WFISD awarded best communities for music education
WICHITA FALLS (KFDX/KJTL) — Wichita Falls Independent School District has been honored with the Best Communities for Music Education (BCME) designation from The National Association of Music Merchants Foundation (NAMM).
Now, in its 26th year, the BCME is awarded to districts that demonstrate outstanding achievement in providing music access and education to all students.
'Wichita Falls ISD has once again been honored with the Best Communities for Music Education designation from The NAMM Foundation for its outstanding commitment to music education,' said Kelly Strenski, WFISD Director of Fine Arts. 'This recognition reflects the unwavering dedication of our teachers, students, families, and community partners who continue to champion the value of music education in our district.'
About The NAMM Foundation
The NAMM Foundation is the charitable arm of the National Association of Music Merchants, the global trade association for the music products industry. The foundation works to remove systemic barriers that limit access to music-making and career pathways in the music industry. Click NAMM Foundation for more information.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
WFISD awarded best communities for music education
WICHITA FALLS (KFDX/KJTL) — Wichita Falls Independent School District has been honored with the Best Communities for Music Education (BCME) designation from The National Association of Music Merchants Foundation (NAMM). Now, in its 26th year, the BCME is awarded to districts that demonstrate outstanding achievement in providing music access and education to all students. 'Wichita Falls ISD has once again been honored with the Best Communities for Music Education designation from The NAMM Foundation for its outstanding commitment to music education,' said Kelly Strenski, WFISD Director of Fine Arts. 'This recognition reflects the unwavering dedication of our teachers, students, families, and community partners who continue to champion the value of music education in our district.' About The NAMM Foundation The NAMM Foundation is the charitable arm of the National Association of Music Merchants, the global trade association for the music products industry. The foundation works to remove systemic barriers that limit access to music-making and career pathways in the music industry. Click NAMM Foundation for more information. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
CBS News
30-05-2025
- CBS News
Commack High School's legendary band teacher retiring after 40 years
Commack High School has many standout features, including its teachers! Over 30, including the principal, are Commack High graduates. As teachers, they're now making an impact on the students' lives, especially Dr. Frank Hanson, the legendary band teacher. Commack's legendary band leader retiring Like many at Commack High, Dr. Hanson made his mark on his students. The ease with which he teaches music and his experience are legendary. "It's special because we have this teacher here, Dr. Hanson, who, he's played with Barbara Streisand, Ray Charles, Frank Sinatra. He does Broadway shows in the pit, and he still does it with teaching. He's phenomenal," senior Forrest Meyer, said. "I think the kids really just want to know that you care about them. They really don't care about what you've done or what you do," Hanson said. "Every once in a while, I might say something because something that we do here might remind me of a professional situation that's gone on, and I might tell a story like that, but it's never to brag ... I was on the road with Tony Bennett, then 'who's Tony Bennett,' you know?" Hanson is hanging it up after 40 years, including 28 years at Commack High, where he helped orchestrate the musical paths of countless students. "You learn that a lot of times they just want to be seen. They want to be listened to, they don't want to be talked down to you, which Hanson never did. So it's a healthy balance between, hey, you've got to do this, but also, I get that you're still getting comfortable with this instrument," Meyer said. "Forrest is a great musician," Hanson said. "He's in our Jazz Messengers, and the Jazz Messengers is a very small jazz group, about five, six, seven, eight musicians that I handpick. So in order to be in that ensemble, you have to be of the very best in our department. So he's one of our best." Hanson is also one of the best. At the spring concert, his final as the conductor, over 60 former students returned to say thank you and job well done. "I have nothing but gratitude. I'm really, it's just an honor to get to be here every single day with these kids," he said.
