Author ORCID Identifier

https://orcid.org/0009-0002-8694-6085

Semester

Spring

Date of Graduation

2026

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Type

DMA

College

College of Creative Arts

Department

Not Listed

Committee Chair

Hope Koehler

Committee Co-Chair

Andrew Kohn

Committee Member

Thomas Erik Angerhofer

Committee Member

General McArthur Hambrick

Abstract

This study examines the presence and structural characteristics of disability-inclusive band, orchestra, and choir programs serving students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDDs) in K-12 public schools across the United States that implement the Best Buddies School Friendship Program. Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities is defined as group of chronic, lifelong conditions that originate before age 22, affecting physical, learning, language, or behavior areas. Despite federal legislation, peer reviewed scholarship specifically addressing access to performance-based music ensembles for students with IDDs remain comparatively limited. Employing a survey distributed nationwide within a defined population of schools implementing Best Buddies Programs, administered via Qualtrics, to K-12 public schools meeting the inclusion criteria of implementing the Best Buddies School Friendship Program, this study analyzes reported ensemble participation rates, the types of ensemble offerings available, the integration of peer mediated support structures, levels of express student interest, and the availability of instructional adaptations and accessibility resources within school based band, orchestra, and choir programs at participating sites. Data indicates variability in participation rates, peer support implementation, and adaptive resource availability across institutions. The implications for inclusive music education practice and future empirical inquiry are presented.

A comprehensive review of peer reviewed literature across special education, inclusive arts education, and music education reveals limited empirical research on large-scale structured inclusion models for students with IDDs in K-12 performance-based music ensembles. Few studies provide systematic, cross context analysis of how such frameworks are operationalized within K-12 band, orchestra, and choir settings. Existing literature addressing inclusion in music education frequently relies on localized case studies or descriptive accounts and offers limited empirical assessment of participation patterns, implementation of peer-to-peer models, or structural factors contributing to low enrollment of students with IDDs in ensemble programs.

This study employs a survey methodology, examining the presence and structural characteristics of inclusive music programs within schools implementing the Best Buddies School Friendship Program. Despite a strong surveyed rate of interest in music among students with disabilities, the results indicate varying participation rates of students with IDDs in band, orchestra, and choir programs, as well as differences in the extent to which peer mediated support and instructional accommodations are reflected within ensemble settings.

This research aims to offer a contemporary baseline on which future studies may build to fill existing gaps in theoretical and practical knowledge regarding participation and support of students with IDDs in music programs across the US. This study reports that effective music education serves as a vital tool for promoting socialization, belonging, and personal growth.

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