I am writing as a Newton Band Parent as well as an Instrumental Music Teacher.

Newton is so fortunate that the families have the means to get instruments and private lessons for their students. Newton is also fortunate to have Ms. Linde, who works tirelessly for her students and the program, an award winning program.

My children both participated in the Newton band programs all through high school. My youngest child was fortunate enough to perform in New Orleans, Panama, Mingus Festival, and at Newton’s first appearance at Essentially Ellington – what an amazing experience! Both of my sons benefited from the program, and my younger son has gone on to pursue a career in music. They thrived because they had supportive parents, private lessons, quality instruments, and because they had great teachers. They were offered a variety of courses to take while in school that also prepared them for college, and even received scholarships. In that time, I have watched as Newton has whittled away at this program bit by bit. It is heartbreaking.

Do you know that no other subject uses as many parts of the brain simultaneously as music does? https://brainworldmagazine.com/music-rhythm-brain/

https://www.ucf.edu/pegasus/your-brain-on-music/

Do you remember that the arts were some of the primary subjects that helped people through the pandemic? Given the mental health challenges our students face, and the fact that suicide is the second leading cause of death amongst our youth, you do a big disservice to our student body by cutting this program.

https://www.palladiumprivate.com/blog/6-benefits-of-music-for-your-mental-health/

Have you read the latest viral quote (there are always some in circulation, and guess why!) –

“The Music Department is an alternate universe where pupils are often unrecognizable from who they are outside of it. The shy become confident. The agitated become calm. The lonely become included. The quiet become heard. And the lost become found. Music reveals the real child,” Vaughan Fleischfresser.

I teach in another district, one that is not so affluent, one that really values the arts, one that continues to add programs rather than cut them. I work in a district that puts Newton to shame.

I am well aware of the financial constraints you face, but cutting the music program is the wrong choice. Please, do the right thing!

Thank you,

Rachel

Newton

Dear Members of the School Committee, Mr. David Fleischman, and Mr. Toby Romer,

I want to bring to your attention the extraordinary and substantial impact music has on mental health. Many books have been written about it, research papers are constantly being published, and music therapy is a mental health practice—and the major my brother, a NSHS Combo alum, is pursuing in Berklee School of Music.

Andy Freedman, a board-certified therapist, at Penn Medicine explains:

“From stress relief and self-soothing to emotion regulation and physiological benefits, music plays a powerful role in mental health and well-being for many people. For teens, music often takes on an even greater significance—it can contribute to the process of identity formation. Throughout the adolescent years, we tend to attach to music in a way unlike any other point in life. Music becomes transitional as teens work through the trials and tribulations of adolescence. It can create a healing environment during a time of uncertainty.”

My siblings and I have participated in debate, track, and robotics in NSHS, besides music. Those excellent activities have made us grow as creative individuals, develop abilities, and foster friendships. But none of those activities has the unique power that music has in mental health.

The article “National Trends in Mental Health Care of US Adolescents,” written by MD-Ph.D.s from John Hopkins and Columbia, published in 2020 in Jama Psychiatry—a high impact journal—reports that 19.7% of teenagers receive mental health care. That number translates to 1 in 5 adolescents. This is the national trend; I did not find Newton's statistics, but I don’t have any reason to believe our mental health is significantly different.

Maybe some of you have had the experience of looking for a mental health provider. Perhaps you know how difficult it is to get a good match. And perhaps you know that many of them do not take insurance, so each appointment is out of pocket and can be several hundreds of dollars. Or, if the family cannot pay that amount, they have to wait for months before getting an appointment with someone covered by the insurance. So, anything we can do to nourish the mental health of teenagers is of paramount importance. We have 234 teenagers in the NSHS music department. I would like that our school system would not forget that their mental health could be significantly sustained by their belonging to the music department.

Please restore the 2.7 FTE to Newton South Music department, and all the classes that have been cut: Combo, Music Chamber, and the four jazz improv.

Sincerely,

Axx Mxxx

Newton South Class of 2021

Dear School Committee Members,

To be frank and with all due respect, I find it very silly and ironic that we as parents are writing this to our highly respected school committee members advocating how important music programs are in our children's education. Shouldn't it be the other way around?

