LOWER POTTSGROVE — Tom Kelly says it’s a little-known fact that being a musician “makes you smarter,” and that students who are passionate about music do better on tests and other academics.
Kelly would know. For more than 30 years, he has worked with public school music directors at Zeswitz Music. And he also belongs to the National Association of Music Merchants, which issues the annual Best Community for Music award, and on Tuesday night he appeared before the Pottsgrove school board for the fifth year in a row. I once again reported that it was named as such. .
“I’ve been in this business for 32 years,” and has worked with several Pottsgrove music directors, “and I’ve gone through several experiences, but with each production, I’ve been trying to create the best musical program possible.” “We see their continued efforts to provide,” he said.
Winners are not selected by the association, but rather by independent and objective judges at the University of Kansas. And filling out this application is not easy.
“The questions change, so you can’t just use the answers from the previous year,” he said of the 36-page application.
He said it is significant that one of only 700 school districts nationwide is selected to receive this award, as thousands of school districts apply nationwide. “This is a real testament to the work our staff does here.”
But that’s not the only importance of Pottsgrove’s music education.
The same night, the school board unanimously approved a request for Pottsgrove to host the Pennsylvania Music Educators Association’s District 11 Choral Festival at Pottsgrove Middle School. Nearly 150 students from 60 different school districts are expected to participate in early February.
Choir director Amy McMahon said Pottsgrove has hosted similar festivals with bands, orchestras and strings in the past, and that attending as a student was “one of the best experiences of my life.” ” he told the board.
Superintendent David Finnerty said the timing is good, as acoustic improvements planned for the space should be completed by the festival.
“This is a great showcase for us,” he said.
