Ukulele fundraiser underway for students

Mr.+Conlon+and+his+ukulele.

Photo by Paul Apfelbeck

Mr. Conlon and his ukulele. He hopes to be teaching our students how to play this instrument soon.

By MORGAN MALEMUTE, staff writer

Matthew Conlon, the school counselor on the SHS campus, is raising money for his Galena Alaska Ukulele Program.  

Mr. Conlon says the program will help kids succeed in reading, mathematicsand fine motor skills.  

Teaching students to play an instrument will help the build social skills, math skills and literacy skills,” said Mr. Conlon. 

His expectation for this program is that eventually every student will be able to play an instrument, and learning music also helps teachers incorporate metacognition into their lessons and curriculum.  

His hope is to have every kid to play the ukulele 

The idea for the program is came from another program in Juneau, Alaska, called JAAM (Juneau Alaska Music Matters). JAAM is a tuition-free music program, which uses the power of music and the social experience of ensemble to help youth reach their fullest potential.  

Mr. Conlon has started a fundraiser on DonorsChoose.com to help him purchase instruments This link to the page is Galena Alaska Ukulele Project | DonorsChoose project by Mr. Conlon