Carl J. Lamb Elementary School opened its doors on Saturday, April 11, to host the second annual Maine Adaptive Music Summit.
Organized by Carl J. Lamb music teacher Hattie Skvorak, the summit brought together music educators, special education teachers, and educational technicians for a full day of professional development focused on adaptive music education. Simply put, adaptive music is about finding creative ways to make music class work for every student, whether that means modifying instruments, adjusting teaching approaches, or finding new strategies to support students with disabilities or learning differences.
The summit was born out of a gap Skvorak identified in available professional development. "We were hearing feedback from ed techs that they wanted PD on how to support their students in the special areas, with music being one of them," she explained.
Having launched the event successfully last year, Skvorak noted that hosting it at Carl J. Lamb felt like a natural fit. "It was so wonderful to have other people in our space and see all the great things that our special educators and our teams are doing," she said. "It was so nice to hear them speak so highly of our school and all the work that we're doing and the collaborative efforts being made between specialist teachers and special education teachers."
A standout moment was a presentation from Julia Edwards, the 2026 Maine Teacher of the Year, who spoke about making concert settings accessible for students, performers, and audiences alike. "She cares so deeply about adaptive music," Skvorak said. "Having her here to speak about it just made so much sense."
Other sessions included "Opening the Doors to a Unified Choral Rehearsal" with choral music teacher Michael Gallagan, "Assisting Students during Specials" with special education teacher Ashley Walker, and "Music and Communication in Speech Therapy" with speech language pathologist Fran Bodkin, among others. This year's lineup also intentionally expanded beyond general music to include sessions relevant to secondary ensemble teachers, ensuring band, choral, and orchestra educators left with practical takeaways as well.
Carl J. Lamb ed tech Janelle Brooks attended for the first time this year and described the day as eye-opening. Her favorite moment came during Gallagan's session, where the whole room was brought together to sing and keep rhythm. "Listening to everybody come together with their voices and making music was definitely my favorite part," she said. Brooks also found it valuable to see how other districts approach adaptive music. "It was really good to hear them talk about how their district does things," she said.
With presenters traveling from as far as New Hampshire and additional participants joining via Zoom, Skvorak hopes to eventually bring all of New England into the fold. 'It seems like it's starting to catch on beyond Maine,' she said. With interest continuing to grow, Skvorak is already thinking about what next year could look like.