The band is always there at football games, assemblies, and graduation. The band is always there for  basketball games, parades, and state send offs. The band is always there to set the tone, hype the crowd, and energize the players.  Whatever it is, the band is always there. With this being said, the band sometimes wonders if the rest of the school is ever there for THEM.

The band should get just as much support as the football team or any other team here at Skyline. They should get funding and accolades, respect and attention.  We asked the band director and some band students what they have to say about the district and students supporting the band here, and this is what they said:  

Band Director Jake Snarr feels pretty positive about support overall. “We get a lot of support from our admirationors and district,” he said. When asked about the academic benefits of the band program, he said, “Band is a great structure for  people. It can help a lot of people. Like Freshman can come in and they can have experience talking with the upperclassmen that have taken classes and can get help from them.”

 Tristan Allen (12) has somewhat mixed feelings. “It depends on what we’re doing,” he said. “When we’re playing at football games, everyone there, so it’s really nice.” However, he acknowledges that the band does have some unmet needs. “It would be cool to get more funding so we can get nicer things: more susa, better percussion, things like that. It is always nice to have more money, but we get a lot of support and a lot of people are really glad we’re there.

 Jeremy Malmo (11) does not believe band gets as much support as the football team or other things here at Skyline. “We have to do a lot on our own, but also, so far, we get by. Actually, we are still core curriculum.”  

Ambria Schroader (10) also has mixed feelings. “I mean, time to time there are moments where we are not as appreciated as football players because during announcements, say we have a  jazz performance or we just did a half time show, they don’t say anything to us about it, and we have worked very hard on it, so it kind of hurts in a way. We work really hard to make the crowd hype and make the game even more fun. We make people want to be there even more, and some people really don’t realize that. But there are moments we get recognized and it feels good, but those moments are pretty rare I would say.”

Meela Letcher(9)  sees two sides: “It kind of depends because some schools don’t really have as much support as other schools do. Students who are in band probably do give a lot of support to it.”  

If you are wondering how to help support the band, there are many different ways. For example, in February when we throw the Big Band Jazz dance you could buy a ticket or two and come have fun night dancing with friends or family and hear some fantastic music.  Or come to our concerts. The band puts a lot of hours into their music to make our performances great.