Grammy winner Chad Smith, drummer of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, recently made a trip to Washington DC to advocate for music education and appear as part of The National Association of Music Merchants' annual D.C. Fly-In. Smith is extremely proactive about the issue and supports many groups associated with music education, including, but not limited to, Little Kids Rock, Music Drives Us, Fender Music Foundation, and Percussion Marketing Council's Percussion In The Schools campaign.
"If there hadn't been a music program in my public schools, I would not be where I am today," Smith said during the SupportMusic Award presentation last week.
When schools are looking to make budget cuts, the arts are usually first to go, but statistics show that music programs increase school attendance and graduation rates, with a reported 90.2% graduation rate compared to 72.9% at schools that didn't have arts programs.