James Madison STEAM Academy has a $700 budget for the entire music program to pay for repairs and supplies. With nearly 700 students from elementary to middle school, most of whom qualify for free and reduced lunch, the budget barely scratches the surface to cover the costs of having a successful music program. Those additional fees can fall on music teacher Christen Adler.
Fortunately, John DeWitt, a well-known face around Greeley as a realtor and musician, created the Crescendo Foundation last October to support the expensive day-to-day needs of students in instrumental music programs in Greeley-Evans School District 6. As a parent of two children who participated in music programs at District 6, DeWitt recalled his kids coming home from school with ongoing music needs. Stringed instrument players must regularly apply rosin to their bows.
Strings naturally break over time and need to be replaced. Woodwind players need to replace their reeds as they wear down with use. The costs never came as a worry to DeWitt’s family, but he often wondered about the families who couldn’t afford the items — the more than 70% of students who live in poverty in District 6.
DeWitt found that financial barriers can cause talented musicians or music lovers to part ways with music education or teachers to pay out of pocket to cover the extra costs of maintenance and supplies. “It would be like playing football without a helmet,” he said. “A lot of kids aren’t going to do it.
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