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LETTER: Keep marching mandatory for band

Posted on February 9, 2012February 8, 2012 by Staff

A request to drop the mandatory marching requirement for band at Carrboro and Chapel Hill high schools is under consideration. The concern is that the marching requirement discourages some students from taking band classes. Dropping the requirement is a greater concern to many more students.

Most families are wary at first of what will be required of them in terms of time commitment and money. They realize a vast return on that investment, but students will tell you that without the mandatory marching requirement, they probably wouldn’t have given it the first try. There’s no marching requirement at East. Marching band isn’t offered there.

Why is marching band important to a school community? Social barriers that exist in hallways disappear when students spend time together in a different context, like band camp and competitions. Everybody looks geeky in a band uniform. When assembled on a field, in formation, in tune and in step, suddenly everybody looks really cool.

There already exists the opt-out of the marching requirement if a student participates in a fall sport. It’s a given that a sports team is going to require mandatory practices and appearances at games. To be successful as a team, that is what it takes from each individual on the team. A strong marching program is no different. Marching band needs at least 70 students to make a strong presence on the field.

At a time when our children are spending most of their free time in sedentary isolation in front of a screen, isn’t it a good idea to promote a healthy alternative? Let’s expand their repertoire. Let’s encourage them to do more than sit in a class and learn a few pieces for the quarterly stage performance so they can check band off a list. Let’s teach them what being part of a team requires. For those who prefer to hit a bass drum rather than take a tackle, marching band serves that purpose.

Our youngest child’s experience with the Marching Tiger Band and our eldest child’s experience on CHHS sports teams were equal in terms of demands on time and in terms of expense. What they learned from their experiences was worth every minute on the field, every bus ride to a competition, every hour spent raising money working at the PTA Thrift Shop or a UNC ball game and every dime that came out of pocket.

Marching band deserves administration’s full endorsement. To thrive, it demands continued support of the marching requirement.

Cindy Parks
Chapel Hill

4 thoughts on “LETTER: Keep marching mandatory for band”

  1. Tim Pedersen says:
    February 9, 2012 at 10:42 pm

    The meeting with the superintendent went great tonight as students and parents gave their views on the band programs in the Chapel Hill/Carrboro School System. Students overwhelmingly supported the mandatory marching program siting improved time management skills, smoother transitions and better social skills. Most even said their grades are better during marching season. Some parents wanted more of a choice, but this was countered that the system will require making a choice at some point. It was evident that there are a lot of years of passion involved in this matter. Hopefully, this will be a decision decided by administrators and not by lawyers!

  2. Anna Li says:
    February 10, 2012 at 4:41 pm

    I wholeheartedly agree with all the wonderful people above! I’m currently a sophomore clarinetist in marching band, and I absolutely love it. Yet, if not for the mandatory requirement, I probably would’ve opted out freshman year to focus on school instead– funny how those little things can completely change your life for the better.

    The numbers we have in band are part of what makes it so special– even when we’re silently standing at attention, you can feel us emitting power because we’re all part of something greater. When our drum majors call us to attention and we all shout, “HUT!” you can hear the echoes all around and though everyone’s silently at attention, we’re all exchanging glances and trying to suppress grins, because we know what we’re capable of and it really is awesome. It’s a group collaborative effort, and without our numbers, we would lose our power.

    Don’t get me wrong, I’ve seen 30-person bands shine on the field, but it isn’t the same as walking into a competition or football game with 60 others by your side. You just feel so safe, so secure, knowing that whatever happens, whether we fail miserably or succeed with shining stars, we’ll be there together. There’s also excitement and a little nervousness, knowing that you must not fail, that you owe it to your band to do your best. It’s a truly exhilarating experience.

    Removing the mandatory requirement of marching band would be to say the least, traumatizing for the marching band program. The experiences of the individuals in it would suffer, and the band would suffer, because we don’t have the solidity of a large group. At least half of freshman wouldn’t try marching band, and if you don’t get into marching band as a freshman, you’re unlikely to try it during another year when you’re even busier. That cuts CHHS’s 70-person band down to 35, and would be even more drastic for CHS.

    And it isn’t just our band that would suffer; it’s the entire community. If I do say so myself, marching band provides half the awesomeness of the football game, and a good part of the audience is there solely for us. A ticket for one person to a football game is $5—without our incredible band, fewer people would show up, further reducing funding for sports that already have budget cuts. An entire chain reaction would follow in the years to come, ultimately causing marching band to disintegrate and damage to other extra-curriculars.

    Where would we be without a strong marching band? You can take all the social studies classes you want, you can learn all the formulas in math; but marching band is the only class that will really take you on a journey of self-discovery, push you to your limits, and teach you ultimately about yourself.

