Posted by Mary Wimberley on 2008-08-27

Some of Samford University's youngest musicians will participate in a unique way to raise funds to benefit the newly created Friends of Preparatory Music Endowment Fund.

About 150 piano and voice students in Samford's preparatory department will hold a Practice-A-Thon Friday and Saturday, Sept. 5 and 6. Each will practice for one hour.

The students, in grades one through 12, are collecting pledges in exchange for their committed practice times on Friday, 3 - 9 p.m. and on Saturday, 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Each participant hopes to raise $100. The practice sessions will be held in Buchanan Hall.

"This is the first event designed to involve preparatory student and parent participation in the effort to establish an endowment fund for preparatory music," said preparatory department head Connie Macon. The endowment fund helps support scholarships for students and the operating budget of the preparatory department.

According to Macon, the young pianists and vocalists are excited about the event. Prizes will be awarded to the students raising the most dollars.

 
Samford is a leading Christian university offering undergraduate programs grounded in the liberal arts with an array of nationally recognized graduate and professional schools. Founded in 1841, Samford is the 87th-oldest institution of higher learning in the United States. Samford enrolls 5,791 students from 49 states, Puerto Rico and 16 countries in its 10 academic schools: arts, arts and sciences, business, divinity, education, health professions, law, nursing, pharmacy and public health. Samford fields 17 athletic teams that compete in the tradition-rich Southern Conference and ranks 6th nationally for its Graduation Success Rate among all NCAA Division I schools.