Photo by James Short.
When the parents and families of the Wissahickon School District heard about potential budget cuts for the upcoming 2024-25 school year, some had a concern that a beloved third-grade strings program would be on the chopping block. Facing the potential retirement of a teacher involved with the program, the district weighed its options for continuing the offering.
Like all districts in the state of Pennsylvania, Wissahickon’s school board must balance its budget to both meet the demands of its taxpayers, as well as serve its students with the highest educational opportunities possible.
“Every year, we discuss what we can add to the district and what we may need to take out,” said Amy Ginsburg, Wissahickon School Board president.
When parents and teachers heard that the third-grade strings program was up for consideration, they sprung into action, including Karen Beck took to Change.org on April 25 to create a petition, which quickly grew in popularity.
“I started a petition that has received over 300 signatures in less than 24 hours,” said Beck.
The message was heard loud and clear. By May 16, the petition had amassed 738 signatures. The online message included an outline about the importance of the instrumental program, asking Wissahickon’s school board to save the educational opportunity.
“They want to learn a new skill and they want to perform for their friends and loved ones at concerts,” wrote Beck as one of her many reasons that students benefit from the instrumental lessons. “Performing at concerts can also help build students’ confidence, and it helps them learn to work within a team.”
Beck also outlined that the excitement to begin an instrument starts at a young age, and those that had seen older siblings progress through the popular program were looking forward to the opportunity. She said that the future of Wissahickon’s music programs — as a whole — would suffer should students not have these early opportunities to learn string instruments.
“When children start learning a string instrument earlier, they are better prepared for playing a band instrument because they have already had some musical training and begun working on their hand-eye coordination,” she wrote. “The third-grade strings program helps students develop a strong work ethic. Eliminating the program would have a negative impact on Wissahickon School District and the students.”
Many parents echoed the sentiments of the petition by posting comments on the Change.org site.
“My children, their friends, and classmates have learned so much as participants in our school music programs,” said Makaylia Roberts Binkley, of Ambler. “We are fortunate to be in a district that has valued an early opportunity to have kids engage in strings in addition to outstanding classroom music experiences.”
Other parents said that experiences in this instrumental program had truly formed their students’ more positive outlook on education.
“Third grade strings literally changed the way my son felt about school,” wrote Susan Boxman, of Conshohocken. “He really didn’t like going until he started to play viola!”
Area teachers were also among those offering a supporting voice for the third-grade strings program.
“Although I no longer have elementary-aged children, I’m a teacher and know the research supports students starting their string education in third grade or younger,” said Ann Menichelli, a teacher at Abington High School on the petition’s website. “Taking away this program will deprive public school students of a musical education at an age that allows them to progress much further than if they start later, not to mention the advantages that music education provides to students in school subjects outside of the music room. Let’s keep our public education at an exceptional level and not just average level.”
Thankfully, the school board’s president said that the program will fit into the 2024-25 budget. Ginsburg noted that, while the finalized budget has not yet been voted on or made official, the third-grade strings program was slated to remain in place.
“It is going to be in the budget,” she said.
The 2024-25 proposed budget can be viewed online here. While not yet final, nor voted upon in a public meeting, the outline of the district’s spending includes the necessity for a 5.3% tax hike. Of Montgomery County’s 23 public school districts, including 20 within its borders and three shared with neighboring counties, the newly adjusted milage would still rank Wissahickon’s tax rate second to lowest. Only Upper Merion, at 22.0 millage rate, would be lower than the 2024-25 Wissahickon new rate at 23.09.
Ginsburg said that the budget for the upcoming school year will be voted on during the first meeting in June. The public is welcome to attend meetings either in person or watch via a live stream on the district’s YouTube Channel here.
