SMTE Statement and Resources

The SMTE Board is deeply troubled by the current events in our country. As the organization within the National Association for Music Education that speaks for teacher education, the Society for Music Teacher Education supports the June 4th statement by NAfME, “What We Believe: Black Lives Matter.”

We believe Black, Indigenous, and People of Color when they say they experience a different life in this country compared with the experiences of White individuals. We believe that their voices should be heard and also that they are often not heard.  As the leadership of a majority white professional society, led by a board who is majority white, please know that we are listening. We strongly encourage our members to listen, engage, and act.  The SMTE board also will be discussing how we, too, can better listen, engage and act as an organization.  Please contact a board member, state chair, or ASPA facilitator with suggestions for how we—as a society and working with NAfME at large—can improve in these areas.

As a music teacher educator, if you are unsure of what to do, confused about the variety of issues surrounding and including racism, or would like resources for your teaching, please consider the resources SMTE members have made available through these venues:

Music Education for Social Change: Constructing an Activist Music Education by Juliet Hess

Marginalized Voices in Music Education edited by Brent Talbot