MSU Community Music School-Detroit provides music education for all ages

<p>“Jill runs a really extraordinary program that represents Michigan State so nicely in Detroit on the street named after Jill on Woodward Avenue in Downtown Detroit,” quips Beekman. “So Jill, give us a sense of what the program's about and a little bit of background on what happens at the <a href="https://cms.msu.edu/detroit/">Community Music School in Detroit</a>.”<br> <br>“We’re in the MSU Detroit Center just a stone's throw from the new Little Caesars Arena,” says Woodward. “And we actually just celebrated our 10th anniversary if you can believe it. I like to say we're one of the best kept secrets in music education in Detroit because we really don't spend as much time as we should tooting our own horn. We’re too busy doing the work. But the <a href="https://twitter.com/msucms">Community Music School</a> is another way for MSU to share the resources of the university with Detroiters and with families from across Southeast Michigan.<br> <br>“We provide music for all ages, abilities, and incomes. But what's most important, I think, in this day and age is that we remove the economic barriers to participation in really high-quality music education for our low-income families. When you think about some of the issues that our society is thinking about, especially right now, like diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging, the arts are one of those things that are not as accessible to everyone as we would hope they might be. It can be very expensive to rent or buy an instrument or to take private lessons, especially if you don't have that in your school. <br> <br>“<a href="https://www.wkar.org/post/college-music-integral-part-msu-culture#stream/0">Dean Forger</a> looked at the situation 10 years ago and was like, ‘Geez, we really have to step up.’ It's important for all children to have access to this curriculum. We know there are just reams of research about the benefits of music study and what that does for people of all ages. But for babies and for youth development, the the skills that we really need