Who are our students? What makes us unique? What are our historical roots?
Who Comes to Pakachoag?
Do we have a “typical” student profile?
No. Pakachoag students come from a wide range of backgrounds and circumstances. Our graduates often go on to 2- and 4- year colleges and universities; some enter into trades or the military upon completion of high school.
The one common thread among Pakachoag students is an interest in music, creative arts or theater.
Is there anything unique about Pakachoag?
Parents who have experienced music classes and lessons in other settings tell us….
Music Together: Parents tell us their children love the Music Together program due to the strong musical and interpersonal skills of our teachers and the fun, hands-on music-making classes. Parents also appreciate the exceptional quality of the Music Together song collections and the parent support materials provided as part of the Music Together program.
Lessons: In addition to offering teachers with varied backgrounds and approaches to teaching, the private instruction program stands out because of the opportunity for on-going student performance. This includes both casual (performance class) settings and the formal recital setting.
While not all students choose or may not immediately be ready to participate in the performance program, those who do find that performances serve as great motivational tool, provide a sense of accomplishment, and allow students to meet other young people who also enjoy music. Teachers are able to better map the progress and needs of students when observing a student in performance.
We also make an effort to match students with a teacher who will meet the student’s needs as closely as possible taking into consideration learning style and interests.
All of our teachers are accomplished musicians and experienced teachers.
Who Started the School? Why?
Pakachoag Music School of Greater Worcester was founded in 1982 by Pakachoag Church in Auburn as Pakachoag Community Music School. The School was created in response to cutbacks in funding for public school music programs as an outreach mission. Programming included music lessons, early childhood music classes and musical theater programming, just as it does today.
In 1989, the school became independently incorporated and convened its own Board of Directors. The school remained housed in the Pakachoag Church building through 2017.
In 2018, prompted by a desire for the stability provided by a multi-year lease, the School moved to Worcester. We rent dedicated space for school operations on the 2nd and 3rd floors of All Saints Church, in proximity of Worcester’s theater district.
Satellite programming in a number of communities allows the School to extend its reach.
Partner based programming offered off-site through the Music Matters program allows the School to reach families without the resources to participate in our traditional tuition-based programs.
Financial Aid offers families of low-income the opportunity to sign on for tuition programs with financial support provided by the School.