Choir has 137 students enrolled in the program, which is 13 people short of keeping both of the choir directors. The district requires at least 150 students to be signed up in a 6A choir program by Friday, Feb. 9, which means choir needs all the help it can get to bump our numbers up. If this goal is not met, Assistant Director Justin Shen will have to find a new job, leaving Head Director Jade Blakey the responsibility of many students. This can be very overwhelming and with a growing toddler at home, Blakey does not want to miss her child growing up. Therefore, Blakey will leave too, resulting in choir having to find new directors for the second time in a row.
Choir is a great choice because of the community, the low commitments, and for personal development.
Choir is a second family. The community is welcoming and Mrs. Blakey and Mr. Shen are always understanding and want to see their students succeed in and outside of choir. Since the choir is like a big team, it takes off individual pressure while singing. The choir room is always a judge-free environment because everyone is experimenting with their voices. The directors make sure to emphasize that choir students should take risks and make mistakes so that they can learn from them in the future. While the singing aspect of choir is important, the family aspect is just as important, if not more.
Along with socials and concerts, the choir offers annual trips to various locations. They are low cost and the regular fees for the program are one-time payments. For example, last year’s choir trip to Ireland was cheaper than usual school trips. Instead of being around $5,000, it was $3,000. The same goes for this year, when the choir is traveling to Disney World. The trips try to include vocal workshops and performances while also exploring popular attractions. There’s also no need to pay for an instrument because the student is the instrument!
Lastly, choir helps boost confidence and increase social skills by teaching many life lessons. One of the most memorable lessons is to just try your best – there is a lot of pressure put on students to make perfect grades which could lead to burnout. However, in choir, instead of getting tired of trying to beat other people academically, it’s better to try your best and learn from your mistakes. Life isn’t about being perfect, and choir teaches that perfectly. This elective is such a good way to be expressive emotionally and it can be relaxing after a stressful day.
However, many students are mainly motivated to do well academically, and fine arts can negatively affect GPA. Other students might not join because of other extracurriculars such as sports or clubs due to worries about time and how to balance everything.
Our directors this year also value their time because they want to have their personal life. Because of this, they try to limit the amount of extra rehearsals and the length of concerts and socials because they recognize that time is valuable. While choir isn’t an AP or AAC course, the grades are easy as they depend mostly on participation. The teachers have said that they don’t want their choir students to stress about grades, so they don’t make them a big deal. This takes some stress off of grade-focused people. Although the choir has some after-school practices and events that may cause conflict with other after-school activities, the directors are usually understanding and willing to accommodate.
This year, it’s important to support fine arts and help the teachers. If choir doesn’t make the cut, it will lose both directors and its community will be damaged again. Choir is a relaxed, fun, and important elective for many students open to continue building its community. Please consider joining!
