Finding Funding

Funding is a major obstacle to growing a music program. For the past five years, Nick Maupoux, band director for Cle Elum-Roslyn School District, has overcome this hurdle by grant writing and using the following strategies.

Search Locally

Maupoux has acquired multiple grants for choir risers, new instruments and repairs from local businesses and organizations, including the Washington Music Educators Association, Shoemaker Manufacturing and Suncadia Resort.

Work with Administration

Administrators can be a source of information and support during the fundraising and grant-writing process. “Make sure you talk with your building principal first,” Maupoux advises.  Many times after Maupoux talked with his schools’ principals about grants, he learned that the district could allocate funds for what he needed. Keeping administrators in the loop about funding needs can also put them on alert for new available grants. “[For] a lot of grants, I got the information from my principals,” Maupoux says.

Keep a List of Priorities

Even when no grants are in the works, Maupoux advises educators to keep a running list of what they’ll need for future expansions. “When you come upon an opportunity for money, you can say, ‘Oh, I can buy that new tuba! I can buy those risers,’” he says.

This article originally appeared in the 2020N1 issue of Yamaha SupportED. To see more back issues, find out about Yamaha resources for music educators, or sign up to be notified when the next issue is available, click here.