Doubt. 

A feeling we have all experienced throughout the course of our lives, but certainly a feeling that has enveloped us more frequently throughout the last several months. 

When schools closed last March, waves of doubt flooded over school administrators, and trickled down to parents, teachers, and students. Is learning even possible if everyone is remote? Would each student have access to the technology they needed to learn remotely? How long would this distance learning last?

Though there were many questions, there were also a lot of inspiring moments that came through the doubt. Parents and students worked together to adapt their living spaces into offices and classrooms, and teachers learned new technologies to figure out how to inspire learning using online tools. At ETM, our music teachers were determined to harness the power of music despite the new challenges, transforming their homes into studios, band rooms, concert halls, and classrooms. 

Doubt may have tried to take over last spring, but inspiration was stronger. Our music teachers reminded us that we will always have music to pull us together.

Thanks to our teachers, ETM provided essentially uninterrupted music education to all of our partner schools and their communities. 

And though things are still not back to “normal,” as we may have known them before, school administrators, parents, teachers, and students continue to work together to support one another and not let uncertainty win. 

Music continues to inspire, to motivate, to give us hope when we feel like we have none. Our teachers, who worked so hard last spring, continue to do so as the new school year has begun. 

And though learning looks different at each school, for each student, for each teacher, our commitment to bring high-quality music education to all students remains stronger than ever. You don’t have to doubt that.

To honor their commitment, we created this video giving you a little behind-the-scenes look at what learning looks like in 2020. 

If you know a teacher, student, school administrator, or parent, be sure to give them a little extra love! 

And be sure to check out the many resources available through the New York Department of Education and Education Through Music.