Why We Hand Write
- Handwritten letters send the message that you take the issue seriously. The time it takes to compose and hand write a letter is interpreted by officials as a measure of your commitment to the issue.
- It also automatically makes your letter more personal, which will also grab the attention of an official.
- Only hand write however, if you can do so neatly.
Who Should Write
- Everyone. To have a group of officials take notice, you need to show not only that you are committed, but that the entire community is behind the issue.
- Sit down as a family and have each person write a letter. Letters from students may tug at heartstrings, but letters from parents (who are more likely to be voters) will really catch their attention.
Addressing Your Letter
- There are several people & groups that you can write to. You can use the same basic letter for each, but try to tailor parts of your letter to each whenever possible.
• Matawan/Aberdeen Board of Education
• Superintendent Richard O’Malley
• State Senator Joseph M. Kyrillos, Jr.
• State Assemblywoman Amy H. Handlin
• State Assemblyman Samuel D. Thompson
Make it Personal
- Balance facts & figures with stories and anecdotes from personal experience.
- Tell them how this will affect YOU (or your child) and the other students in the school.
- Invite them to the next event to see how the program is doing.
Facts & Figures
- Be sure to include “hard evidence.” Don’t include too many though, or you may overwhelm the reader.
- Don’t use facts or figures just to use them. Make sure they are relevant to you and your program and that they fit well in the context of your letter.
- MTAA has gathered facts & figures relevant to arts education as a whole and to the four individual arts and listed them here. Use them or ones from other reliable sources. NEVER make up data.
- Feel free to rephrase something that you find to make it fit with your writing – just don’t go so far that you distort the information contained.
Be Positive
- Thank them for previous support (when applicable).
- Do NOT attack any official, teacher, administrator, party, group, department, team, etc.
- Do NOT suggest cuts to other groups. We accept that we must take our fair share of the cuts and we will not ask another group to take on more than their own fair share.
Setting Up Your Letter
- Do not address it “To whom it may concern” – Use the person or group’s name or title in the greeting.
- Start by introducing yourself in the first paragraph. Include information like how long you (or your child) has been involved in the arts, how you came to be writing this letter, etc.
- In the second and third paragraphs of your letter explain why you support arts education. Remember to keep it personal – how does this affect you/your family? This would be the place for your mix of stories & facts.
- Finally, close your letter by summing up your point of view and invite them to contact you if they’d like to discuss anything further. Remember to include your return address and any other contact information you are comfortable giving.
- Sign the letter and print your name below.
Delivering Your Letter
- Remember: MTAA will be delivering all the letters together. Make sure that your letter makes it to your program director (or whomever they designate), who will pass it to us for recording & delivery. MTAA is committed to helping all the arts programs through this difficult time, not just the theater program. By working together we are much stronger.