It took Ms. Linde and other music teachers in NSHS more than 20 years to reach where they are now: nationally recognized jazz ensemble, winning spots multiple times in Annual Mingus High School Competition & Festival as well as the prestigious Essentially Ellington Jazz Festival & Competition. But it could be destroyed and lost within a few years, in a city with a fame of best public schools in the state, UNDER YOUR WATCH, because of what is happening now to the music department in NSHS---understaffing and music programs cut. I would ask myself what I could do to help keep it and make it better instead of losing it if I were in your position.

Dxxx Wxxxx

Dear Mayor Fuller, Dr. Fleishman and members of the School Committee and City Council,

In the wake of the heart-wrenching news from Uvalde, I hesitated to write this email asking for your support for the music program at Newton South. With our hearts and minds reeling in shock and dismay, it’s hard to focus on things like staffing issues and curriculum cuts. But then I read Dr. Fleishman’s message to the NPS community, and I realized that now, when we are so harshly reminded of the importance of increased connectedness and positive mental health experiences in our schools, is absolutely the right time to address these issues.

Dr. Fleishman stressed this need in his letter. He described the many social and emotional initiatives that the district has put in place in recent years: Signs of Suicide curriculum and screenings; connectedness surveys; social and emotional support strategies and routines in the classroom; anti-bullying curricula and reporting systems; increased mental health staffing; and close collaboration with the City of Newton and outside agencies.

These are significant and welcome initiatives which will help faculty identify vulnerable students and know how to support them. They will educate students in the language of social and emotional learning, and teach them what connectedness looks like, what good mental health looks like. But is that enough? Mental health can’t just be taught as a theory – it has to be nurtured at a very practical level.

Taking a connectedness survey won’t help a shy teenager feel more connected – but being in a band will! You have heard it again and again from students and alumni, how much the Newton South music program helped their mental health, helped them feel less isolated and part of a community, helped them build confidence and achieve levels of excellence they could be really proud of. It is absolutely no surprise that so many graduates of the Newton South music program go on to prestigious music schools to study Music Therapy or Music Education.

That is why I am asking you to stop the erosion of this invaluable program. Please make sure that ARPA funds are added to the School Committee budget, as requested by the City Council, and that a part of those funds are used to restore the music staffing at South to 2.7 FTE (in parity with North), and, then, please reinstate the full complement of courses that make the music program at South so outstanding.

Jazz Combo is an integral part of the success of the program, allowing the strongest students to hone and expand their skills and bring that expertise to the Jazz Ensemble. Combo members are mentors and TAs for the other ensembles, epitomizing the social and emotional support that these students are taught about as theories in other classrooms. The smaller groups for beginners are crucial to provide a nurturing environment where students can thrive, explore their new skills and feel connected. The Chamber Orchestra opens the program to more students, and allows existing students to try different instruments and styles, invaluable experience for any serious musician. And AP Music Theory underpins it all; it is a key course for any student wishing to pursue music studies in college.

Together, all these groups, under the inspired guidance of Ms. Linde, Mr. Youngman and Mr. Harlow, have created a program so strong that it has earned international prestige, and is undoubtedly one of the best in the country. In 2018, Mayor Fuller was so impressed by NSHS Jazz Ensemble that she invited them to City Hall to receive a commendation in recognition of their achievements.

Ms. Stras, when you introduced yourself to the Newton South community last fall, you said that you do this work because the responsibility of a leader is to deliver on opportunities so that every student can demonstrate their excellence. The Newton South Music Program is an opportunity that already exists, a truly fabulous one. Please don’t break it up just because the pandemic pushed enrollment numbers down.

I am asking you all, the leadership team charged with the well-being and education of Newton’s students, not just to keep the Newton South Music Program intact as an opportunity for students to make connections, enjoy positive mental health experiences and demonstrate their excellence, but to actively promote it and help it grow. Invest in this gem of a program for the sake of your current and future students.

Thank you,

Axxx xxxx

Alumni Parent

Dear Newton School Committee Members, Mayor Fuller, City Council Members,

I was deeply moved by the voices of present and former students of NSHS music programs in last night's SC meeting, and encouraged by SC member Paul Levy's comment and call for action. I would like to share how much their messages resonated with me and the experiences of my two boys, and plea to you that we should not only aim to restore the bare minimum funding (2.7FTE for music in NHSH) to restore what's needed now, but to think bigger on how to truly support music programs across all Newton public schools to help our students thrive through music in the long run.

