Farmington Municipal Schools (FMS) has been honored with the “Best Communities for Music Education” designation for the seventh consecutive year by The National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) Foundation. The prestigious award recognizes districts that demonstrate exceptional achievement in providing music education and access to all students.
The award program recognized 830 school districts for the outstanding efforts of teachers, administrators, parents, students, and community leaders who have made music education part of a well-rounded education. Designations are made to districts and schools demonstrating an exceptionally high commitment and access to music education.
FMS offers a comprehensive music education program, including band, orchestra, choir, guitar, and general music classes for grades K-12. The district also provides opportunities for students to participate in honor ensembles, music festivals, and other performance opportunities. In addition, FMS has a strong community music program, including partnerships with local music organizations and performances by community groups at school events.
FMS Coordinator of Fine Arts, Daniel Fear, stated that music education is essential to a well-rounded education, and FMS is committed to providing students with access to music education.
“Learning music in schools can help students develop a sense of discipline, teamwork, and creativity, which are crucial skills that can be applied to other areas of their education. Music can enhance cognitive development, including memory, language, and reasoning skills while fostering a sense of community and cultural awareness among students. Music is an essential part of our school culture, and that is why it is an integral part of every school's curriculum at Farmington Municipal Schools,” said Fear.
To qualify for the recognition, FMS answered detailed questions about funding, graduation requirements, music class participation, instructional time, facilities, and support for the music program.
Research into music education continues to demonstrate educational/cognitive and social skill benefits for children who make music: After two years of music education, researchers found that participants showed more substantial improvements in how the brain processes speech and reading scores than their less-involved peers and that students who are involved in music are not only more likely to graduate high school but also to attend college as well. In addition, everyday listening skills are stronger in musically trained children than in those without music training. Significantly, listening skills are closely tied to the ability to: perceive speech in a noisy background, pay attention, and keep sounds in memory. Later in life, individuals who took music lessons as children show stronger neural processing of sound: young adults and even older adults who have not played an instrument for up to 50 years show enhanced neural processing compared to their peers. Not to mention, social benefits include conflict resolution, teamwork skills, and how to give and receive constructive criticism.
The NAMM Foundation is a nonprofit organization supported by the National Association of Music Merchants and its 15,000 member companies and professionals.
In October 2022, the New Mexico Art Education Association (NMAEA) named Daniel Fear “Art Administrator of the Year.”
For more information, visit www.nammfoundation.org/what-we-do/best-communities-music-education
You can view the FMS music curriculum at https://www.farmingtonschools.us/page/curriculum