For information specific to the unique challenges of 2025, please click here.
The Spirit of Harmony Foundation has compiled the list below to provide music programs in schools and organizations with helpful information and ideas about many resources available to them.
NAMM Foundation
Guitar Center Foundation
The Guitar Center Music Foundation is an independent 501c3 organization dedicated to the healing, transformative power of music. Through instrument grants and donations, they help ensure schools and music education programs get the resources they need to keep music alive and accessible. Please visit their website for application information.
Grants 101: Funding Opportunities for School Music Programs
This helpful resource guide by Wenger Corporation offers a step-by-step introduction to crafting a proposals to request financial assistance from a grant-making organization, such as a government agency, foundation, or corporate entity. A successful grant proposal demonstrates the value and impact of the project and persuades the grantor that your music classroom is a worthy investment.
Arts ARE Education
Arts ARE Education is a new national campaign in support of arts education for all students. All PreK-12 students have the right to a high-quality school-based arts education in dance, music, theatre, and visual arts taught by certified professional arts educators in partnership with community arts providers. As a well-rounded subject area under federal education law, the Every Students Succeeds Act, music and the arts support the social and emotional well-being of students, foster a welcoming and safe school environment, and encourage inclusivity through multiple pathways for every child’s creative voice.
Click here for their EXCELLENT Advocacy Toolkit.
National Association for Music Education
A collaborative community supporting music educators at the national and state level:
- Providing students access to a well-rounded education (e.g. music and arts),
- Supporting safe and healthy students (e.g. comprehensive school mental health, drug and violence prevention, training on trauma-informed practices, health and physical education) and
- Supporting the effective use of technology (professional development, blended learning, devices).
NAFME has a very helpful Advocacy section. And here are some excellent additional resources.
Music Resource Guide for Students and a Note on Scout Badges:
A number of children have earned a scouting Music Badge by utilizing the resources in this Spirit of Harmony Music Education Advocacy Toolkit. Several have even organized a community instrument drive as their Eagle Scout Project!
Special shout-out to Noah, a Boy Scout from North Carolina, whose research led him to his excellent additional resource that he shared with us: Music Resource Guide for Students
It is a pleasure for us to add this to our Toolkit. Thank you Noah!
Music Education Works!
This is an international website that posts the latest and greatest music education information from around the world. Excellent resource! www.musiceducationworks.com
Do Re Mi Project
To provide free online music support for elementary and middle school students. The website includes a comprehensive resource guide. For more information, please visit: https://www.doremiproject.org.
Music Unites
This NYC-based organization connects students in underserved communities with budding musicians, offering music appreciation programming and collective performances between students and musicians. For more information, please visit: www.musicunites.org.
VH-1’s Save the Music
Donating millions of dollars worth of musical instruments each year, VH-1’s Save the Music Foundation is one of the most well-known philanthropic funds for music education. For more information, please visit: www.vh1savethemusic.org.
Music Will (formerly Little Kids Rock)
Music Will partners with public school districts in some of the nation’s most economically disadvantaged communities with the goal of ensuring that all students (K-12) have access to music education and its many benefits: www.musicwill.org
Music Farming
At Music Farming, the vision is to create a world where music education is available to all who want it; a world where every student can experience the pure joy of creating music. By collecting membership dues from businesses and contributing those funds to nonprofit music education organizations, they put teachers in students’ lives, instruments in their hands, and music in their future. For more information, please visit: musicfarming.org
Music Notes – A Guide to Music for Kids
Music is not only a way to have fun, but it also has been proven to have incredible developmental benefits for kids. Listening to music helps them learn sounds and the meaning of words. While dancing allows them to built motor skills, practice self-expression, and improve memory. However, teaching music to kids can prove to be challenging. This is the exact reason SeatUp created this resource. This guide introduces music theory, the different styles of music, what types of instruments that are available, directions for music games to make learning fun, and it provides several more excellent resources for those looking to continue learning about specific topics covered in this piece. Please click here.
Best Colleges
The team at BestColleges.com wants to equip individuals who are set on pursuing a musical career with the tools to help them succeed and create a career that will be life-long and fulfilling. We curated a Music Career Series dedicated to music majors and professionals that talk about programs, curriculum, and career outlook. Take a look below:
Children’s Music Workshop
Children’s Music Workshop is an Emmy® award winning music education company which specializes in a variety of products and services including custom designed band and orchestra method books, school-site music instruction, music education advocacy and more. http://www.childrensmusicworkshop.com/
Gift of Music Foundation
The Gift of Music Foundation is dedicated to creating greater accessibility to music programs, instruments, teachers, and the overall benefits of music education. For more information, please visit their website.
The Music Education Resource Network (MERN), The Foundation for Music Education
MERN is a mentoring initiative started by the Foundation for Music Education, which helps music educators to improve their skills in the classroom. For more information, please visit: http://www.foundationformusiceducation.org/music-educator-resource-network-mern.
D’Addario Foundation
The D’Addario Foundation is a unique non-profit grant-making organization providing monetary and product support to high-quality sustainable music instruction programs on the frontline to improve access to music education. They support programs that bring music back into communities and schools and get kids playing as early and as frequently as possible. The D’Addario Foundation believes in the transformative power of music and that mentoring and building communities through music can positively affect social change. To apply: http://www.daddariofoundation.org/
Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation
The Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation keeps music alive in our schools by donating musical instruments to under-funded music programs, and vital support services to school districts nationwide, giving economically-disadvantaged youth access to the many benefits of music education, leading them to success in school, and inspiring creativity and expression through playing music. To apply: https://www.mhopus.org/
Manilow Music Project
The Manilow Music Project empowers underfunded school music programs to provide quality music education. By donating instruments and equipment and providing scholarships nationwide, they give disadvantaged young people the opportunity to experience community, passion, and creativity through the gift of music. To apply: www.manilowmusicproject.org
Fender Play Foundation
One of the world’s most respective guitar manufacturers, Fender, also hosts a foundation dedicated to providing musical instruments for music education programs in communities as well as in schools. For more information, please visit: http://www.fenderplayfoundation.org/
Local Service Clubs and Organizations
Within every community, there are Service Organizations and Service Clubs that can be an amazing resource. Rotary, Lions, Zonta, Optimist, Kiwanis, Chambers of Commerce, Alumni groups, Junior Achievement, Scouts, Community Foundations, VFW/American Legion, unions or professional organizations, sororities and fraternities, religious/faith organizations…. the list goes on and on. These are organizations that exist for the purpose of community support, and many organizations are always looking for someone to come in as a guest speaker at a membership meeting or special event. Coming in as a speaker provides a perfect opportunity to inspire the organizations to support your music program with fundraisers, partnerships, and monetary gifts. Please reach out locally, and you will be surprised at what you will find nearby.
The Wide World of Music
This super-cool interactive website was shared with us by Denise Goodwin and her troop of Junior Girl Scouts from Lyndhurst, New Jersey, who have been using our Music Education Advocacy Toolkit for their “Musician” Badges. Thanks girls! Seriously, this site is big fun! Click here.
Some Helpful Links and Articles About Starting a Band Program
- Starting A School Band Program With Next To No Budget
- Schmitt Music’s “start up” programs
- Planning and Operating After School Programs