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.
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.
-
No Kings rally: What did it achieve?Feature The latest ‘No Kings’ march has become the largest protest in U.S. history
-
Bolton indictment: Retribution or justice?Feature Trump’s former national security adviser turned critic, John Bolton, was indicted for mishandling classified information after publishing his ‘tell-all’ memoir
-
Chicago: Scenes from a city under siegeFeature Chicago is descending into chaos as masked federal agents target people in public spaces and threaten anyone who tries to document the arrests
