Commitment to Equity
Wildflower Composers is committed to pursuing racial, gender, and economic equity throughout our organization. Our mission is to center the experiences of composers who have long been excluded from the narrative, and we pledge to amplify their voices and work actively towards creating a more equitable field of contemporary music.
We affirm that Black Lives Matter. We recognize that we are part of a system that has consistently underrepresented and abused people of color, and we commit to dismantling this system and to de-centering whiteness throughout our organization. We pledge to have BIPOC and AAPI voices actively involved in any critical discussions involving our organization, including but not limited to: board member meetings (and representation on our Executive Board), external committees, program planning, and any future panels or events that may take place. Additionally, we seek to use anti-racist language and resources to inform our programming and organizational decisions.
Wildflower Composers strives to create a welcoming, inclusive community for young, gender-marginalized composers. We use the term “gender-marginalized” to include cisgender and transgender women, transgender men, nonbinary persons, and all gender identities who have been systematically oppressed and underrepresented in positions of power. We seek to amplify the voices of gender-marginalized composers throughout all staffing and programming decisions, and pledge that at least 90% of our hires across the board will identify as part of the gender-marginalized community.
We recognize that economic or opportunistic barriers continue to inhibit the growth of diversity within the contemporary music field. As such, we pledge to work to lower the barriers of entry to our organization in the following ways:
We do not require applicants to have previous experience or training in composition or music theory.
We actively fundraise to provide a high availability of full and partial scholarships based on financial need. Over the past three years, we have been able to provide some level of financial assistance to 100% of applicants who have demonstrated a need.
We do not charge an application fee.
In our programming, hiring, and admissions processes, we strive for a high level of diversity in order to ensure consistent engagement with artists who bring different perspectives and experiences to our doorstep. We pledge to continue to engage in intentional, actionable dialogue with experts, community members, and current students and alums regarding our own diversity efforts and those of the wider contemporary music community.