PEDAGOGY

Putting it All Together ..., Phillip Riggs, cont.

evolve from year to year. Our primary responsibility is to constantly evaluate our plans and adjust them to allow our students to make progress. Do not be afraid to try something new if you think it will help individual students and the overall program. On the other hand, do not hesitate to change your plan if it is not having the desired outcome.

Concepts and strategies that work in other programs may not work for your program. The best thing you can do as you begin the year is to establish a network of successful directors you can communicate with throughout the year. Do not hesitate to ask questions and get multiple ideas from various teachers. Compare all the feedback and determine the approach you think will best fit your students.

BY KEVIN

Who’s the Assistant Director?

This question is rarely asked. When we see the high school marching band in the local paper, most people associate the face of the head director with that program. This is a natural and logical response. When you ask pre-service instrumental music teachers what their “dream job” would be, I would argue that most of them want to be a head director of a high school program. Why? This hierarchy of position titles is embodied in many professions outside of music education. Position Coaches aspire to be Head Coaches, President-Elects aspire to be Presidents, Corporals aspire to be Sergeants. It is human nature to pursue growth and surpass the various levels of command in our respective fields. While this is encouraged and perfectly acceptable, what if we had a different mentality for these assistant positions? What if we had more emphasis on the quality and experience of the individuals in these positions? What would our programs look like? How can we make these positions appealing for all levels of experience and expertise? How can we keep quality teachers in these positions?

Research

In the Fall of 2022 I completed a series of semi-structured interviews with various head and assistant band directors from the state of Ohio. Based on my results, it is arguable to say that the assistant position is not being utilized in a way that is most beneficial for school band programs. Many programs rotate through assistant directors every few years. In this study, both head directors and assistant directors alike struggled to define the assistant role in their respective programs. This uncertainty between director colleagues appeared to be a major contributing factor to the dissatisfaction of the assistant

Kevin Niese is a first-year Graduate Associate at the University of Iowa pursuing his PhD in Music Education, with an emphasis in conducting. His assistantship includes working with student teachers, beginning conductors, the Iowa City New Horizons Band, and the Hawkeye Marching Band. Prior to his current graduate appointment, he completed his master's degree in music education at Ohio University. At OHIO he assisted with all wind bands including the Marching 110, Wind Symphony, Symphonic Band, and University Concert Band. His teaching positions included Director of Bands for Vinton County Local Schools in McArthur, OH and Assistant Director of Bands for Nordonia Hills City Schools in Macedonia, OH. Kevin's teaching experiences include Marching Band, Concert Band, Beginning Band, Chamber Ensembles, Pit Orchestra, Pep Band, Jazz Band and other various music electives. In the field, Kevin excelled in areas of recruitment and retention. His students were also successful participants in adjudicated events receiving exceptional ratings.

The North Central Ohio native is an active drill-writer for high school marching bands throughout the state of Ohio. His primary research interests include adjudicated events in secondary music and their relationship to lifelong musicianship.

Perspective

Who's the Assistant Director ..., Kevin Niese, cont.

output. Generally speaking, several assistant directors felt their skill-set was being overlooked. Surprisingly, head directors held themselves accountable for overlooking the assistant position. This could suggest another barrier in the communication and understanding between directors. Other impeding factors mentioned by directors was the overall job satisfaction of an assistant position. Several assistant and head directors shared the idea of being valued and how being valued can impact the productivity, work ethic, and work environment for the assistant position.

The promising outlook I have gathered from this research was that several directors agree that more can be done with the assistant position. Head and assistant directors shared quality ideas as to what the assistant role should be, but are not executing in their respective programs. Assistant directors have the ability to drastically influence the musical output of the students, improve program recruitment/retention rates, and impact established band cultures. It is imperative to complete more research on the functionality and output of the assistant position for the benefit of secondary band programs. More research would be beneficial on the relationship between directors while analyzing director personalities that work well together. Other useful research could focus on student perspective and perception of the assistant position. This extended research could also include the student perspective of the assistant and head director relationship.

SO, WHAT CAN WE DO?

How can we be an advocate and support the assistant position nationwide?

