Grant saves music at Belgreen

Schools always seem to be hit the hardest when the state faces tough economic times, and Belgreen High School is no exception.

When schools face financial struggles, it is usually the fine arts departments that feel the affects first, and BHS was no exception in this area either.

Cuts in funding led to cuts in teachers and personnel, and as a result, BHS began their school year without a music teacher.

While there are plenty of people who don’t give a second thought to the music program at their local school, Tara Oliver, a fifth and sixth grade science teacher at BHS, was worried how the loss of a music teacher would affect the students.

“I have a seven-year-old daughter who wanted to learn to play the piano, so this cut hit home,” Oliver said.

“There was no opportunity for her or any other student at Belgreen to be involved in music education. This meant the only way these kids would be exposed to fine arts is for their parents to seek private lessons, which I learned first hand can be very expensive and time consuming.”

Oliver said as she thought about her daughter, Bailey, and all the other students at Belgreen who were missing the chance to have their musical talents nurtured, she began to search for ways to find funding for the music program.

“I knew there were absolutely no funds available to hire a music teacher, so I started writing a grant to submit to the Alabama Council on the Arts,” Oliver said.

“I had never before written a grant and had no idea at the time what to expect. I soon found out that the grant process would take several months and, if I received it, I would have to come up with funds to match it.”

Even with these new obstacles, Oliver moved forward with the grant, which she named “Moving Music into Our School.”

She found out from Tilda Sumerel that the grant application needed to stand out from the other grants the council received, so to add a unique element, Oliver decided to show how music education helps improve students’ test scores.

“We decided we would target two grade levels and track those students to see what impact music education had on their achievement,” Oliver said.

“We decided students in the second and third grades would receive individual music lessons for thirty minutes each week in voice, guitar, piano or drums. The students would also be introduced to basic music theory.

“Because of limited funds, we were only able to offer individual lessons to two grade levels but, not wishing to leave any student out, we also decided to offer group instruction to all students in kindergarten through sixth grade.”

Oliver submitted the grant with the study results included to the council this past October, and she received a letter from Montgomery in November asking her to come for an interview with the Alabama Council on the Arts.

“Juliana Riley, who is the president of the Belgreen Parent Teacher Organization, and I traveled to Montgomery to plead our case,” Oliver said, “and in December we received the news that Belgreen had been awarded a music grant.”

Thanks to the help of Sen. Roger Bedford, Modern Woodman of the World and the Belgreen PTO, the school received enough funds to match the grant, and in January, Brooke Pate began teaching music to the elementary students at Belgreen.

“I have taught private music lessons for 10 years, but I had recently become interested in teaching at a public school,” Pate said. “I taught voice lessons to a Belgreen student and that student’s mom recommended me to the school board, so when they called and asked me if I’d be interested in the job, I told them I would be thrilled.”

Pate, who studied vocal performance at the University of North Alabama, was not required to have a teaching certificate since the job was provided by a grant.

However, she said she was in the process of receiving her teaching certificate so she would be able to continue teaching music in the future.

“Even though I’ve only been there a month, it has been a wonderful experience so far,” Pate said. “The kids are excited and it makes you feel great when they come in and say that music is their favorite class.

“I enjoyed my music experience when I was in school, and I just want to be able to share that with these kids and make sure they’re given the same opportunity to pursue something they enjoy.”

“In May, we will see our elementary students perform on stage for the community,” Oliver added, “and I hope next year this program can grow and we can offer more students individual lessons and extend music education into the high school.”