“Music! Just Imagine…” Contest Inspires Eloquent Words from Young Music Students
World’s Largest Concert® will Feature Essays from Contest Sponsored by MENC: The National Association for Music Education
RESTON, VA (February 6, 2009) — MENC: The National Association for Music Education announced the finalists in the “Music! Just Imagine…” Essay Contest. The essay contest challenged K-6 music students to write about the ways they were inspired by music starting with the phrase “I imagine…”
The essays were judged by a panel of MENC members. Of the more than 200 entries, 25 were chosen as the top finalists, and ten of these as the top winners. A selection of the finalists’ essays will be featured in the 2009 World’s Largest Concert®, a sing-along event sponsored by MENC. The 2009 World’s Largest Concert will take place on Thursday, March 12, 2009 in schools and communities throughout the nation and around the world.
MENC president Barbara Geer said, “I chose ‘Music! Just Imagine…’ as MENC’s national theme because imagination is often regarded as the deeply creative faculty which perceives the basic resemblances between ideas. Music also opens countless doors for creativity, and the possibilities for using that creativity are endless. These essays have helped students reach into their poetic capacities to find the words that will help them to discover the range and variety of what they are capable of feeling.
“It is my hope that as MENC begins a season of change we will continue to be the leading advocate for music as an essential part of a quality, comprehensive education through imagination and creativity,” added Geer. “My thanks to everyone who participated in this contest — I feel that all of you are winners!”
As part of an ongoing collaboration with MENC, Nintendo of America Inc. is providing Wii consoles and Wii Music™ games to the schools of the top 10 essay contest winners in the students’ names. MENC teachers in 51 cities nationwide are currently using Wii Music in their classrooms, showcasing the fun array of tutorial exercises on rhythm, tempo and song structure found in the game. Nintendo of America Inc., based in Redmond, Wash., serves as headquarters for Nintendo’s operations in the Western Hemisphere.
For more information on the World’s Largest Concert, visit www.menc.org/wlc. The essay contest finalists and winners are listed below.
Top 25 Finalists (Listed by State)
Maddie Ruth Crook, Northside Intermediate School, Opelika, AL; Teacher: Karen Hickok
Bryant Parnell, Marion Intermediate School, Marion, AR; Teacher: Barry Bates
Merry Pham, Iva Meairs Elementary School, Garden Grove, CA; Teacher: Perry Paxton
Morgane Butler, Saint Bernard School, Uncasville, CT; Teacher: Wallis Johnson
Joshua Breauchy, Binks Forest Elementary School, Wellington, FL; Teacher: Karen LaFrance
Quinn Whitlock, Adairsville Elementary School, Adairsville, GA; Teacher: Kim Sutton
Kelsey Hofman, Pella Christian Grade School, Pella, IA; Teacher: Kris DeWild
Monica Mazurek, Holmes Junior High School, Mt. Prospect, IL; Teacher: Jayne Wilkins-Scott
Jocelyn Meyers, Warwick Elementary School, Secretary, MD; Teacher: Jamie Rothe
Heather Evans, Hickory County R-1 School, Urbana, MO; Teacher: Jennifer Kelley
Jordan Chwalik, Voyager Academy, Durham, NC; Teacher: Amy Daw
Shruthi Vaidyaselvan, Ranney School, Tinton Falls, NJ; Teacher: Lillianne Torrente
Haley Black, Weedsport Elementary School, Weedsport, NY; Teacher: Mary Buchmann
Jessica Dauer, William Street School, Lancaster, NY; Teacher: Nicole Bell
Marlena Maura, Jefferson Elementary School, Rotterdam, NY; Teacher: Kathleen Bragle
Elizabeth McCanna, Cherry Valley Elementary School, Newark, OH; Teacher: Cara Bieber
Brendan Record, Grove City Area School District, Grove City, PA; Teacher: James Jaskowak
Riley McGowan, Rose Tree Elementary School, Media, PA; Teacher: Eileen McIntyre
Rosina Anwar, Howe Elementary School, Pittsburgh, PA; Teacher: Carol Froehlich
Allie Buckmaster, St. George’s Independent Schools, Collierville, TN; Teacher: Cheri Hughes
Gabrielle Bolen, Spotsylvania Middle School, Spotsylvania, VA; Teacher: Deborah Tripp
Leiya Lacey, Grass Lake Elementary School, Kent, WA; Teacher: Sharon Johnson
Maddy Payment, Grass Lake Elementary School, Kent, WA; Teacher: Patricia Deming
Bella Lenz, Yahara Elementary School, Stoughton, WI; Teacher: Elisabeth Benson
Yaseen Najeeb, University School of Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI; Teacher: Linda Lak
Top 10 Winners (Listed by State)
Bryant Parnell, Marion Intermediate School, Marion, AR; Teacher: Barry Bates
Morgane Butler, Saint Bernard School, Uncasville, CT; Teacher: Wallis Johnson
Quinn Whitlock, Adairsville Elementary School, Adairsville, GA; Teacher: Kim Sutton
Jocelyn Meyers, Warwick Elementary School, Secretary, MD; Teacher: Jamie Rothe
Heather Evans, Hickory County R-1 School, Urbana, MO; Teacher: Jennifer Kelley
Jessica Dauer, William Street School, Lancaster, NY; Teacher: Nicole Bell
Elizabeth McCanna, Cherry Valley Elementary School, Newark, OH; Teacher: Cara Bieber
Riley McGowan, Rose Tree Elementary School, Media, PA; Teacher: Eileen McIntyre
Leiya Lacey, Grass Lake Elementary School, Kent, WA; Teacher: Sharon Johnson
Yaseen Najeeb, University School of Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI; Teacher: Linda Lak
MENC: The National Association for Music Education, the world’s largest arts education organization, marked its centennial in 2007 as the only association that addresses all aspects of music education. More than 142,000 members and supporters include educators representing all levels of teaching from preschool to graduate school. Since 1907, MENC has worked to ensure that every student has access to a well-balanced, comprehensive, and high-quality program of music instruction taught by qualified teachers. MENC’s activities and resources have been largely responsible for the establishment of music education as a profession, for the promotion and guidance of music study as an integral part of the school curriculum, and for the development of the National Standards for Arts Education. MENC is located at the National Center for Music Education in Reston, VA.
