W.O. Smith Community Music School
Executive Director
Executive Director | Mr. Jonah Rabinowitz |
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jonahr@wosmith.org | |
Term Start | August 1995 |
Jonah's Experience: A native of New York, Jonah Rabinowitz has been the Executive Director of W.O. Smith/Nashville Community Music School since 1995. As a musician, he received his training at the Manhattan School of Music and later attended the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, MA. While there, he studied with Charles Schleuter (principal trumpet of the Boston Symphony Orchestra) and earned a Bachelor of Music degree in trumpet performance.Rabinowitz's performing career includes positions as the principal trumpet of the National Symphony Orchestra of the Dominican Republic, principal trumpet of the Atlanta Ballet Orchestra, Atlanta Opera, and performances and recordings with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. He has also been a faculty member at Agnes Scott College in Atlanta.Rabinowitz is the former director of the Georgia Academy of Music in Atlanta. From 2011-12, he was the president of Tennesseans for the Arts, Tennessee's leading arts advocacy group. He was a member of the steering committee for the Nashville Arts Coalition and also served as a member of Mayor Karl Dean's Music City Music Council. Rabinowitz graduated from Leadership Music in 1998. He also graduated from Leadership Nashville in 2013; after graduation he served as a member of the Leadership Nashville Logistics Team for the class of 2014.Rabinowitz was the recipient of the 2011 Edwina Hefner Community Leadership Award from the Nashville Symphony and the 2011 Governor's Arts Award for Leadership from TN Governor Haslam and the Tennessee Arts Commission. |
Senior Staff
Name | Title |
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Dr. Allyson McIntyre | Program Director |
Mr. Jordan Morrison | Music Education Director |
Ms. Anna Arata | Director of Donor & Media Relations |
Staff
Full Time Staff | 4 |
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Part Time Staff | 1 |
Volunteers | 175 |
Contractors | 0 |
Retention Rate | 100% |
Plans & Policies
Does your organization have a Fundraising Plan? | Under Development |
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Does your organization have a Strategic Plan? | Under Development |
Years Strategic Plan Considers | 5 |
When was the Strategic Plan adopted? | October 2023 |
Does your organization have a Management Succession Plan? | Under Development |
Does your organization have a Policy and Procedure Plan? | Yes |
Does the organization have a Nondiscrimination Policy? | Yes |
Does the organization have a Whistle Blower Policy? | Yes |
Does the organization have a Document Destruction Policy? | No |
Evaluation
Is there a formal evaluation for... | Frequency (if applicable) | |
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CEO/Executive Director | Yes | Annually |
Senior Management | Yes | Annually |
Non-Management | No | N/A |
Affiliations
Affiliation | Year |
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Americans for the Arts | 2009 |
Berklee City Music Network | 2017 |
Nashville Arts Coalition | 1995 |
National Guild of Community Schools of the Arts - Member | 2014 |
Tennesseans for the Arts | 1994 |
Awards
Award / Recognition | Organization | Year |
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Governor's Arts Awards for Leadership | Governor Haslam & Tennessee Arts Commission | 2011 |
National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Award finalist | President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities | 2011 |
'SunTrust Business Acumen in the Arts' | Center for Non-Profit Management Salute to Excellence | 2012 |
Outstanding Network Partner | Berklee City Music | 2018 |
Applause Award | Belmont University | 2022 |
SupportMusic Merit Award for Outstanding Support of Music Education | The NAMM Foundation | 2023 |
CEO/Executive Director/Board Comments
The pandemic has affected revenue for W.O. Smith during the past two years. Two primary earned revenue sources were immediately unavailable, our facility rental program and on-site fundraising activities. Together, the revenue reduction has been over $200,000 annually. From July 1, 2020, through June 30, 2021, staff reductions included 4 to 3 full-time positions. Eliminating some budget items allowed the school to reduce our annual budget to $450,000 from $600,000. Supporters' extraordinary giving helped the school see typical revenues while maintaining our reduced budget. A budget almost at pre-pandemic levels, adopted for the 2021-2022 school year, included the reinstatement of a fourth full-time position. The pandemic and resulting changes have not adversely affected the level of education or service that students and volunteer teaching artists receive from the school or staff. Our current staffing level and reallocation of some duties allow the school to maintain services while preserving capital to ensure our low-income students' continued success. The Board's leadership shows prudent stewardship of both human and financial capital. |