HEART Music is a non-profit based in Clarke County founded in 2019 to address the social and financial barriers that hinder student participation and success in music ensembles. Their mission is to make music education accessible to all communities in Athens-Clarke County, and to increase students’ chances for success in life through high-quality musical instruction in the classrooms of the Clarke County School District (CCSD). They also provide students with a variety of performance and learning opportunities – all for free.
Their model supports multiple groups within the community - musicians, teachers, and students. They hire local professional musicians and pay them fairly to go into classrooms and work with small groups of student musicians or one-on-one, addressing their unique needs. Their services are provided at no cost to the students or the school system.
There is great value in individual music lessons and instrument sectionals for music students. The music programs in Clarke County do not have the funds to hire instrumental specialists.
“Heart teachers are incredibly supportive of anything we are doing. They can do sectionals, individual, or even lead the entire class so they are absolutely supportive of any activity or performance that we are preparing for.” – High school orchestra teacher
Currently, they support five middle and high schools, for a total of 18 classes of band, orchestra, and guitar throughout the school year, serving around 600 students in Clarke County. They plan to continue growing and extend their services to the other schools that are asking for their help. In order to do that, they need more donors - especially donors that can give on a recurring basis. There is a great need for music education in CCSD that eliminates the barriers to finances, transportation, and scheduling to impact the greatest number of students. Research from the University of Southern California shows that, “music education contributes to improved creativity and confidence, better mental health and emotional stability, and student performance.” With CCSDs high dropout rate, HEART Music hopes to help improve student performance and retention.
To make a donation or to set up recurring monthly donations, visit HEART Music online by clicking on the button below.