Your membership dues at work.(National Association News)

Dear Members:

One of the Board of Directors' most important responsibilities is to oversee the financial assets of the association. The Board's financial oversight is coordinated by the Finance Committee, composed of Secretary-Treasurer Kathleen Rountree, NCTM, who serves as chair; the MTNA president; the immediate past president, Phyllis Pieffer, NCTM; the president-elect, Gail Berenson, NCTM; one director elected from the board, Cheryl Pachak-Brooks, NCTM; and the executive director, Gary Ingle. The deputy executive director, Marge Bengel, also works with the finance committee. All of us are dedicated to ensuring that our programs are adequately funded and that our revenues and expenditures are carefully monitored on your behalf.

On the following page are financial charts and summaries of our income and expenses for fiscal year 2006, which ended June 30, 2006. As you can see, MTNA receives approximately 52 percent of its income from member dues. The other 48 percent comes from a variety of sources including the national conference, competitions, publications, royalties/sales, investment income and the FOUNDATION FUND. From this income, MTNA funds the programs and services provided to the membership, such as American Music Teacher magazine, the annual conference, national competitions, teacher enrichment grants, personal and professional insurance, and a whole lot more. We are proud of the fact that 75 percent of our income supports programs and services, while only 24 percent funds our administrative costs.

MTNA also provides programs and services, and support for our state and local affiliates, including such areas as the general liability insurance for events, dues collection, ASCAP licensing fees for all our affiliated associations, composer commissioning matching awards for state associations, and IRS fees associated with 501(c)(3) group exemption capability for all our affiliated associations. Programs also include the very successful annual leadership summit for state presidents and national officers. Members also benefit from the national competitions program, our National Conference with Pedagogy Saturday, expanded group teaching and technology formats and our enhanced website.

MTNA is committed to providing services and resources to our members that will advance the value of music study and music making. The MTNA board of directors and the dedicated staff, under Executive Director Gary Ingle, are making every effort to provide you with the most benefit for your investment in MTNA.

Sincerely,

Paul Stewart