MUKWONAGO, Wis. (CBS 58) -- Parents and students in Mukwonago are frustrated about a proposal to cut orchestra and band from their elementary schools.

It was proposed at a school board meeting on Monday as the district looks to transition 6th graders to the new Park View Middle School.

One parent who has a student in the music program says she worries this move would "completely dry up the pipeline of musicians" if orchestra and band were removed from the elementary school level.

"Our band program would slowly die," said Stacy Makarewicz, who has three student-musicians at Mukwonago schools. "We're a really band-heavy family," she shared. They were some of the many who spoke out against a proposal to remove band and orchestra lessons from elementary schools. Fifth grader Daniel, who plays the violin and percussion, said, "Music can help calm you down when you're stressed. Sometimes when I’m stressed or upset, I go up to my room and play my xylophone. Friends in these groups can also help you." Meanwhile, Danielle, who graduated from Mukwonago and was also an orchestra student, said, "Dealing with being bullied as a kid, the orchestra room had always been a safe place for me to go."

The change is due to 6th graders soon transitioning into the new Park View Middle School. It comes after a nearly $90 million referendum passed in the fall of 2024. But Makarewicz says this was never considered as a possibility. "Why are we cutting programs, like that wasn't part of this brand-new building, that wasn't talked about, so this is the first time we're hearing about it," she continued.

"Would you have changed your vote on the referendum had you known?" CBS 58's Montse Ricossa asked. 

"Oh, definitely, definitely," Makarewicz said.  

The district says they prioritized "staffing neutral," which means no layoffs or new hires. If music were to stay in elementary schools, additional staff would reportedly be needed. Another parameter set out in the presentation was "students are not missing academic instruction for pull-out lessons, which aligns with our District priorities and parent concerns."

Makarewicz said all parents must sign a permission slip for students to be taken out of class - for her daughter, it's during study hall. CBS 58 asked the Mukwonago Area School District Board which classes the pull-out lessons happen during, but we did not get a response. In the Monday meeting, Eric Schwartz asked for data to be shown on how many pull-out lessons occur per quarter, which he believed to be two for orchestra. He also asked for more information to be presented at the next meeting to see "what it would look like if we kept everything moving forward as it is now," to which he received applause from the crowd of community members.

District data also show there is a steady decline in participation in music, with a drop when it's no longer required. One member of the steering committee shared: "Our goal is never to decimate a program. Our goal is never to take opportunities from kids. But we don't see a trajectory of kids who start in elementary school and then grow through high school." The board member shared in the meeting that the steering committee does, indeed, have a band teacher included.

"If we want to stay competitive as a district, we need to keep the music program in our elementary schools," explained Makarewicz.  She said that Park View Middle School was recently recognized for their band program, adding, "The reason your band program is so successful and can play such beautiful music is because you have those two foundational years."

The Mukwonago Area School District Board president said in an email that the music program is "one of many proposals that will be brought before the board in the next few months." When asked what other proposals there are and why removing music was the first option presented, they said that all the information the board was given was presented already and any new information will be given at the next meeting. That'll be Feb. 16. The board said they will continue to discuss options every month until final approval in June.