    Why not keep the great program we have? It has touched hundreds of lives, created life-long friendships, and improved the community as a whole. To take away the mandatory requirement would be tragic to our school and a great shame. The optional requirement works for larger, richer schools like Panther Creek—not us, where we only have 70-some people in marching band. Without our strong numbers, we could say good-bye to our complex designs on the field, our heart-pounding music. Yet, marching band may not be for everyone; why you would not fall in love with it I cannot fathom, but no one should be made to do something they don’t like year after year, or drop music because of marching band. Therefore, if a compromise must be made, I believe we should have marching band mandatory for freshmen and sophomores, and then have it optional for juniors and seniors. After the first two years, marching band really does sell itself; it’s such a great experience, but it could falter without its strong numbers.

    Thank you for reading all that!^

  3. Anna Li says:
    February 10, 2012 at 5:01 pm

    Whoops, I remembered a few other things I wanted to include in my last post. Other concerns regarding marching band that were brought up yesterday night were that it took too much time (more than sports), brought down students’ grades by taking their time, the cost of Fairshare, and the lack of this requirement in other programs. I will refute them one at a time.

    Quick story- I ran cross-country from 7th through 8th grade, and absolutely loved it. Practice in high school sports generally runs from 4pm to 6pm 5 days a week, totaling up to 10 hours of practice every week, plus missing school very often for meets and taking up time on weekends. I’m not sure about the program at CHS, but at Chapel Hill High, our marching band only practices 3 times a week for the first month, and then drops down to 2 times a week in the second month. That totals up to 5 or 7.5 hours a week, plus time every other Saturday for competitions, and generally every other Friday for football games. No doubt it’s a big time commitment, but it truly is worth every second for the memories formed that you will have forever.

    Contrary to what was said yesterday, marching band actually brings up students’ grades. It counts as an 8th period class, and generally students receive a 4.0 grade for it, which will bring up their grades in other classes. Also, you meet many wonderful people in marching band that will be a positive influence on your life. The people in band that I know today are some of the most incredible people I’ve ever met, and I’m so glad they’re my friends—yet, without marching band, I wouldn’t have had the chance to know them. People I’ve met are my role models (though I wouldn’t admit it to them), friends, and ultimately, family. If I’m struggling with something in school, they’re the first people I go to, because they’re upperclassmen and they’ve already taken the courses I’m in. The point is, marching band provides you with a grade boost, time management skills, and peer support.

    Another concern deals with the cost of being in a mandatory band. Fairshare at CHHS is $400, and that is no small price. Now, I can go on forever about how it’s worth every penny, and how the fundraising opportunities presented (serving concessions at UNC sports events, thus getting in for free… it’s very fun) prepare people for other jobs after graduation and through high school, but the primary concern dealt with the legality of charging to be in a mandatory band part of a free, public school. So, is it legal? The short answer is yes, because we have a scholarship fund and many great fundraising opportunities, and we will not turn away anyone if they cannot pay for it. Of course, I’m a high school sophomore and not a lawyer, but it seems to me that we’re already paying for public schools anyways; it’s called taxes.

    Marching band is not alone in this requirement—AP science classes similarly require an additional “lab course” to be taken with the lecture, and then charge a fee for the AP exam. Turning away from music because of marching band is like turning away from science because you don’t want to take an exam, because you aren’t strong enough to push yourself to the limits. As I stated previously, marching band should at least be mandatory for freshmen and sophomores, to give them a chance to try it out and see what they think—how could you possibly like something you haven’t tried? Marching band is like a delicious vegetable. Actually, bad analogy, but you get the point.

    Alright, that’s all I have to say! Please don’t take away the mandatory requirement for marching band, there simply is no reason to, and all the reason to keep it. Again, if a compromise must be made, I think it should be mandatory for underclassmen and optional for upperclassmen. Thanks!

  4. Bob Stocking says:
    February 11, 2012 at 4:34 am

    I am the parent of a CHHS marching band graduate (who is now marching in college) and a current band student. The greatest impact I have seen of the marching band program for my kids is the mental and physical balance it provides them.

    CHHS provides a fantastic education for its students, but at times it feels like a competition to create the greatest possible amount of pressure on our kids. The mandatory participation that classwork and homework demand can appear to be squeezing the love of learning out of our students.

    Like the other arts programs at CHHS, marching band lets our kids work the other side of their brains. Marching band gets them moving outside, allows them to work together toward a common goal, and forces them to reach high performance standards against which they are independently judged. But here the outcome is not stress; instead, their audiences are delighted while they feed their own souls.

    If the mandatory marching band requirement were eliminated, I fear that the academic pressures of life at CHHS would dissuade many kids from giving band a try. As my fellow correspondents have suggested, once exposed to the joys of the CHHS marching band program, the idea of “mandatory” falls away. The students end up needing the marching band program as much as it needs them.

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