A Dream Deferred and Passion for USM’s School of Music Inspires Scholarship

“The idea of creating a scholarship at USM had been in the back of my mind for years...it was time.”
—Josh Newton ’10, ’13G, scholar, composer, performer, philanthropist

In the mid-’90s, when Josh Newton ’10, ’13G started as a music undergraduate, majoring in composition wasn’t possible at USM—and it wouldn’t be for years to come. But that didn’t cool his passion for creating new music and eventually earning a master’s in composition. It just took him a while longer.

As a nontraditional student himself, Josh understands the financial challenges that can derail a college education. So he and his wife made a decision that will help future generations of USM music students stay the course. As part of their estate plan, the couple made a $250,000 bequest to the USM Foundation that will endow the Josh Newton New Music Scholarship at USM’s Dr. Alfred and D. Suzi Osher School of Music. For Josh, who’s only in his mid-40s, thinking about the future seems to come naturally.

“I knew from the time I was in the fifth or sixth grade that I wanted to study music,” he said.

At first, he thought he’d pursue a music education degree, perhaps because he had the good fortune to cross paths with a USM teaching legend, Dr. Peter Martin, Professor Emeritus of Music—someone Josh describes as “the most influential person in my musical life.” It all began when Josh was a high school sophomore, living in the North Conway, New Hampshire, area.

“I had driven a long way for an audition for what was then the Portland Youth Wind ensemble,” said Josh, who played the euphonium. “I felt like I had no business being there, but I showed up and pulled my battered, beaten, school-rented horn from its tattered case. I played my audition and won the principal chair. That one day set me on a course, because Dr. Martin believed in me.”

From then on, the only school that interested Josh was USM, where he could work with Dr. Martin and other renowned music faculty. “But,” he said, “I grew up poor and college was very expensive for me personally.” Although he enrolled at USM right out of high school, he had to leave after four semesters for financial reasons.

During the intervening years, he built his career in computer programming, “a field that requires strikingly similar thought processes to those used in writing music,” he said. Six years later, after considering many other schools across the country, he decided to return to USM—the school that “felt like home”—and discovered that a lot had changed.

“There was still no undergraduate composition major at the time, but composer Dan Sonenberg had joined the faculty, there was a graduate program in composition and the new music movement was happening at USM,” said Josh.

While working 40 hours a week, Josh attended classes, and basically started over. (“I was the 30-year old guy with all the 18-year-olds in freshman core courses.”) He earned his B.A. in music in 2010, and his master’s in composition in 2013. Although he maintained his successful career in IT, he continued to write and perform music, and tutored students in music theory for many years after graduating from USM. In 2014, out of a field of 70, Josh won the international competition award sponsored by the Portland Chamber Music Festival. Performances of his work have been given by the Portland Symphony Orchestra, the Ethel String Quartet and the Da Capo Chamber Players.

Josh knew he wanted to give back to the school that had given so much to him. Scholarships had been essential to his ability to return to school and complete his degree, so the idea of creating one as part of his estate plan had been in the back of his mind. Finally, it was time to put it in writing. So, he began working with the planned giving team at the USM Foundation to figure out how to structure his bequest.

“I had several goals. First, I wanted to foster and strengthen innovation and new music creation at USM—it keeps things fresh, it’s where new horizons in music come from. Second, I wanted to support students who are passionate about creating new music, but who also have real-world financial barriers that get in the way. And, I wanted my gift to have an enduring impact.”

Josh worked with staff at the USM Foundation to structure an endowed scholarship that fulfills his targeted goals for his planned gift of $250,000. The Josh Newton New Music Scholarship will benefit undergraduate students attending the Osher School of Music at USM who demonstrate financial need, with a preference for those studying music composition.

Thinking about his legacy gift, Josh said, “It’s kind of weird to know you’ll have a scholarship named after you, but I’m so happy that I’m able to do it.” Generations of young composers at USM will be thrilled as well.

If Josh Newton’s generosity inspires you, contact Erin Macey at (207) 780-4408 or erin.macey@maine.edu. She’s happy to speak with you about how you could enrich USM students’ experiences through your estate plan, now and in the future.