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STEUBENVILLE -- Steubenville City Schools Fourth-Grade Music Enrichment program will hold a showcase and awards ceremony at 6 p.m. today in the Steubenville High School auditorium. Music educator Glory Dami, who heads the enrichment program, said students will showcase the skills they learned throughout the year. Among the skills are choral arrangements, folk songs and the school's alma mater.
The 30 music enrichment students in the program represent all four of the district's elementary schools, including East Garfield and Pugliese West elementary schools, McKinley STEM Academy and Wells Academy. They will be presented with individual certificates for their achievements, Dami noted.
"At the end of each school year, each upcoming fourth-grade student in the district is screened for possible music-gifted traits," she explained. "Students earning a qualifying score on the screening are then invited to take part in the assessment process based on the guidelines set forth by the Ohio Department of Education. Students are assessed in the areas of melody, rhythm, vocal technique and improvisation. The top scores are then invited to take part in the SCS Fourth-Grade Music Enrichment program."
"Music enrichment students have been meeting after school once per week since the beginning of the school year, providing musically-gifted fourth-grade students with exposure to higher-level musical concepts and activities," Dami said. "The showcase is the closing event for the program as they prepare to advance their fine arts education at Harding Middle School."
The program dates back to 1991. It was begun by the high school's choir director and district's fine arts department head, Scott Wolodkin. The program went through several phases, evolving to its current format in 2020. This format was created by Abby Macre, Harding Middle School choir director, and Jacqueline Reeves, the district's director of gifted education. The present version of the showcase and awards has been held since 2021.
The event is free and draws approximately 100 people in attendance.