Advocacy Newsletters
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Please read the newsletters below for information
and links on how to advocate for music programs.
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Scroll down in the PDF viewer or download the PDF to see all of the pages.
Previous Advocacy Newsletters
Hello, MMEA!
On June 12th, 2024 MMEA Leadership and Collegiate Members participated in NAfME’s Hill Day where we met with Maryland Leaders in Congress and advocated for Music Education. We were able to meet in person for conversations with staffers of 7 of our 10 Maryland leaders on The Hill, and still made it to the offices of the remaining 3 to drop off materials outlining our key points and priorities for Maryland Music Education.
What was truly inspiring was not only being able to advocate as a current educator, but to have students from Frostburg State and Salisbury Universities present to share their experiences as current music education students and future educators. The opportunity to share our personal stories, concerns, and joys of the profession as constituents was a remarkable opportunity. Many of the staffers we met with were products of music education themselves, so we truly felt this connection and united voice throughout many of our meetings.
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In partnership with the NAfME advocacy team, we were able to highlight programs that supported our students, an experienced and diverse educator workforce, and music and the arts as a whole. We additionally advocated for legislation that focused on music education for all students and teacher recruitment and retention. See more details about the programs and legislations we advocated for below:
FY 2025 NAfME Fact Sheet: Programs
FY 2025 NAfME Fact Sheet: Legislation​​​​​​​​​​
After a long day of advocacy we joined all of our other state music education leaders in song to close out the day! We left our day invigorated, inspired, and ready to advocate for Maryland Music Education even further at the local and state level and are eager to share more advocacy resources with our teachers and students in the coming months. Looking forward to all that is yet to come!
Sidney Clarke-Lequerique
MMEA Advocacy Chair
Ask your congressperson to support Title IV Part A Funding for Music Education!
Learn more about this coalition and
stay tuned for the campaign.
For arts education to remain central to a well-rounded education and fully funded to support the well-being of all students and the entire school community, we must protect arts educators’ jobs and maintain K-12 arts programs. Visit Arts Are Education for more information.
We want to thank Governor Wes Moore for issuing a Proclamation for Music In Our Schools Month®!
From the Proclamation:
"NOW, THEREFORE, I, WES MOORE, GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF MARYLAND, do hereby proclaim MARCH 2024, as MUSIC IN OUR SCHOOLS MONTH in Maryland, and do commend this observance to all of our citizens.”
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Thank you for supporting music education in Maryland!
Since every program has different goals and individual needs, the following organizations offer ideas and tools to help garner the most support and resources for your music program. These sites include regional and state agencies, federal institutions, and independent advocacy organizations.
