National Anthem Project

National Anthem Project

The National Anthem Project was a public awareness campaign launched in 2005 as a major initiative of MENC: The National Association for Music Education. At the time of its launch, the National Anthem Project website boldly declared "MENC is sponsoring The National Anthem Project to revive America's patriotism by educating Americans about the importance of The Star-Spangled Banner-both the flag and the song." Sponsored by MENC with major support from the Jeep brand, and other sponsors such as NAMM, Bank of America, and the Gibson Foundation, this campaign, which later used the slogan "to restore America's voice through music education" was MENC's most ambitious project to date. A former First Lady, Laura Bush served as honorary chairperson, with country music's The Oak Ridge Boys as the official musical ambassadors. The stated purpose of the project was originally "to revive America's patriotism," but this was later modified to suggest that its purpose was merely to encourage more singing of the national anthem, or to bring more public attention to the role of music in American schools.