The Sound of Music Reaches Across Oregon

Over the years school districts have had to cut back on music programs in order to balance the books.  One Portland non profit has stepped in to fill that gap.  Ethos Music Center was founded in 1998 and now provides music lessons, performances and outreach to thousands of kids across Oregon every year.   The center got it’s start in the basement at the University of Portland and was staffed by volunteers.  Since then it’s grown to employ an administrative staff, ten full time Ameri-Corps members and more than 30 part time music instructors.  The idea is to teach music, which is something almost everyone loves, to kids in rural and low income areas.

The President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities has named Ethos one of the top 50 after-school arts programs in the U.S. eight times since 2003.  We’ve named them a KXL Everyday Hero for their work to teach Oregon kids music.

There’s a big fundraising event this month at Rossi Farms on NE 122nd in Portland.   Here’s the link for tickets:  https://ethos.ejoinme.org/MyEvents/EthosOvation2022/tabid/1289055/Default.aspx

Ethos has a motto:  that all students deserve access to the well documented benefits of music education regardless of socioeconomic status, geographic location, abilities, religion, race, ethnicity, culture, national origin, gender identity, or sexual orientation.

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