One of the cornerstones of the Philadelphia Folksong Society’s mission has always been education. Since 1974, the Society has brought music into Philadelphia, Pennsylvania area schools to connect children with our collective musical heritage, perform songs that relate to both students AND curriculum, and to let every single child know that they can be musical and creative every day.
In 1974 bringing music into schools was a novelty. Now in 2017… the Odyssey Program is a necessity. The School District of Philadelphia laid off THIRTY music educators at the end of the 2016 school year, and with more uncertainty surrounding the future of arts education than ever before, the Odyssey program has become more vital to our children’s future than its founders could have ever imagined forty-three years ago.
Pete Seeger said, “The key to the future of the world, is finding the optimistic stories and letting them be known.” Our Odyssey performers and educators do that every time they work with our future – our children.
Please consider the future of music education in our region by making a donation to support the Odyssey of American Music education program today.