Music lessons go beyond band rooms

I started playing flute in fifth grade at Kendall Elementary School. I moved on to play at Crone Middle School and Neuqua Valley High School in Naperville. In my eight years of being deeply involved in music, it was the most important aspect of my education and academic career.

The music programs in Indian Prairie Unit District 204 are not merely extracurricular or nonacademic. They teach students to appreciate fine art and the importance and joy of incorporating it into life. It puzzles me that Kathy Birkett, a former principal at Neuqua Valley, which has been a Grammy award-winning school multiple times, has chosen to disregard the importance and prominence that music has in our school communities. The musical excellence that dominates our high schools would not be possible if it were not for the great music directors of the middle schools. I would not be the person I am today if I had not had the incredible privilege of being part of the music programs in these schools. Music is not a waste of money. The music teachers I have had have been extremely influential figures in my life, and I will always respect, remember and appreciate them. These people help students become better people and teach them valuable lessons. Learning to play an instrument, read music, and create music teaches students perseverance, determination, motivation, the rewards of delayed gratification and the joys of appreciating fine art. These lessons do not stay in the band or orchestra rooms. They transfer into the classroom and to life.

My warmest and most sincere thanks to John Timmins, Jonathan Lauff, William Jastrow, Charles Staley and Rachel Luhn for their inspiration, encouragement, and superb direction. Please support and preserve music in our schools.

Amy Harwath

University of Illinois student

Neuqua Valley alum