GRANGER, Iowa — As students are preparing to return to school from winter break, the Woodward-Granger Community School District Foundation is looking to complete its band expansion project in the new year.
Starting in fifth grade, students in the district get to experience the world of music, allowing them to try their hand at a new skill and perform with their classmates.
“There's so many great advantages to music,” said Kerry Jo Smith, secretary for the Woodward-Granger Community School District Foundation. "Math and being able to count and creativity and all of that kind of stuff can go into what band provides for students."
But as the district has seen major growth in recent years, tight budgets have kept the school bands from getting the resources they need.
"A couple years ago, we had 50 kids in our fifth grade class. And this year, there's 80," Smith said. "Our school just has a really hard time kind of keeping up with that, when it comes to important things like just instrument costs.”
That need sparked an effort from the district’s foundation to expand the bands that so many students love to be apart of.
Thanks to community contributions, the foundation was able to bring in new instruments for band members, allowing more kids to take part.
“If you provide an instrument, there will be a kid to play it," Smith said. "So besides just the growth in the number of students, there's also been a major growth in our band."
The foundation is now entering the third and final phase of their project, raising money for more unique instruments, like the flugelhorn and sousaphone. Smith hopes it will bring more color to their band.
While they hope that community partners will step in to provide grants, community members can help too, as the foundation looks to level up their school bands in 2024. Donations can be made on their website.