SELF-REFLECTION

Take a strong look at your current program. What do you see? How is the assistant position incorporated with your students, ensembles, staff, administration, and community? Are they actively engaged in the music making process? Are they in a position to make a positive impact on your program? These are questions that must be answered. Sometimes the answers are alarming and reflect significant gaps within our programs. Selfreflection is imperative for growth and change.

ASSESSMENT & INVOLVEMENT

What are the strengths of your director colleague? What are YOUR weaknesses as a director? All directors have a unique set of qualities. If you are fortunate enough to work with a colleague, why wouldn’t you embrace every opportunity to collaborate, share, and ask questions? We see this utilized in co-teaching scenarios when our colleagues serve as a counterpart to our instrumental background. Specifically serving as a brass, woodwind, or percussion specialist. This mentality should go beyond primary instruments. Our specialty area can be pedagogical, philosophical, or administrative. It could be teaching tone quality, rhythm, technique, or intonation. Personally, I love the process of recruitment and retention. These were areas where I excelled. This is where I shined. My colleagues and administrators knew that I was passionate about getting students involved in our program and provided several opportunities for me to lead these initiatives. We must rethink how we involve our colleagues and do so as often as possible.

DELEGATION & COMMUNICATION

The original title for my research paper was “All Hands on Deck!” It’s no secret that teachers nationwide are simply exhausted. Again, why wouldn’t we utilize the assistant position as often as possible?

Delegating is not a sign of weakness or laziness, it’s an essential task that facilitates progress and completion of necessary tasks. With that being said, if you're putting a colleague in an uncomfortable position to complete a poorly planned task due to your lack of preparation, you’re not delegating, you’re failing. Quality communication is essential for programs to be successful. It’s very clear when colleagues don’t communicate with one another. Lack of communication is easily seen by students, parents, administration and can affect all aspects of the program. Most of the interviewed directors indicated that poor delegation and poor communication are the driving force of confrontation between colleagues.

Forming An Identity

Who’s the Assistant Director? That’s a good question. Several assistant directors mentioned the feeling of being overlooked or simply being an afterthought. It’s important to create a cohesive environment for the assistant position with opportunities to lead certain aspects of the program. Having autonomy creates a sense of ownership, which in turn shows value. In the early stages of my research, a larger pool of directors completed a general survey. One of the questions simply asked “What is the primary duty of the assistant position?” A head director responded, “To take attendance…” As I was shocked by this response, I continued to research. I was curious as to how assistant positions were being advertised on job posting platforms. After a simple Google search, I found several postings for full-time assistant director positions and the necessary “qualifications.” iPad.”

• “Minimum qualification: completion of student teaching/ internship.”

The qualifications listed above appear to be harmless and likely have good intentions. However, why would individuals be inspired to pursue these assistant positions when head director positions are seen as such:

• “Present an enthusiastic love for music…”

• “Candidate must be well-versed in advanced wind repertoire.”

• “Outstanding interpersonal and collaborative skills.”

• “Minimum qualification: 5 years experience, at the secondary or collegiate level…”

While these qualifications are a mere snapshot of a few job postings, it appears that assistant positions don’t demand the same quality or caliber of director as a head position. There is clearly a gap in the perception of these position types. If continued, this mentality will significantly impact the quality, creativity, and productivity of band programs.

Who's the Assistant Director ..., Kevin Niese, cont.

Here are simple things we can do to continue to make progress with the assistant position:

OPEN COMMUNICATION - Talk with your colleagues, even the tough conversations

SHARING OF RESPONSIBILITIESDelegate appropriately

UTILIZING STRENGTHS OF OUR COLLEAGUES - Work together with your specialized area

CREATIVE & CONSISTENT COLLABORATION - “Two heads are better than one.”

EMBRACE DIFFERENCES - Learn from one another and appreciate your different backgrounds

Now, who’s the new assistant director? Is it you?

• “Must be able to carry a minimum of 25-30 lbs unassisted.”

• “Ability to sit and stand for long periods of time.”

• “Maintain emotional control under stress.”

• “Must be able to work with an

Final Thoughts

Assistants need to be involved in all aspects of the program and be an extension of the head director. This is crucial for the success of our students and for the entirety of our programs.