Following the shocking news last week that Newpark Academy of Music in Co. Dublin is set to close at the beginning of June, a petition has been launched to 'save' the music school – which has already garnered almost 2,500 signatures.

The school's executive director Hilda Chan, along with other teachers and staff, shared a statement online last week, revealing that they had "received a letter from the Board of Directors regarding the closure of the organisation."

"Since receiving this news, myself and the teachers have been actively searching for alternative premises to continue music education and to preserve as many jobs as possible," the post continued. "As the Board has not provided any options, consultation or alternatives, it is now the time for me, as the director, and the teachers to come together to try and preserve the 45-year legacy of music education. And to look after our young children future music education. We are seeking for public and local authorities to assist us at this difficult time."

The school, in which hundreds of students are currently enrolled, is scheduled to close on June 1.

 

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Hilda Chan started the change.org petition to encourage the public to show their support for the 40-strong team behind the music school, particularly in the run-up to the June deadline.

In an update to the petition, Chan has revealed that she and the other staff members are requesting "the resignation of the Board of Directors."

Chan also noted that the staff have alternative premises in place, which they are "working tirelessly to set up" – though they are still seeking "expert advice from professionals such as architects, employment lawyers, marketing specialists, and company lawyers."

Newpark Academy of Music is based in Melfield House on Newtownpark Avenue in Blackrock, Co. Dublin. Originally founded in 1979, it is widely considered to be one of the leading music schools in South Dublin – and is particularly renowned for its jazz department. In 2017, its full-time music education programmes moved to Dublin City University, and were consolidated into a new DCU BA in Jazz and Contemporary Music Performance.

The Journal Of Music reports that, in its letter to staff members, the Board of Directors stated that the decision to close Newpark Academy of Music was 'made in light of the unsustainable trading and financial position the Company finds itself in' – a claim that Hilda Chan has said is 'misleading and inaccurate', according to the publication.

Irish composer and Aosdána member Fergus Johnston is among those who have spoken out about the closure online – noting that his "first proper job" after graduating university in 1982 was at what was then known as the Newpark Music Centre.

"I was impressed most of all by the fact that they placed community service on the top of their list of ideals – the idea that the music school should serve the community in which it was based to the greatest of its ability was always to the fore," he recalled. "For 10 years I taught there, adding Leaving Cert music to the list of courses I offered, along with an adult course in the Adult Education Centre. I watched the Centre grow, I saw the jazz department founded by Ronan and Conor Guilfoyle, saw it flourish..."

He went on to note that he was "appalled by the decision taken by the board to wind the company up."

"When did it become the rule that cultural endeavour should be subject to fiscal fortitude?" he resumed. "You cannot run a school like a business. A business has to make a profit. A school's sole purpose is to educate and foster growth in consciousness. The two things are totally different.

"Newpark Music Centre, instead of closing, should be an active part of a community-based and subsidised education programme, supported by government policy (whether local or otherwise), and funded by the same. Instead of shutting the doors, it should be expanding."

Zrazy – who previously went to No.1 in Ireland with the 1990 World Cup song, ‘Watch Your House (Ooh Ah, Paul McGrath)’, and more recently released ‘Come On Ireland (Giving Us The Right To Dream)’ to coincide with the Women’s World Cup – described the decision as "a depressing disgrace," and urged people to support the petition. They went on to note that Newpark is where one half of the duo, Maria Walsh, "learned the flute, and all that great jazz..."

You can sign the petition to 'Save Newpark Academy of Music' here.

Students from Newpark's Jazz Ensemble Course are set to perform an end of year show at Arthur's, on Thomas St in Dublin 8, this Thursday, May 30.