CBS News
29-05-2025
- CBS News
Billboard-topping saxophonist "pays it forward" with program for young musicians in Boston
The Boys and Girls Clubs of Dorchester have offered music instruction for decades. But band instruments were not in the lineup, largely because of the cost. "It only works with instruments that we can share with as many kids as possible," explains music director Carleton Burke. "I can teach 20 kids to play piano on one piano. I can teach 20 kids how to play guitar on one guitar. I can't teach 20 kids to play trumpet on one trumpet." Brass, woodwind instruments, and drums were prohibitively expensive... until Billboard-topping saxophonist Elan Trotman chose the clubs as the Boston site for his Headstart Music Program. Headstart Music Program Trotman, who is also an associate professor at Berklee College of Music (his alma mater) established the Never Lose Your Drive Foundation to support the next generation of musicians. The foundation funds the Headstart Music Program which provides new band instruments and instruction to kids. He launched it in his native Barbados and added the Dorchester site in November 2024. "Music brings people together," he says smiling. Saxophonist Elan Trotman CBS Boston On a spring night in May, music also brings families to the Dorchester Avenue clubhouse for the kids' first recital. Six months after receiving the instruments, the performers--ages 10 to 17-- are ready to play. Elan arrives just as the event starts, fresh off a flight from California where he performed the night before. "Thank you for making room for us and giving us a home," he tells the crowd. He thanked his two instructors, Stephan Papandrea and Akili Jamal Haynes who teach the students several times a week. "You guys have two wonderful teachers who love music." Trotman's inspiration for the program was born years ago when, as a Boston Public School teacher at Mozart Elementary in Roslindale, a VH1 "Save the Music" grant purchased band instruments for beginner students. He left the school in 2012. But the idea stayed with him. "I knew that once I could get access to instruments and instructors, I had a curriculum-a vision for a curriculum-and how it works," he said. Companies donate the instruments and components. The single biggest donor is Utah-based Cannonball Musical Instruments. Other donors include Needham Music, Theo Wanne Mouthpieces, and Legere Reeds. Elan hosts two fundraising golf tournaments-one in Barbados and a newer tournament in Greater Boston-to pay the program's instructors. Burke, who accompanies the kids on guitar during the recital says, what was impossible now couldn't be easier. "Elan coming here just took all the issues-all the barriers-away from being able to do a concert band," Burke said. Students showcase talents For students Ellis Maynard, Dakhari Jones, and Jaralaney Ruiz, the program provides an opportunity to showcase their budding talents. As they perform the Herbie Hancock classic "Cantaloupe Island" audience members, including Elan, bob their heads and tap their toes to the rhythm. Earlier in the month, the trio performed for hundreds of people at the club's main fundraising event, the New England Women's Leadership Awards. Jaralaney says, partly because it is so challenging, it feels "amazing" to play trombone. "I just feel that I am heard through music," Jaralaney said. Young musicians perform during at the Boys and Girls Club of Dorchester. CBS Boston Trotman can relate. He says he has always expressed himself through music and the arts. As a child, music and science, he says, were not his strengths but creative pursuits were. His music teachers, even early on, saw that he had a gift. His first instrument was piano. He fell in love with the sound of the saxophone as a teenager and never looked back. His full scholarship to Berklee made it possible to pursue his passion and graduate from the school debt-free. He does not take that good fortune for granted and says, "I want to create those opportunities for other people." Hope and happiness Thirteen-year-old Dakhari, who proudly belts out the Miles Davis classic "So What" could not be more thankful. He says that, without the program, he probably would not be able to own a trumpet. Playing makes him feel confident and grounded. It's a stress-reliever. Dakhari eventually wants to be a music producer. Asked what music means to him, he smiles. "Hope," he says and adds, "Happiness." Happiness also sums up what people feel listening to Trotman play the saxophone. His talents as a sought-after smooth jazz artist take him all over the world to perform. It seems that he is living his dream as a professional musician, educator, and philanthropist. Nurturing young musicians is central to his mission. "I see a lot of potential in some of our students," he says proudly. "There's one or two of them in each group that have that 'x factor,' that special thing." In addition to the 17 kids in Dorchester, he connects with high school students in Boston who participate in the five-week Aspire Program at Berklee. In 2023, his foundation provided scholarships to the program for two students from Barbados. Skilled and supportive, Trotman takes special pride in seeing--and listening to--the young people who'll be making music we all listen to in the future. "That's the hope. Plant the seeds and let them blossom." Elan Trotman upcoming tour dates Boston, June 22 (City Cruises) Martha's Vineyard, July 19 Boston, July 26 (House of Inspiration Family Music & Arts Festival) Cambridge, July 27 (Cambridge Jazz Festival)
