WOLFGANG VAN HALEN And Family Donate $100,000 For Schools In Need Of Instruments

The Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation, a national nonprofit organization that supports music programs in schools across the country through instrument donations, has rolled out the Adopt A School campaign nationwide. The new initiative connects qualifying schools in need of musical instruments with donors interested in supporting music education within a local community of their choice.

With generous and transformative support from Eddie Van Halen over the years and now continuing through his son Wolfgang, the Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation is pleased to announce the Van Halen family has committed to kick-starting the Adopt A School campaign with a generous $1,000 donation toward each of the first 100 participating schools.

"Music has been a huge part of my life, and it is our family's great pleasure to help support music education programs and bring the gift of music to students across the country," said Wolfgang Van Halen. "Music education has proven to be a huge contributor toward a student's success in school and in life."

People who wish to donate money to the school of their choice or the campaign's general fund can do so at mhopus.org/adopt-a-school/. Schools interested in participating can get more information by e-mailing [email protected].

"Our mission is to make sure there is an instrument in the hands of every student who needs and wants one," said Tricia Williams, CEO of the Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation. "By increasing schools' inventories of quality, playable instruments, music teachers will have the tools they need to deliver a quality music education to students who want to learn."

In a recent survey of 225 schools across the country conducted by the Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation, 68% reported having to turn away students from the music program because of a lack of instruments; 59% said their students had to share instruments which greatly limited their playing and practice time; and 68% said students were playing aged instruments that are beyond repair which greatly challenged their ability to learn and grow.

Donors can either select a specific school in need to benefit from their donation or contribute to the campaign's general fund. Schools in need are qualified through the organization's vetting and eligibility process, giving donors confidence their investment is protected and sustainable, impacting students for a minimum of 10 years, which is the life span of an instrument in a school setting. Each school has its own campaign page that shows how much money has been donated to-date as well as the overall goal for that school. Once the goal is met, the Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation will use the funds to provide the school with new instruments for its music program.

The Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation keeps music alive in schools across the country by providing vital support services to school districts, and new musical instruments to underfunded music programs nationwide, giving under-represented youth access to the many benefits of music education, leading them to success in school and inspiring creativity and expression through playing music. Since its founding in 1996 the organization has donated more than $33 million worth of instruments to over 1,800 schools. More information is available at MHOpus.org.