Newark Schools Get Gift Of 100 Musical Instruments

NEWARK, NJ — Money is fleeting, but music lasts forever.

On Sept. 21, New York City-based classical music station WQXR donated almost 100 musical instruments ranging from clarinets to French horns and acoustic guitars to seven Newark public schools. The instruments will support music programs at Harriet Tubman Elementary School, East Side High School, Elliot Street School, Technology High School, Roberto Clemente, Branch Brook School and Barringer Academy of the Arts & Humanities, school officials stated.

The instruments were gathered as part of the station’s 2016 donation drive, officials stated.

“Music helps students develop in almost every other area of their education including language and reasoning,” Harriet Tubman Elementary School instrumental music teacher Shariff Elhagin said.

To date, the drive has collected more than 5,000 instruments which have been distributed to more than 150 schools and community programs in the New York metro area and impacting more than 20,000 students, according to a news release.

WQXR partnered with the New York City Department of Education and Newark Public Schools for the 2016 drive.

The WQXR Instrument Drive is supported by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation, the Robert and Mercedes Eichholz Foundation, Thomas S. and Patricia Bain, and InterContinental New York Barclay.

“Music education is such an important and often overlooked part of a student’s educational development,” Newark Schools Superintendent Christopher Cerf said. “WQXR’s generous donation will give the gift of music to more of our students and also help a new generation of young people develop an appreciation for the arts.”

Photo: Newark Public Schools

Send local news tips, photos and press releases to eric.kiefer@patch.com