<body><div><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=0eKRyW_1AswvpKm00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=0eKRyW_1AswvpKm00" width="1200" height="600" >ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - Students from an Anchorage middle school got to perform at a “bucket list” destination this month.On April 19, Goldenview Middle School students ranging in age from sixth to eighth grades performed at Carnegie Hall in New York City. “To be honest, I didn’t know what Carnegie Hall was until we were going to perform there,” Cooper Hamilton, a Goldenview eighth-grader, said. “But when I searched it up online and just looked, I was so surprised that I would be able to perform in a place like that.”On April 19, in front of more than 2,000 people, Hamilton performed three pieces, along with 66 other Goldenview Middle School students. The choir also sang six pieces as part of a 260-person multigenerational choir that featured people from across the country.“It was a cool experience being able to go there and perform in such a venue like that. Really blessed,” Hamilton said.The work to get to Carnegie Hall, though, was nothing short of easy. According to Goldenview Middle School choir director Lesli Olson, her students were selected after she submitted an application consisting of recordings of them singing. Then, early one September day, she said she received the call that they had been accepted.“Literally, my husband was asleep in bed, and I rolled out of bed and was like silent screaming on the floor when I found out,” Olson said.According to Olson, students raised all the funds for the trip. She said it costs around $3,300 for each student to go to New York.Olson, alongside her students, spent hours rehearsing before and after school.“I put up in Canvas practice tracks available for them to listen to, to help prepare them. It was a lot of commitment for the students,” Olson said.“I really think that one of the reasons why the kids were so prepared is because they came from — they’re products of ASD elementary music. And so they came to me prepared, even these sixth graders.” Those opportunities for music education in Anchorage School District (ASD) schools are now facing the chopping block as the district warns of upcoming cuts to its fine arts programs.“I’m sad. I’m angry. I’m scared,” Olson said. “I’m scared for the kids that are coming into elementary school that are not going to have all of the opportunities and music that these current students have or previous students have had, it’s so sad. It’s so sad.”Across ASD, staffing and programs are facing deep cuts as the district attempts to fix a $90 million budget deficit.On the list of programs being cut are the district’s fine arts programs. ASD previously told Alaska’s News Source that 12 fine arts teachers were notified that they were being laid off earlier this month.“It’s just so sad what a wonderful experience we’ve had, and to know that these experiences are going away district-wide, statewide,” Olson said. “There are so many dedicated teachers, and there are so many students that love music. As you can see, they’re so passionate about it. And it’s going away. It’s so sad.”ASD spokesperson Corey Young told Alaska’s News Source in a statement that Goldenview Middle School’s choir program will remain in place. Meanwhile, the school’s brand program will lose two beginning band classes due to staffing cut, Young said. He said this will reduce student access to the program. “These changes mean fewer opportunities for students to participate in some music classes, though choir itself is not being eliminated. Districtwide, an assistant director position has been cut, reducing overall support for Fine Arts programs. In addition, an increased pupil-to-teacher ratio and staffing reductions mean schools must prioritize core classes, limiting elective offerings like music,” Young said via a statement. Young added that the district does not have a specific number of choir or band programs that will be cut, but says access to these programs will decrease district-wide. See a spelling or grammar error? Report it to web@ktuu.com</div></body>

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ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - Students from an Anchorage middle school got to perform at a “bucket list” destination this month. On April 19, Goldenview Middle School students ranging in age from sixth to eighth grades performed at Carnegie Hall in New York City. “To be honest, I didn’t...

Goldenview Middle School choir performs at Carnegie Hall amid program cuts

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ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - Students from an Anchorage middle school got to perform at a “bucket list” destination this month. On April 19, Goldenview Middl

Goldenview Middle School choir performs at Carnegie Hall amid program cuts

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