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music educators

  • Recording Academy and Grammy Foundation Announce New ‘Music Educator Award’

    SBO Staff | February 27, 2013During the recent 55th Annual Grammy Awards, a trio of stars announced that the Grammy Foundation and The Recording Academy are partnering to present their first-ever Music Educator Award Read More...
  • Ready or Not – Teacher Evaluations Are Coming

    SBO Staff | October 2, 2012The question is not if teachers need to be held accountable for student growth, but how. Read More...
  • SoundTree Education Expands Through NAfME Alliance

    SBO Staff | September 27, 2012Korg USA’s Education Division, consisting of SoundTree, the SoundTree Institute, and SoundTree.com, is expanding in multiple areas that will provide music educators of all types with a variety of products and services to enhance their curriculum and personal development. Read More...
  • New Music Ed Standards & Assessment Site

    SBO Staff | June 30, 2012MakeMusic, Inc., creators of SmartMusic learning and assessment software, has announced the launch of the Music Education Standards and Assessment website (online at www.musicstandards.org). Read More...
  • 2011 Director’s Resource Guide

    SBO Staff | June 9, 2011The 2011 CD Director’s Resource Guide provides instant access to the services and products choral directors need and use. The following organizations, companies, and institutions include award manufacturers, music camp organizations, music education software developers, tour and travel consultants, trade organizations, uniform designers and distributors, and much more. With listings conveniently arranged alphabetically by category, […] Read More...
  • Why Are You Still Here?

    Mike Lawson | February 16, 2011

    Can you believe that there are high school band directors who are still teaching band long after they have retired? In fact, most of those who continue on are still teaching the very school bands from which they retired. How and why would they do this? Classroom teachers might find this surprising, even unheard of, but for music educators, it so happens that this is a fairly regular occurrence. Could it really be possible that some educators love what they are doing?

    There is a phenomenon in public education that has been around a long time, but is now growing dramatically in many states: music educators, especially high school music teachers, are not fully retiring from the positions they have held for so many years. Instead, you might call it entering "semi-retirement." The idea is not new, but it is growing in popularity. In my state of California, there are many high school band directors all over the state who are continuing to teach band well beyond retirement. This may turn out to be the one of the few ways school districts feel they can hold on to their elective programs until the financial crises is over. Or it could be they really just don't want to let go of good teachers who are making a difference in the lives of kids.

    The process is quite simple. When a teacher reaches retirement age, he or she approaches the school district to see if retirement is a possibility. At the same time, that director requests to continue part-time and hold on to classes and/or programs he or she loves, still has a unique passion for, and has worked so hard to build over time. In most states, school districts can allow these teachers to work around 1/3 time and still make between $30,000 and $35,000 per year without penalty. This is not an automatic process, because the school district must first want these teachers back, but it does enable school districts to hold on to important educators and the programs they don't want to lose at a far lower cost.

    Read More...
  • Why Are You Still Here?

    Mike Lawson | February 16, 2011

    Can you believe that there are high school band directors who are still teaching band long after they have retired? In fact, most of those who continue on are still teaching the very school bands from which they retired. How and why would they do this? Classroom teachers might find this surprising, even unheard of, but for music educators, it so happens that this is a fairly regular occurrence. Could it really be possible that some educators love what they are doing?

    There is a phenomenon in public education that has been around a long time, but is now growing dramatically in many states: music educators, especially high school music teachers, are not fully retiring from the positions they have held for so many years. Instead, you might call it entering "semi-retirement." The idea is not new, but it is growing in popularity. In my state of California, there are many high school band directors all over the state who are continuing to teach band well beyond retirement. This may turn out to be the one of the few ways school districts feel they can hold on to their elective programs until the financial crises is over. Or it could be they really just don't want to let go of good teachers who are making a difference in the lives of kids.

    The process is quite simple. When a teacher reaches retirement age, he or she approaches the school district to see if retirement is a possibility. At the same time, that director requests to continue part-time and hold on to classes and/or programs he or she loves, still has a unique passion for, and has worked so hard to build over time. In most states, school districts can allow these teachers to work around 1/3 time and still make between $30,000 and $35,000 per year without penalty. This is not an automatic process, because the school district must first want these teachers back, but it does enable school districts to hold on to important educators and the programs they don't want to lose at a far lower cost.

    Read More...
  • “Glee” and the Real Music Classroom

    SBO Staff | August 17, 2010Whether you like it or not, the recent boom in television shows and movies that focus on school music groups is undeniable. Shows like “Glee” and movies like High School Musical have been extraordinarily successful, and such programming shows no sign of abating in popularity. This recent trend begs some interesting questions: Do these shows […] Read More...
  • May, 2010

    SBO Staff | May 20, 2010The Complete Choral Musician Workshop The Offstage Group will be host to music educators, musicians and, students at the 2010 Complete Choral Musician Workshop on June 27 30 in New York City. Emmy-nominated conductor and vocal educator, Judith Clurman, will lead the three-day intensive program. She will be joined by conductors, composers, scholars, choreographers, and […] Read More...
  • 2010 Director’s Resource Guide

    SBO Staff | May 20, 2010The 2010 CD Director’s Resource Guide provides instant access to the services and products choral directors need and use. The following organizations, companies, and institutions include award manufacturers, music camp organizations, music education software developers, tour and travel consultants, trade organizations, uniform designers and distributors, and much more. With listings conveniently arranged alphabetically by category, […] Read More...
  • 2010 Best Tools for Schools

    SBO Staff | May 19, 2010As presented by SBO The 2010 NAMM Show in Anaheim, California offered music educators a unique opportunity to participate in the music industry convention featuring hundreds of instrument, accessory, and software manufacturers, publishers, dealers, and artists. For the first time, School Band Orchestra, CD’s sister magazine, invited educators to walk the NAMM exhibit halls in […] Read More...
  • Filling up the Cup

    SBO Staff | January 20, 2010This latest Choral Director reader survey tackles the issue of fundraising, often a thorny subject among educators. Whether you agree that extracurricular events like festivals and performance tours should be funded by the district or not, for most directors who hope to provide such opportunities for their students, fundraising is simply a way of life, […] Read More...
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