforts by providing appropriate data, educating their parents and communicating with their administration. Parents are the ones who are the face and voice of the coalition. This also avoids the percep- tion that the teachers are advocating for their own jobs, which is the job of the local teacher’s union.
•Be Proactive. By establishing the co- alition when things are going well, it allows the positive relationship build- ing to begin immediately instead of taking a defensive posture. The coali- tion may focus on the marketing and promotion of their programs instead of asking for resources or defending programs from cuts.
•Communicate with Impact Statements focused on Music Students. Be able to articulate with concise and accurate data the potential impacts to students as cuts or changes are suggested. Do not suggest alternate cuts or compro- mises – even when asked!
•Refer to Music as a Core Curricular Component. Avoid any comparison between music and extra-curricular components such as athletics. Focus on music as a curricular subject and on the intrinsic value of music within the school curriculum.
•Be Data Driven. Gather appropriate, effective and accurate data. Commu- nicate using the appropriate district process in a positive way. Stay focused on the issues at hand; do not resort to personal attacks. Always cultivate positive relationships with the way you communicate.
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