comprehensive musicianship through performance
Steering Committee. There was agreement that each participant would:
• Implement two teaching plans during the next school year.
• Develop a teaching plan that applies the CMP model to two additional compositions.
• Keep a log of teacher behavior and student response related to CMP activities.
• Attend several evening meetings to discuss progress and refine plans.
The CMP Project Steering Committee agreed to:
• Conduct on-site visits to each participant’s classroom.
• Interview students and the teachers during the on-site visit.
• Secure administrative support for the teacher’s continued involvement.
There were three common insights from the on-site visits:
• Students understood the CMP process and learned more than teachers expected or realized.
• Students’ attitudes toward CMP involvement varied, but were generally positive.
• The variety and scope of performing group experiences and strategies increased considerably.
Because of relationships developed during the retreat, committee members trusted each other to follow through on these CMP responsibilities. They also accepted a certain amount of risk when they agreed to being observed in person by one of the Steering Committee members.
Other Relationships
Besides the outstanding work of CMP Steering Committee chairs and members, the CMP Project has been sustained be- cause of effective collaboration and part- nerships among people and organizations. The very first partnership was between three Wisconsin organizations that initiated
Wisconsin School Musician
and funded the CMP project beginning in 1977: Wisconsin Music Educators Associa- tion (represented by Will Schmid, presi- dent), Wisconsin School Music Association (represented by Richard Gaarder, executive director) and the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (represented by Mike George, state music consultant). There have also been collaborations with local school districts. When members of the original CMP were nominated, a letter was sent to the school principal and superintendent of each member’s school district congratulat- ing them on having one of their teachers, as well as their school music program selected to be part of a unique statewide professional development project. They were also asked to support their teacher representative by providing some released time during the school year in order to attend meetings and provide in-service presentations. All school districts agreed.
I believe in the value of partnerships and through my experience I’ve identified several factors that lead to effective, and often, long lasting partnerships. As much as possible, these criteria guided our approach and engagement of additional partners.
Criteria for Effective Partnerships
• Each partner must contribute. • Each partner must benefit.
• Each partner maintains their identity.
• Each partner is credited when there is success and shares responsibility when there is not.
• Each partner realizes that they can achieve more by working together than by working alone.
The CMP Project has been effective in reaching out to develop partnerships and collaborations in order to sustain growth, dissemination and refinement of the CMP Project. Examples include colleges and universities who have hosted summer CMP Workshops, The National Association for Music Education educators who have given presentation space to CMP Project present-
ers on their national and regional confer- ences, other states that have invited CMP Project presenters to their conferences and workshops (several states have initiated CMP Projects of their own modeled after Wisconsin).
Another facet of the CMP Project where relationships are important are the sum- mer workshops. They include a five-day immersion in the CMP model but have evolved to become much more than that. The relationships developed between all participants (teacher leaders, teacher par- ticipants and guests) during the workshops are one of the keys to their success. Is it not special to be able to spend five days working with like-minded people? To those who do not have like-minded colleagues to interact with during the school year, this is priceless. The factors that are critical to building community and effective team- work that are identified above are a part of the CMP Workshop format. Leadership for the workshops is provided by CMP Committee members who volunteer their time in order to help others understand and apply the CMP planning process and, at the same time, advance the original mis- sion of the CMP Project: Assist teachers with the development of performance with understanding in school music programs.
The Wisconsin CMP Project will continue long into the future because it is supported by a web of relationships between individu- als, local, state and national organizations, schools at all levels and thousands of CMP “alumni” who benefited from working with a teacher who applied the CMP Model in their classroom or rehearsal room.
Over the years I have said in many differ- ent situations, “It’s all about relationships.” Now someone has actually written a book with that title (Eddy Arriola). I wish I had thought of that!
Michael George retired as Executive Director of WSMA and WMEA in 2012. He is busy now as a consultant and advisor to nonprofit organizations.
Email:
mike.george11@
outlook.com
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