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1A/2A Bands and sectionals

Posted by Advice needed on 2/6/2025, 3:34 pm

If you are 1A or 2A band director or have been one, how did you do sectionals with all of the activities high school students are in before and after school.

My admin is wanting me to make sectionals happen.

Looking for ideas.

Thank you for your help.

Re: 1A/2A Bands and sectionals

Posted by 3a guy on 2/9/2025, 7:38 pm, in reply to "1A/2A Bands and sectionals"

By working with the coaches.

Figure out when the kids have athletics / other events and work out a schedule that has them missing as little as possible. Typically, those kids will have basketball, track, etc 5 days a week... It's not a huge deal for them to miss that once per week. That's how we always worked it out.

If you have an assistant, one person does the middle school sectionals and one person does the high school ones.

Any coach whos's reasonable will understand, especially if this is coming from Admin.

Re: 1A/2A Bands and sectionals

Posted by Jeremy L on 2/8/2025, 8:42 am, in reply to "1A/2A Bands and sectionals"

I have the members of my group numbered 1, 2, 3 and 4.

I assign sectionals:

Monday are the 1's
Tuesday are the 2's
Wednesday are the 3's
Thursday are the 4's

If a kid cannot make their designated sectional day, they can attend a different day that fits their schedule.

The above are not pure sectionals (as in only trumpets) but rather small group (25% of the band) practices with mixed instrumentation.

Re: 1A/2A Bands and sectionals

Posted by older than dirt on 2/7/2025, 11:11 am, in reply to "1A/2A Bands and sectionals"

Many years ago, I would take the Monday night rehearsal time and after marching, I would meet sectionals. In the fall the goal was region and individual improvement. After the holidays, we worked on contest music as sectionals until 4 weeks before concert contest. During those 4 weeks we would meet entire band during those Monday nights. After C&SR, we would cease Monday nights. My attitude was they had already set Monday evening apart for Band, they could continue giving Monday evening for band.

Re: 1A/2A Bands and sectionals

Posted by Warhawk on 2/7/2025, 9:36 am, in reply to "1A/2A Bands and sectionals"

We have a tutorial period built into the day, but the "HS" band is 8-12. We also cannot make it mandatory during tutorials, but if you want help, you can come to the band room during that time.

Re: 1A/2A Bands and sectionals

Posted by SouthEast Central on 2/7/2025, 7:02 am, in reply to "1A/2A Bands and sectionals"

Did your administration give a reason as to why they want sectionals to happen?

Are they wanting more students participating in all region, or solo and ensemble so that they can advance to state?

Are your UIL scores not what they think they should be?

It seems really, really strange for an administration to simply say “do sectionals“ without giving you a purpose behind asking students to have extra practice time.

The only other reaaon that I can see is that they’re asking you to justify a stipend during the spring semester. From their point of view, this is a valid concern. If you are getting paid for doing extra hours outside the school day, and you’re not putting in any of those hours, why are they paying you?

I taught in a 2A/3A School for most of a decade. We had occasional afterschool practices for our high school students my first couple of years, but that was because my high school band classes were split into three periods during the day and so my ensemble never rehearsed together. Once I was finally able to prevail upon the counselor to fix that, it wasn’t needed as much anymore.

It also took me approaching district administration with a calendar marking down how many days I put in outside of the regular school calendar to get them to realize that no, I really didn’t need to work more than halfway through the month of June to justify the “extra days” “in my contract. The Extra days they were asking for work covered in August rehearsals, Saturday events, and the like.

Re: 1A/2A Bands and sectionals

Posted by uhh on 2/7/2025, 9:54 am, in reply to "Re: 1A/2A Bands and sectionals"

Okay every district is different in terms of stipend amounts and stipulations. I'm pretty sure the OP works enough hours to justify the stipend within the first few months of the contract. But a stipend shouldn't mean "find something to do outside of the work day." It doesn't mean that for other teachers who receive stipends.

Re: 1A/2A Bands and sectionals

Posted by SouthEast Central on 2/7/2025, 3:06 pm, in reply to "Re: 1A/2A Bands and sectionals"

If a band director is earning a $10,000 stipend, comparable only to a head football coach, they may want that band director to be working hours like a coach does.

Those coaches are up at the school nights, weekends, and holidays, opening up the gym and weight room for their kids. All year long - and into the summer.

I'm not saying I don't think band directors don't work enough. I'm saying - from the point of view of an administrator - they may be wanting to justify the stipend amount if they're "only working half the year," when other people with similar stipends are working more than year round.

Too many people think only from the point of view of the band hall.

Re: 1A/2A Bands and sectionals

Posted by uhh on 2/10/2025, 8:27 am, in reply to "Re: 1A/2A Bands and sectionals"

A lot of the coaches are doing that because thats what they have always done. Just like a lot of band directors overwork themselves because they don't know any other way. That's like the argument I see on here often about "just because UIL gives you 8 hours to use, doesn't mean you HAVE TO go the full amount."
And I wasn't thinking from the OV of the bandhall. Thats why I related it to other staff who get a stipend. No one tells our bilingual certified to fill time afterschool because they get a stipend.

Re: 1A/2A Bands and sectionals

Posted by Well on 2/7/2025, 9:49 pm, in reply to "Re: 1A/2A Bands and sectionals"

My head fb coach is done with all the late night/after school stuff in November.

Re: 1A/2A Bands and sectionals

Posted by Um... on 2/10/2025, 8:28 am, in reply to "Re: 1A/2A Bands and sectionals"

LOL... our head football coaches make about $30K-40K more than our head band directors.

Re: 1A/2A Bands and sectionals

Posted by Me on 2/8/2025, 12:59 pm, in reply to "Re: 1A/2A Bands and sectionals"

Your head FB coach doesn’t do spring practice, off-season workouts, conditioning, or training?

They don’t have a spring game?

Re: 1A/2A Bands and sectionals

Posted by Off season on 2/10/2025, 12:36 pm, in reply to "Re: 1A/2A Bands and sectionals"

Happens during the school day. Spring training is only 2 weeks.

Re: 1A/2A Bands and sectionals

Posted by My goodness on 2/7/2025, 8:29 am, in reply to "Re: 1A/2A Bands and sectionals"

Just answer the question...

We do sectionals before school and during lunch (they get 45min). It's only 20 minutes sectionals but we can get a lot done. Sometimes I'm able to get sectionals done during class time with Contracted Services $$$ with the local university's music majors.

Re: 1A/2A Bands and sectionals

Posted by Uhh... on 2/7/2025, 11:20 am, in reply to "Re: 1A/2A Bands and sectionals"

He did...

In asking those questions, it helps us provide better advice as it gives us a little more background.

I would sit down with the admin. and come up with a plan...more to the point, since it is the admin's idea, make sure they are going to support the sectional schedule. We have an "activity period" where I can call a sectional during the day for 35 minutes if needed. Kids can also come in and work S&E or All Region during this time as well.

Re: 1A/2A Bands and sectionals

Posted by SouthEast Central on 2/7/2025, 9:16 am, in reply to "Re: 1A/2A Bands and sectionals"

They asked for advice. The first and most important advice I have as a former 2A director is "Why are you doing this?" when it's a schedule conflict, unless it's necessary for ensemble development or individual development.

Feel free to not respond to my messages if you don't like their content.

Re: 1A/2A Bands and sectionals

Posted by My goodness on 2/7/2025, 3:38 pm, in reply to "Re: 1A/2A Bands and sectionals"

Fair point. Kind of a knee jerk response on my end.

My apologies. At least it's Friday!

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