Egad! No band at Jefferson School? That's a ridiculous notion that hasn't even crossed the minds of the local school district's administrators or board members as they figure out where to make cuts in their budget. Yet, some parents and alumni have been let do believe otherwise. It's a mistake to equate the band program of Roy Troglia to the elementary music classes of Mary Evans. They are two different programs and meaningful in different ways.
The band program for fifth- through eighth-graders is 45 minutes of instruction each school day. Not only has it been around for more than half a century, but it has earned local, state, and national recognition and is part of the culture and tradition of the school. Graduates of Jefferson's band classes who have careers in music point to it as one of the reasons for their success today. Jack Erb, award-winning instrumental elementary music teacher in the San Diego area, says it was the "music at Jefferson that ignited the spark that eventually grew to be the fire of my passion for teaching." The music came from Don Keller's band program.
The district's elementary music program involves instruction for kindergartners through fourth-graders of a half-hour to 45 minutes once a week. It was resurrected two years ago when the state had a surplus and gave about 10 percent more funds to school districts like Jefferson. Elementary music was one of the windfalls, with a teacher and supplies costing about $57,000 a year.
Until 1992, elementary music and band was provided by separate instructors through a county program for rural schools. Then the county raised the program's fee, and the Jefferson district decided to hire Troglia to teach both elementary music and band. When that task proved too overwhelming in a fast-growing district, Jefferson dropped elementary music the following year.
Elementary music's demise this time is sort of Gov. Gray Davis' energy mismanagement contra-dividend. With an estimated $22 billion state budget deficit, there will be fewer dollars than anticipated for Jefferson.
Jefferson isn't the only school district looking at program cuts – elementary music is taking a hit elsewhere, too. Jefferson's school board warned about this possible scenario, one that none of us likes, when it gave the go-ahead for elementary music two years ago. The message then was, "If we can't afford it, we won't sustain it." Those words were repeated last week. The choices for the school board were to eliminate elementary music or to raise class sizes from 24 students to more than 30 students in the upper grades. Smaller class sizes won.
Based on estimates, making no budget cuts would create a deficit of $256,531 for next school year and $136,506 for the 2003-04 school year. So other cuts, such as less money for school supplies, are projected.
Music will still be taught in the elementary school classes. It will take the pre-2000 school year form when it was incorporated into the lesson plans of each classroom teacher.
No one likes to have something successful taken away, especially twice, as it has been here. The fault, though, lies beyond the Jefferson administration and school board. Our governor should be asked why there isn't enough school funds for the arts. Is it because of the gargantuan budget deficit? Is it because core subjects like reading, writing and arithmetic get more attention?
We'd like to hear his tune, because we've seen his dance routine on issues like this one too many times.