Antoine Edwards, 17, (left) and Andre Johnson Jr., 18, play violins in their stringed instrument class at North Division High School on Tuesday. The school is trying to bring back the class after a 50-year absence, but there are not enough instruments to go around. Credit: James E. Causey

Antoine Edwards, 17, is learning how to play the violin.

"I like playing it, that's why I'm usually the first one in class — to make sure I get one," Edwards said.

He is one of nearly 70 students who signed up for a stringed instruments class at North Division High School. The problem is there are not enough violins, violas and cellos to go around.

"It's basically first come, first served. But that's not really fair because you have some people who need more practice time than others and you can't take the instruments home, so it makes it harder to get better," Edwards said.

Gina Jensen, a first-year music teacher at North Division, set out to revitalize the school's once-proud music division. The school last had a string program 50 years ago.

Jensen said students were so enthusiastic about the string program that she was forced to turn away some students because they didn't have the room or the instruments.

She contacted the school district, which was able to find some stringed instruments that were in a warehouse. But that is still not enough for each student to have an instrument in class.

On Tuesday, I watched as some students read music and others tapped their feet to the sounds while others played instruments.

Jensen has explored the option of renting music equipment, but she said that would be too costly for most of the students' families. The school needs about 40 stringed instruments.

A child doesn't need to be the next Beyoncé or even the next "American Idol" winner to understand the importance of music and art education. Research has found that learning music facilitates learning and enhances skills that children use in other areas.

Edwards said learning the violin has helped him. "It's a different skill that I didn't think I would learn, so that's good," he said.

Music also helps in the learning of math, science and physics.

For example, if children are learning how to play the violin, they also need to understand math. They need to know the difference between a quarter note, half note and an eighth note.

For paraprofessional Jermaine "Tree" Ousley, re-establishing music helps to build school spirit and restore North Division to the way it was when he attended in 1992.

Ousley remembers when North had a choir with over 80 students and a big band that could rival any band in the city. Today, North Division's student body is half the size it was in 1990s, and a number of enrichment programs that schools used to offer have been trimmed or eliminated due to budget cuts.

Under former Superintendent Gregory Thornton, Milwaukee Public Schools reinvested some funds in music, art and physical education, but there is room for improvement.

The district was able to rehire some teachers from the money it saved by cutting employee benefits. It's an investment that the district must continue to make to ensure students have a well-rounded educational experience.

One of the more touching moments Tuesday came when the students were playing the same lesson. One student said, "We sound terrible." Jansen said that was because they were not playing on beat or together.

At the end of the class, they played the same lesson again. That same student said, "We sounded better this time."

These much-needed instruments would provide students with more than music appreciation by teaching a skill set that will help them in adulthood. And that should be music to anyone's ears.

James E. Causey is a Journal Sentinel editorial columnist and blogger. Email jcausey@journalsentinel.com. Facebook: fb.me/james.causey.12 Twitter: twitter.com/jecausey