Tag Archives: TMEA

What is MSMISP? -or- Who Wants $1000 of Free Sheet Music?

We had the good fortune to speak with TMEA about the MSMISP grant program more in depth. They were very helpful in providing answers to some of your most frequently asked questions. We thought we would share what they had to say.

 The Middle School Music Instructional Support Program (MSMISP) is a grant program from TMEA (Texas Music Educators Association) for 6-8th grade Choir, Orchestra and Band directors in Texas. It will provide $1,000 (yes, a full grand!) for sheet music to programs who are selected in the 2014 – 2015 school year. If you end up going over the grand TMEA will give you then your district will be billed for the difference. Penders is offering free shipping so you can make full use of your thousand without worry.

In order to qualify the director must have current membership with TMEA and teach at a Texas middle school. Applications may be submitted from September 15, 2014 to October 15, 2014. There is a total of $500,000 that will be allocated based on current funding and size of the program. So, if you want a snapshot of your program’s chances of getting this money, simply divide your budget by the number of students you have. If your dollar-per-student is lower than the state average you will have a great shot at getting a grant.

TMEA has told us that as of September 24, 2014there are only 230 applications filed, that means that even if you have a million dollars in the your budget you should still apply. There are currently 2,800 qualified campuses in Texas so odds are most of you haven’t even heard of this program. Even if you teach programs at multiple schools you can apply, the grant money is program specific not director specific. Even private school programs can get this money so you really have no reason not to apply.

Let’s get one thing straight, though, this music may only be used for sheet music designed for a full ensemble so you won’t be able to fund your next few years of solo and ensemble with this money. It also can’t be used for pop pieces such as show tunes or accompaniment CD’s. A limited number of sight-reading pieces will be acceptable in TMEA’s view. Finally, choral applications with less than 10 individual sheets per piece will be asked to bring that number up to an amount that can serve a choir rather than can be used for perusal. TMEA’s explicit goal is to place challenging music in front of every middle school choir, orchestra and band student in Texas.

Your application will need to be submitted with a quote from a qualified vendor that includes shipping (again, Penders has free shipping on all MSMISP quotes). TMEA will review each piece and let you know if something doesn’t work for the use of the money. If you get the grant the quote will then be sent back to the vendor who will fill your order will be paid directly from TMEA. They are considering allowing refunds and exchanges in extreme scenarios only but will be subject to an approval process at TMEA before they can be completed.

On their site TMEA has outlined some criteria to help you select music appropriate for this program.

Quickly they are:

  • Works that offer insight into significant composers.
  • Works that have cultural, historical relevance as defined by the TEKS.
  • Works that extend the technical demands and musical limitations normally associated with middle school repertoire.
  • Works that can be related to other artistic genre such as dance, visual arts and literature

If you were confused by some of these points don’t worry, so were we.

First, we asked what their definition of a significant composer was. They told us it is going to be anyone of historical or musical significance to include contemporary composers (think Tichelli, Whitacre and the like) and those doing Hollywood music (John Williams, Danny Elfman, Howard Shore and others). But again, NO POP.

In regards to the last point about relating to other genres, they said a piece would qualify under this condition if it could be related to another academic subject and specifically quoted ‘Of Sailors and Whales’ by Francis McBeth to relate to literature, ‘Solitary Dancer’ by Warren Benson to relate to dance and any piece with multiple time signatures or difficult rhythms to relate to math. Of course, this is not an exhaustive list so be creative when applying this one.

While these may seem restricting, TMEA has told us that anything on the UIL list that is appropriate for the average 6 – 8th grade ensemble will be fair game but they stressed that pieces grade 3 and above are their preference. This list is primarily meant to guide your selection of music outside the UIL list.

TMEA wants to work with you to provide your students with the best music education available. They will be reviewing each application personally and will do line by line acceptance of pieces rather than whole application rejection or acceptance. If something you selected is outside their expectations they will contact you. But feel free to contact TMEA or Penders with any questions or concerns you may have.

 TMEA wants to give you $1000 in music and my barber always told me to never reject money more than once.

 Get your application in now! Penders can help you do it. If you have any more questions then please email or call us (our information is below). You can also send us your list of music and we will return your proposal within one business day so you can get your application in quickly.

 Pender’s Music Co

 band@penders.com choir@penders.com orchestra@penders.com

1 (800) 772-5918

Elementary Music Resources

Dr. Vicky V. Johnson, Assistant Professor and Area Coordinator at Tarleton State University (Stephenville, TX), has compiled a comprehensive website of music resources, including some valuable elementary music links. Here is one of them, which is sourced from the TMEA website, on tips for new teachers:

Teaching Resources

As part of our commitment to excellence in music education for all students, TMEA supports its members through a myriad of professional development opportunities. TMEA sponsors Region workshops with grant funding, hosts the annual clinic/convention that offers hundreds of hours of professional development opportunities, partners in a mentoring network for teachers, provides pedagogical resources through its monthly magazine, and offers additional resources through this website.

Teaching the Fine Arts TEKS

The backbone of fine arts instruction in Texas, the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills TEKS, help educators structure instruction around what students should know and be able to do by the end of each grade level in art, dance, music, and theatre. The Center for Educator Development in Fine Arts CEDFA supports fine arts teachers in implementing the Fine Arts TEKS. This network began as a cadre of educators and administrators trained by CEDFA to provide professional development workshops specifically targeted on TEKS implementation. CEDFA offers resources through its website and hosts statewide fine arts summits that focus on teaching strategies aligned with the TEKS. The CEDFA Summits serve as the only venue for educators from all four fine arts disciplines to meet and discuss relevant issues such as assessment and integration of the arts with other academic disciplines.

Fine Arts TEKS

TAC Chapter 117

The Texas Original Score Contest Wants You!

How would you like to win up to $25,000 for your choir? Wouldn’t that be something? $25,000, to put toward important supplies and resources for your school’s music program.

Well, as the well-known slogan says…State Farm is there [to give you a chance to win money for your choir]. That’s right. All you have to do is enter the Texas Original Score Contest, a combined initiative courtesy of TMEA and State Farm Insurance.

With a commitment of  $100,000 from State Farm, a Texas high school music program has the potential to win up to $25,000! All you and your students have to do is create and perform an original score that reflects something great about the state of Texas. One of the beauties of this particular contest is that schools of all sizes can get involved, and be judged appropriately. 1A-3A high schools will compete in one pool; 4A-5A in another. Additionally, you can use just one part of your fine arts program (i.e. the choir), or combine the efforts of everyone, and produce a collaborative project among multiple music groups (choir, band, orchestra, etc) from your school.

What do you need to do? In a nutshell:

  • compose an original score that reflects something great about Texas,
  • bring together an ensemble of high school student musicians to perform the composition

Winning ensembles will be determined based on their composite score comprising three components: (1) the number of votes received in relation to the total possible number of votes in the contest (500 points), (2) score received from Texas Original Score Contest Adjudication panel based on standard TMEA/UIL competition criteria and integration of TEKS in the collaboration and creation process (250 points), and (3) score received from music industry adjudication panel, including members of Los Lonely Boys and other music industry professionals.

Go to the contest website to download the teacher handbook, review the rules, and learn more about how you and your students can participate.

(information courtesy of TMEA & OriginalScoreContest.com)

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