I am an immigrant from China and a Newton resident since 2003. My two boys (NSHS classes of 2020 and 2023) grew up in the Newton Public School system (Countryside, Brown, NSHS). My upbringing in mainland China was as far from Jazz music and the rich Black history behind it as it gets. When we started music lessons for our boys at a young age, our goal was to give them a well rounded education. They took their lessons and practiced and improved their skills over the years, but it wasn't until my older son discovered Jazz and improvisation as a freshman in NSHS that he found his voice and passion for music. It was truly a transformative experience for him and his younger brother, and Jazz became part of their identity, our family's identity. Because of my sons' experiences, our family and friends also came to a deeper awareness and appreciation of Jazz music and its rich history. Our experience was among many you've heard recently on how the NSHS music program was essential, meaningful, transformative to many students and families in different yet similar ways.

You probably don't fully grasp what a gem we have that is the NSHS Music Program. Since my older son started in NSHS Lab Jazz in 2016 and younger son in 2019, I have had the precious opportunity to volunteer as a chaperone for many field trips over the past years. I witnessed first hand the tremendous growth of many students when they had the opportunity to attend the prestigious Essentially Ellington High School Jazz Band Festival at Lincoln Center in 2018, the Mingus High School Jazz Festival at New School in 2018, 2019, and 2020, and many other MA and regional festivals each year. The priceless educational resources offered by organizations like Jazz at Lincoln Center and Mingus "Let My Child Hear Music" Organization became available to our students because of the heroic effort of our dedicated teachers and highly motivated students, who are much less well supported compared to bands from private and art magnet schools. These events draw a truly diverse body of young musicians of the highest achievement from across the country. It's inspiring to see our kids inspired by peers and professional musicians and share their love of Jazz in concerts and jam sessions.

Ms. Linde and Mr. Harlow have been dedicated teachers both inside and outside of the classrooms. Prior to the pandemic, Ms. Linde organized bi-annual field trips to New Orleans so the music students can get an immersive experience of the rich Jazz history. During a field trip to the Panama Jazz Festival, the US Embassy in Panama organized outreach trips for our musicians to visit a school in a remote area to bring music and joy to kids in a low income community. To make these trips more accessible to students of all income levels, Ms. Linde started the Newton Music Ambassadors Scholarship Fund and organized benefit concerts to raise funds to offset costs of such trips. The concerts brought a large section of the community together from both Newton South and North Schools to support a good cause, and increased awareness of the great music programs at the high school level to younger siblings and community members.

I have been saddened to have observed a downward trend of the quality of the music program even comparing my younger son's experience to that of his brother's just short 3 years apart. The cut of Mr. Harlow from the Newton South Music Department in 2021 and the change of school schedule resulted in reduced course offerings and rehearsal periods. The pandemic put many concerts and outreach efforts on pause (did you know that there was a student-run outreach program in 2019 for high school music students to mentor middle school students in the mornings before school starts?), and it significantly impacted the enrollment pipeline. As I was finally feeling hopeful as we saw the light at the end of the tunnel of the pandemic, we got a callous email informing us that Combo will be cut due to LOW ENROLLMENT(a rationale beyond being ridiculous), instead of increasing the funding to build the music program back up,!!! The budget for the Arts at South was kept flat this year, and this is the BEST tradeoff you are making? The person making that decision clearly had no clue about the music programs!

I have also been disheartened by the responses we generally got after we raised concerns of cutting Combo. SC members say that they don't make staffing decisions, superintendents say that staffing decisions are made within the 'building', and principals say that the department heads make decisions for their departments. Sure, I work for a large corporation and understand that managers don't micromanage every decision their subordinates make; but when something is obviously a mistake, you take ownership and make sure it's fixed.

I hope you have heard from a lot of us and understood the value of the music program to our students' mental health, career aspirations, and excellence. I felt hopeful when I heard Paul's comments and calls to action towards the superintendent and principal. I felt hopeful when I heard that the city council passed a resolution to restore 1.4 million funding to address the mental health crisis of Middle and High School students in Newton. I understand that different programs benefit kids in different ways, but you cannot deny the outsized impact of music to many many kids! Many years ago when I was a Countryside parent and faced a seemingly hopeless situation of four 4th grade classes feeding into three 5th grade classes (with expected class size of 29), the SC heard the concerned community and redrew the buffer zone which provided a long term solution to bring equity to class size to all schools. I do not know who has the power to make what decisions, but I hope that our CC, mayor, SC, superintendent and principals will work together to find a solution to best support our kids' mental health needs through music.

Respectively yours,

Chao Wang

51 Parker Ter