Give ‘Teach’ a chance

MARYSVILLE — Sunnyside Elementary students and parents stood in front of the Marysville School District office and sang.

It wasn’t an outdoor concert but a “sing-in,” to support a beloved music teacher.

The group of about 60 people was at the district office Thursday morning to try to

keep Brenda Ehrhardt from being forced to teach at two elementary schools beginning in the fall. Such a move could end popular extracurricular music programs offered at school, said Danielle Kunselman, the parent of two Sunnyside Elementary students.

Choir and the Orff music program are offered outside of the regular school day at Sunnyside Elementary, Kunselman said. The Orff program involves xylophonelike instruments with removable bars that are played with mallets.

She learned of the district’s plan to have Ehrhardt teach music for three days at Sunnyside Elementary and two days at Cascade Elementary on June 21. She started a “<a href="http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/profile.php?id=100002507756294

“>Save Sunnyside’s MusicDept” Facebook group and organized the sing-in event.

“All the extracurricular programs would go away, and the kids would lose a lot,” Kunselman said. “Each grade level has something they do, and she would not be able to do all that in just three days.”

The district is in the process of finalizing a budget for the next school year that includes $5 million in cuts, Superintendent Larry Nyland said. The district has a list of 15 teachers who could be part of a final staff reduction, and is speaking with six employee groups about pay cuts to help balance the budget.

Class sizes in the district’s schools increased because of state budget cuts. Plus, the number of classrooms a Sunnyside Elementary has decreased, said Gail Miller, assistant superintendent. The need to teach fewer classes means the music position at Sunnyside Elementary can be shared at another school where there is a music opening.

“We’re trying to keep people employed as well as continue programming,” Miller said.

Ehrhardt, who has taught at Sunnyside Elementary for the past six years, was happy the sing-in happened to fall on her birthday. She led the students and parents in song and smiled when the group sang “Happy Birthday.” She wasn’t as happy with the district’s plan for Sunnyside music.

“Because of the schedule I don’t see how I can do (choir and the Orff program),” she said. “I don’t see how all kids will get weekly music. The same thing happened at other schools and all the kids do not get music.”

Kate Andrews, 11, held up a “We Love Mrs. Ehrhardt” sign as she sang. Her music teacher organized multiple choir concerts, took students on a field trip to the Experience Music Project in Seattle and led them in the singing of “The Star-Spangled Banner” at an Everett Silvertips’ hockey game this past school year.

Those experiences will be favorite memories of her time in elementary school, said Kate, who will enter Marysville Middle School in the fall. She hopes her younger brother will have the same musical opportunities during his years at Sunnyside.

“Some kids have been waiting ever since kindergarten to do this and they might not get to,” she said.

Amy Daybert: 425-339-3491; adaybert@heraldnet.com.