The Songbirds Foundation’s “Guitars for Kids” music program is replacing chorus classes at many middle and high schools across Hamilton County this fall to help combat the spread of COVID-19.
Schools will not be able to hold chorus due to the oral transmission of the disease. Instead of cancelling music classes, the Songbirds Foundation will implement its guitar program. The Foundation will offer intensive training to chorus teachers, regardless of their guitar background, and provide them with a donated set of 25-50 guitars, curriculum books, equipment (picks, strings, bags, tuners), and ongoing support.
The guitars and equipment will stay at the schools after the COVID-19 pandemic has subsided and be integrated into chorus classes creating hybrid singer-songwriter classes.
“We are so excited to help ensure that kids will have access to music this fall. Our hope is that chorus classes will resume soon, but until then, we are happy to help kids rock out on guitar. I am super excited to see chorus teachers implement our program because the guitar is such an influential song-writing tool,” says Reed Caldwell, the Foundation’s Executive Director.
The Foundation is working directly with its funders to raise $50k to buy the guitars and necessary equipment so that the schools will be prepared once the fall semester starts. If you would like to support this initiative, please visit songbirdsfoundation.org/give to donate.
The following Hamilton County schools and others in the area will be added to implement the Foundation’s guitar program:
- Normal Park Museum Magnet School
- Normal Park Museum Magnet Upper School
- Ooltewah High School
- Ooltewah Middle School
- Red Bank Middle School
- Sale Creek Middle High School
- Signal Mountain Middle High School
- Soddy Daisy High School
- Lakeview Middle School (GA)
- Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe High School (GA)
- And more
Over the past three years, the Songbirds Foundation has provided free music lessons, instruments, and music therapy to thousands of youth across the state of Tennessee. It serves over 40 schools, 14 partner programs, and 2,000 students— with over 1,000 guitars distributed across the state.
This year, the organization expanded to Memphis and plans to add additional schools in Knoxville, Chattanooga, Cleveland, and Fort Oglethorpe, GA. These programs will add an additional 1,000 guitars with 2,500 students completing the program by Spring 2021. For every $100 raised, the Foundation can provide a kid a guitar and 12 weeks of free lessons.
To donate please visit www.songbirdsfoundation.org/give.
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