Music Recruitment and Retention Tips: MSFQ October 2026

More to Start, Fewer to Quit:
Recruit Early, Inspire Students & Grow as an Educator

October is the perfect time to get ahead of next year’s recruitment efforts while keeping current students engaged and excited about making music. In this edition of More to Start, Fewer to Quit (MSFQ), Marcia shares practical strategies for working with school counselors to strengthen enrollment, celebrating beginning students through the First Performance Day of Celebration, and investing in your professional growth. Discover actionable tips to help you recruit more students, improve retention and build a thriving music program.

Recruitment

One of the biggest issues in enrolling students is that directors often start too late. It is never too early to think about recruitment. To achieve success, it is an absolute necessity to meet with those who have an impact on student registration and the creation of the master schedule. This includes counselors, administrators, and fellow performing arts educators.

• START NOW by meeting with your head counselor to determine the registration timeline for this school year. Having this information will keep you from missing these very important dates which could have a significant impact on your program.
• Ask for help to create a “Music Pathways” guide showing how your program (middle or high school) fits with honors/AP, athletics, other electives, and singletons.
• Share the dates of this school year’s scheduled recruitment activities at this meeting to ensure they fall before registration deadlines. (If you haven’t already scheduled multiple, regular recruitment activities, now is the time!)

Action Steps

• Schedule a meeting with the entire counseling department for January to review the established enrollment data/final activities/procedures from this month’s meeting with the head counselor.
• Provide these counselors with individual class lists of students who are to be enrolled in each of your courses prior to the registration deadline. If you will not have this information at this point, get it as soon as possible. Enrollment often begins in February of the current school year for the subsequent year.
• Determine if a signed schedule form is required from the parents.
• Emphasize the need to avoid singleton classes in the master schedule which could cause conflicts with your students.
• Meet their established deadlines WELL AHEAD OF TIME.

Retention

Looking for a great idea to hook your beginning students early and get them excited about performing? Download the FREE First Performance Day of Celebration Toolkit. This annual event engages students, parents, and administrators in a short (30 min), fun, and memorable concert using the music right from your chosen method book.

The following materials are provided online to make it easy to implement.

• Instructions for the Director
• Modifiable Letter of Invitation to Parents (informing them of pertinent information)
• Modifiable Letter to your Principal (asking to serve as concert emcee)
• Modifiable Script (that your principal can use when serving as emcee)
• Modifiable Press Release Template
• Modifiable Certificate of Advancement (from “Beginning Student” to “Member of the Band/Orchestra”)
• Ideas to Enhance the Performance (by inviting high school students to help facilitate)
• Modifiable Certificate of Music Education Leadership (for high school students who help facilitate the performance)

Provided by The NAMM Foundation, the National Association for Music Merchants, and NASMD, the National Association for School Music Dealers, this demonstration concert reduces the beginner dropout rate and provides short-range incentive goals. It celebrates the achievements of the students early in their playing careers and gets them excited for continued music-making.

Success

Invest in Yourself. Professional growth is THE MOST IMPORTANT FACTOR to your success. Make plans and put aside resources now to attend conferences, visit outstanding programs, and observe master teachers. Integrate what you learn into your classroom and share your insights with colleagues. Schedule at least one peer observation or self-reflection day each semester. Keeping your teaching methods fresh prevents burnout—both for you and your students. It’s your choice—work toward becoming a better educator.

Marcia Neel
President, Music Education Consultants, Inc
Senior Director of Education, Yamaha
Education Advisor, Music Achievement Council

About MSFQ

Standing for “More to Start, Fewer to Quit,” MSFQ is an open-source, monthly email brought to you by the Music Achievement Council. Each month, this free resource will feature a recruiting idea, retention idea, and tip for success for music educators. The goal is to provide timely and impactful ideas that allow educators to grow their programs by recruiting new students and retaining current students.

Discover more strategies to strengthen your program. Explore the Music Educator Resources.