On today’s podcast, I sit down with Seth Williams of Music for All. Well, he WAS with Music for All when we talked, anyway—now he’s attending law school! Seth Williams is the former Advocacy Coordinator for Music for All. Seth has been involved with Music for All and its programs for nearly ten years – […]


The post Seth Williams, Advocacy Coordinator for Music for All appeared first on Kathleen Heuer.

On today’s podcast, I sit down with Seth Williams of Music for All. Well, he WAS with Music for All when we talked, anyway—now he’s attending law school!


Seth Williams is the former Advocacy Coordinator for Music for All. Seth has been involved with Music for All and its programs for nearly ten years – as a participant, volunteer, event staff, intern and full-time staffer. He recently relocated to Los Angeles, where he attends UCLA School of Law. Seth is an active advocate for music education and the arts. While at MFA, he curated advocacy content, represented Music for All in the state and national arts advocacy community and developed new advocacy and awareness initiatives for the organization.


Here are the highlights of my conversation with Seth Williams:

0:52 Meet Seth!


1:25 Advocacy: Music for All’s vision


2:05 A typical day for Seth in the Music for All office


2:48 The digital tools he depends on


4:17 Advocacy isn’t just sending letters or attending rallies


5:44 The importance of new media in advocacy


6:20 The case for blogging


7:46 Proactive vs. reactive advocacy


8:19 The importance of attending school board meetings—before issues arise


10:20 How parents can make a difference on local, state and national levels


11:59 Recruiting volunteers the MFA way (and following Fran Kick’s advice!)


12:51 Volunteer burnout


13:12 Matching volunteers’ skills to tasks


13:36 Parent recognition


14:47 Seth’s alma mater


15:17 Fundraising: “Any idea is worth trying once.”


16:15 A creative fundraiser that’s successful on several levels


17:43 Seth gets the last word



Resources

Fanfare: the weekly advocacy blog post Seth curated for Music for All


Advocacy websites Seth recommends:

SupportMusic.com
nammfoundation.org
namm.org
http://blog.artsusa.org/
http://www.americansforthearts.org/
http://onevoice.pta.org/
groundswell.nafme.org
http://www.ed.gov/blog/
http://standforthearts.com/

This is a good way to find state advocates: http://www.americansforthearts.org/by-program/networks-and-councils/state-arts-action-network


For news/articles, two of Seth’s favorites are:

http://www.artsjournal.com/
http://www.thomascott.com/ – “You’ve Cott Mail”

Volunteering with Music for All


Patrick John Hughes Parent/Booster Award: 2014 nominations due September 15!


Seth’s alma mater: Centerville H.S. (OH)


The creative fundraiser Carmel H.S. (IN) took on


The digital tools Seth mentioned:

Feedly
Google alerts
Buffer

 


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The post Seth Williams, Advocacy Coordinator for Music for All appeared first on Kathleen Heuer.