It is time to start a new year. I look forward to the opportunity to work with you all again as we start out on a new path of discovery together. Our goal this year is "Achieving Greatness Together." From Marching Band to Jazz Band and everything in between I wish us all to strive for this greatness as we make music and inspire others as well as ourselves.
Welcome back to school.
2 comments:
Dear Mr. Gibson:
As a parent I was looking forward to my child having another year of concert band. I have reservations, however, about making pep band a mandatory part of concert band. I know of no other class that requires participation in extra-curricular activities. For example P.E. does not require participation in football, basketball, volleyball, cross-country, track, soccer, or any other extra-curricular club or organization any more than algebra requires participation in the math club. I want my child to have diverse opportunities in High School because it may well be the only time in life that they may be in Choir, Band, Sports, and Clubs as the rigors of adult life often proclude such activities. By making this mandatory then I guess you cannot be in concert band and have a job, participate in other extra-curricular activities or join after school clubs. I would also like to object to having to fill out yet another form 2 weeks prior to any event which my child will not be able to participate in or risk a poor grade. I have enough forms to fill out in my life and I take offense at your disregard for my time. Please reconsider your position and make pep band a volunteer opportunity again otherwise my child and others will be forced to choose between band and other things and I'm afraid band will suffer.
Sincerly,
Michael Durrant
mdurrant@ubtanet.com
I sent the following e-mail in response to this comment, but felt it should be here as well in case others felt this way.
"Michael,
I very much appreciate your thoughts. Who is your child?
Here are my thoughts. You are not required to have any input in the written request for missing an activity. The intent is to make sure I know why kids are missing events that are important to the success of the band. It is also an opportunity for them to be a responsible member of the group. I am in no way trying to make yours or the student's lives more difficult. However, if half the band just decides not to show up it makes the group and school look bad.
As for pep band. You make very good arguments, and I agree that kids need to have as many opportunities as possible in their high school lives. Again the intent is to help the band look good in the public. For a vast majority of the people in the community they only see the band at Football and Basketball games. If the event is optional and only 15 kids choose to do it, how can we represent the program in a positive light?
I am not opposed to changing policies that I have set. If you, or any one else, have an idea that will help us achieve the goal of representing the program in a positive light without using these two policies please share them with me. I too am concerned about students being forced to choose and I hope that they never have to. I think I have been very reasonable in allowing students to do other things. A current example of this would be the two football players in the Marching Band. Obviously they can not play Football and be in the stands playing with the band at the same time. They are excused from that requirement.
Could it be possible that the problem is the way I have tried to communicate my ideas? It is my goal to see the program in Vernal grow and become an excellent example of a high school band program. I have been involved in band since I was in 4th grade, it is my love or I would not still be here. I know that not everyone is as nuts about it as I am. However, if we are going to put a product out to the community and the world to see, I want it to be a quality thing. I believe, without reading it again, that in the letter I sent home in the handbook that it states I welcome feedback. I do and want to thank you for yours. I would be very open to discussing this further with you and/or others to find a solution that we could all live with.
For the Concert Band Tri maybe I won't make it required for Basketball, but for this first Tri Marching Band it is expected that the marching band plays at the football games. In fact unless we decide to do some special event that is the only performances there are for Marching Band. I don't think therefore that it is unreasonable to ask they attend those 5 nights this first Tri."
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