©2025 Ohio Music Education Association
Committee Updates
40 Years of Music In Our Schools Month®: United Through Music
Grace Dickmann
Music education has been a pivotal foundation in regards to development, proficiency, and identity for millions of students. Many of these students begin developing these foundations within our schools, which is why Music In Our Schools Month® is celebrated widely within the United States and throughout the world. What started as “Music in Our Schools Day” back in 1973 at the New York State School Association, quickly turned into a week-long celebration in 1977 created by MENC (which is now NAfME). Since 1985, music educators have been using the entire month of March to celebrate music in our schools. 2025 marks 40 years of this month-long celebration, and NAfME has chosen this year’s MIOSM® theme to be, “United Through Music.”
Over the years, MIOSM® has been celebrated in a variety of ways. Traditionally, it has been celebrated via concerts, which began in 1985 as music educators and students had the opportunity to sing the same concert program within their schools at the same time. While performing themed concerts is still a popular thing to do for Music In Our Schools Month®, there are other ways to celebrate as well, such as: creating MIOSM® song brackets for your students and staff to listen to and vote on, changing your profile pictures on social media throughout the month of March to include MIOSM® filters, discussing the importance of music education with your students, community and administrators, taking your students on a field trip to listen to another group’s musical performance, and so much more!
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When thinking about how to advocate for your program during MIOSM®, I encourage you to think of this year’s theme: United Through Music. What pieces can we present to our students that center around unity? What discussions can we start that cause us to unite through music: as an ensemble, as a school, and as a community?
This month, be on the lookout for information regarding a lesson plan that you can share with your students regarding Music In Our Schools Month®. I encourage you to also check out the NAfME website under the MIOSM® tab, as there are many resources for you to utilize, such as: logos and program inserts for MIOSM® concerts, ideas for how to celebrate MIOSM®, advocacy resources, and more history on MIOSM®. Lastly, I would love to hear about what you did in your classroom to celebrate Music in Our Schools Month®. Please email me with what activities you did for a chance to be featured in the next TRIAD issue! I look forward to hearing about how you and your students are celebrating music in your school, and how together, we can unite through music.
Grace Dickmann is in her 4th year of teaching K-12 Choir at Leipsic Local Schools. She also serves as Leipsic’s Assistant Marching Band director and school musical director. Grace graduated from Findlay High School (‘17) and holds a Bachelor’s degree in Music Education from Bowling Green State University (‘21). Grace currently serves as the OMEA State MIOSM® chair as well as the Advocacy Chair for OMEA District 3.