Hingham Music

Dear Parents - Please take a minute and fill out our 2010 Coffee Sale Survey. Click on this link to open the survey: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/GHLV278  Thank you for your help.

The next board meeting will be held on May 19th at noon time. There is no general meeting on May 5th as listed in last years meeting document.

The purpose of this newsletter is to update you on our recent activities and tell you about some great upcoming events. If you don’t already know, the HMPA is essentially the music boosters club for the Hingham schools. All parents of children in HPS music classes and programs are HMPA members. If your child loves music, whether they are a firstgrader or senior, we hope that you will read this and possibly get involved. Do you realize there are hundreds of students enrolled in music in Hingham? If we all “pitched” in, we could make great “music”. Best Regards, Barbara Emmel, HMPA President Barbemmel@mac.com

UPCOMING EVENTS

• General Membership Meeting, Wednesday 2/24: This is a great opportunity to inspire children and learn more about becoming a better musician. Please attend our general membership meeting Wednesday, February 24th at 7pm in Room 103 of HHS. Children encouraged to attend! We will have a faculty/student panel discussion of effective practicing techniques. We will also discuss audition opportunities, preparation and performances. The Tri-M program, a national music program, will also be presented. Meet fellow music parents and enthusiasts!

• KARAOKE fundraiser on May 13th at HHS: Just imagine your favorite teacher singing your favorite song in front of 600 people. Now, make it a reality!! May 13th in the HHS auditorium, featuring HHS departmentwide faculty members singing karaoke! Raffle for prizes and song selection during the show. Tickets are likely to be HOT sellers, so keep an eye out for details coming soon! IDEAS, HOSTS and PERFORMERS WELCOME!

Have a great idea for a fundraiser? Want to host one? Got Music? Make Music? Email barbemmel@mac.com.

FUNDRAISING PROGRESS AND SPENDING

We continue to raise money to support our annual $5000 operating budget, the faculty “wish list”, and other ideas brought before the board. We continue to evaluate suggestions from the faculty on enrichment ideas, and would love our members to help us raise money to accomplish these requests.

• Coffee Sales Results: This year’s Coffee Sale raised $8882.33, net. Roughly $4900 of this profit was allocated to students’ trip accounts. The remainder is set aside for the general HMPA budget. Our $5000 operating budget supports scholarships and registration fees for festivals, and awards for students at the end of the year.
• Private Fundraising Results: A private party in January raised over $2800 supporting the purchase of 3 piano dollies for our schools. The remainder is set aside for an enrichment program. Our heartfelt thanks to our hosts, Jennifer Cope and Mark Goodman, our attendees, and several student, parent, and faculty performers, who made this event possible.
• Flowers and Photographers: We will sell flowers at our spring concerts to help you congratulate your favorite musician. We are looking into photography to sell of our musicians “in action”.

New Mini-Grant System for 2010-2011

The HMPA board will establish a minigrant system effective in the fall 2010 to fairly analyze and distribute funds requested by faculty and our membership

OTHER MUSIC PROGRAM PROGRESS

Here are the items fulfilled from the faculty’s “Wish List”:

• Orff Instruments for East School
• Music Stands for HMS
• Dollies for pianos districtwide
• Percussion cabinets for HHS – thanks, Edmundson family!
• Piano bench for HHS

MORE WORK TO BE DONE

Unfulfilled items to fund and/or vote on:

• Bus transportation to musical events
• Chamber music coaching and private lesson support
• Enrichment programs featuring guests artists, musicians & teachers
• Anything brought before our board by members or faculty

VOLUNTEER CORNER

Open Positions Now and Next Year Nominations are being accepted for next year’s board and a few open positions remain this year. Can you spare a few hours? Read below and email barbemmel@mac.com.

Help Needed Now:

• Registrar/Membership – help us with our membership database
• Communications/Advertising – help us put get our word out
• Fundraising – volunteer at an event

Next Year Help Wanted:

• Secretary – next year
• School liaisons – next year from each school
• Tax Attorney – help us gain 501c3 status

The Executive Committee of the HMPA will meet on Monday, October 5 at 7:00 p.m. in room 103 at HHS.

To read a copy of the By-laws, please click here.

Click here for a complete schedule of meetings for the year!

Monday, September 28, 2009 represents an exciting new chapter in the history of music in Hingham. The newly organized parent organization will hold its first meeting, welcoming all parents of music students K-12 in Hingham and embracing a broad vision of support for all music students. Parents are encouraged to be a part of this wonderful new effort. Stay involved, stay informed, and do your part to make music an essential and core part of every child's education!

Thanks to all students and families who donated their "stuff" to our first ever HMPA Yard Sale! We had a tremendous amount to offer for sale due to your generosity! A special thank you to those of you who gave up time on your Friday and/or Saturday to help set-up the sale, price items and help with all our customers! For a first effort, the sale was very successful as we profited over $1400.
Finally, we would like to thank Alanna Jennings for baking and selling her baked goods for Tri-M. She raised approx $50 with her delicious treats! Great job Alanna!

Sincerely,
Kathy Tompkins, Robin Daniels and the entire HMPA board.

Parents are reminded of the informational meeting held Wednesday evening at HHS (auditorium) regarding the Washington DC trip. Chaperones will meet from 6:45-7:15 and all parents will meet from 7:15-8:30 (at the latest). Itineraries will be distributed, policies & procedures will be discussed, and parents will be able to ask questions. Rooming, bus, and flight lists will also be available. All parents of traveling students are expected to attend.

Printed student account statements will be distributed to all HHS music students on Wednesday, January 7. These statements indicate the amount of 07-08 rollover, initial deposit for DC, coffee sale credits, December payment, and any amount of financial aid received. The statements also show the balance due on February 1 for any students traveling to Washington DC. Parents who do not receive an account statement by Friday, January 9 should call or email their child's director.

The Hingham Music Parents Association wishes to thank you for your participation in the 2008 Coffee Sale.  More than 200 orchestra, band and chorus students and their families sold approximately 2600 pounds of coffee and raised $14,000 for the Hingham High School Music programs.  Through this fundraiser, we are able to demonstrate our collective appreciation for, and pride in, our students, their teachers and the beautiful music they make.  

Best wishes for a joyous holiday season.

Johanna Seelen and Robin Daniels
2008 HMPA Coffee Sale Co-Chairs

The HHS Music Department will activate a new chapter of Tri-M, the Music Honor Society sponsored by MENC (National Association for Music Education). Students are eligible for membership if they are enrolled in a school-sponsored music ensemble and/or class for at least one semester, maintain at least B grade average in music and at least C grade average in other academic subjects, and have demonstrated leadership, service, and character in their activities. To find out more about this great program, please visit their website at http://www.menc.org/resources/view/tri-m-music-honor-society.

Students will be invited to apply for membership in the next several weeks once the chapter activitation materials have been sent to HHS.