Charity of the week: Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation
The foundation gives some 10,000 young people a year the opportunity to learn a musical instrument.
The Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation (mhopus.org) donates musical instruments to underserved school and community music programs across the country. It was founded in 1996 by the late Michael Kamen, the composer of the film Mr. Holland’s Opus, which chronicles a high school music teacher’s lasting impact on his students. The foundation gives some 10,000 young people a year the opportunity to learn an instrument; that experience, its studies show, tends to improve test scores and school attendance. As school budgets tighten, the foundation’s efforts are becoming more vital than ever in keeping school music programs afloat. The group also administers the annual Michael Kamen Solo Award, which provides suitable instruments to outstanding student musicians.
Each charity we feature has earned a four-star overall rating from Charity Navigator. Charity Navigator ranks not-for-profit organizations on the effectiveness of their programs, their control of administrative and fund-raising expenses, and the transparency of their operations. Four stars is the group’s highest ranking.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
-
Are 'judge shopping' rules a blow to Republicans?
Today's Big Question How the abortion pill case got to the Supreme Court
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
Climate change is driving Indian women to choose sterilization
under the radar Faced with losing their jobs, they are making a life-altering decision
By Theara Coleman, The Week US Published
-
'A great culture will be lost if the EV brigade gets its way'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published