I am currently a senior at Orono High School in Long Lake, MN. I plan to pursue Music Education as a career. Music has had a big impact on my life. Through music, I have made many friends, learned many important lessons and leadership skills, and grown a lot as a person. I have been involved in band for 8 years and enjoy it immensely. I am currently involved in two out of the three bands at my high school. I play percussion in one (my main instrument) and tuba in the other. Both of my instruments are incredibly male dominated instruments, and I hope that I have been and will continue to be an inspiration for aspiring female musicians who may want to play those instruments. A few years ago, I had a challenging experience with student leadership in band, which drove my own passion for leadership. I made a goal for myself: as an upperclassman, I would not allow any younger percussionists, for as long as I was in band, to feel the way I had felt. On the first day of my junior year, I facilitated all the percussionists introducing themselves and getting to know one another. Throughout the year, I worked hard to make good on my promise, whether it was writing missing pieces of music for new percussionists or collecting phone numbers so that underclassmen could reach out with questions or concerns. Making an effort to connect and get to know people, I formed friendships, both in the percussion section and out. Wanting to do better than those who had come before me, I volunteered to become a teaching assistant in one of our lower bands. It pushed me out of my comfort zone, allowing me to develop new relationships. I have mentored several percussionists who came to me looking for help. I am so glad I could be there for them like I wish someone had been for me. Improving my leadership skills continues to be important to me. I was chosen to attend a Women’s Leadership Seminar and have already implemented many ideas. Being in influential roles such as Drum Major, a member of our Band Leadership Team, and Percussion Section Leader, I aim to make all students feel welcome, heard, and valued. I desire to become a music teacher who is a positive influence in the lives of my students. My initial experience in Wind Ensemble allows me to more easily recognize exclusivity, passivity, and poor leadership. I aspire to create an encouraging environment where students can learn, grow, experiment, feel safe, and ultimately improve their musicianship. Inclusivity will not be just a goal, but an expectation. We will not be just a band, but a family.

I am currently a senior at Orono High School in Long Lake, MN. I plan to pursue Music Education as a career. Music has had a big impact on my life. Through music, I have made many friends, learned many important lessons and leadership skills, and grown a lot as a person. I have been involved in band for 8 years and enjoy it immensely. I am currently involved in two out of the three bands at my high school. I play percussion in one (my main instrument) and tuba in the other. Both of my instruments are incredibly male dominated instruments, and I hope that I have been and will continue to be an inspiration for aspiring female musicians who may want to play those instruments. A few years ago, I had a challenging experience with student leadership in band, which drove my own passion for leadership. I made a goal for myself: as an upperclassman, I would not allow any younger percussionists, for as long as I was in band, to feel the way I had felt. On the first day of my junior year, I facilitated all the percussionists introducing themselves and getting to know one another. Throughout the year, I worked hard to make good on my promise, whether it was writing missing pieces of music for new percussionists or collecting phone numbers so that underclassmen could reach out with questions or concerns. Making an effort to connect and get to know people, I formed friendships, both in the percussion section and out. Wanting to do better than those who had come before me, I volunteered to become a teaching assistant in one of our lower bands. It pushed me out of my comfort zone, allowing me to develop new relationships. I have mentored several percussionists who came to me looking for help. I am so glad I could be there for them like I wish someone had been for me. Improving my leadership skills continues to be important to me. I was chosen to attend a Women’s Leadership Seminar and have already implemented many ideas. Being in influential roles such as Drum Major, a member of our Band Leadership Team, and Percussion Section Leader, I aim to make all students feel welcome, heard, and valued. I desire to become a music teacher who is a positive influence in the lives of my students. My initial experience in Wind Ensemble allows me to more easily recognize exclusivity, passivity, and poor leadership. I aspire to create an encouraging environment where students can learn, grow, experiment, feel safe, and ultimately improve their musicianship. Inclusivity will not be just a goal, but an expectation. We will not be just a band, but a family.

I am currently a senior at Orono High School in Long Lake, MN. I plan to pursue Music Education as a career. Music has had a big impact on my life. Through music, I have made many friends, learned many important lessons and leadership skills, and grown a lot as a person. I have been involved in band for 8 years and enjoy it immensely. I am currently involved in two out of the three bands at my high school. I play percussion in one (my main instrument) and tuba in the other. Both of my instruments are incredibly male dominated, and I hope that I have been and will continue to be an inspiration for aspiring female musicians who may want to play those instruments. A few years ago, I had a challenging experience with student leadership in band, which drove my own passion for leadership. I made a goal for myself: as an upperclassman, I would not allow any younger percussionists, for as long as I was in band, to feel the way I had felt. On the first day of my junior year, I facilitated all the percussionists introducing themselves and getting to know one another. Throughout the year, I worked hard to make good on my promise, whether it was writing missing pieces of music for new percussionists or collecting phone numbers so that underclassmen could reach out with questions or concerns. Making an effort to connect and get to know people, I formed friendships, both in the percussion section and out. Wanting to do better than those who had come before me, I volunteered to become a teaching assistant in one of our lower bands. It pushed me out of my comfort zone, allowing me to develop new relationships. I have mentored several percussionists who came to me looking for help. I am so glad I could be there for them like I wish someone had been for me. Improving my leadership skills continues to be important to me. I was chosen to attend a Women’s Leadership Seminar and have already implemented many ideas. Being in influential roles such as Drum Major, a member of our Band Leadership Team, and Percussion Section Leader, I aim to make all students feel welcome, heard, and valued. I desire to become a music teacher who is a positive influence in the lives of my students. My initial experience in Wind Ensemble allows me to more easily recognize exclusivity, passivity, and poor leadership. I aspire to create an encouraging environment where students can learn, grow, experiment, feel safe, and ultimately improve their musicianship. Inclusivity will not be just a goal, but an expectation. We will not be just a band, but a family.

I am currently a senior at Orono High School. I swam under Pete as a middle school swimmer. He was a very kind and encouraging coach and made me love the sport. I am planning on pursuing Music Education this fall. I have been involved in band since I was in 5th grade, and it has had a very big impact on me. I have made a lot of friends through band, learned a lot of lessons about how to work hard and lead a group of people, and I have enjoyed it immensely. Over my time in band, I have also experienced some not so great student leadership. Having a challenging experience in band drove my passion for leadership. I made a goal for myself: as an upperclassman, I would not allow any younger percussionists, for as long as I was in band, to feel the way I had felt. On the first day of my junior year, I facilitated all the percussionists introducing themselves and getting to know one another. Throughout the year, I worked hard to make good on my promise, whether it was writing missing pieces of music for new percussionists or collecting phone numbers so that underclassmen could reach out with questions or concerns. Making an effort to connect and get to know people, I formed friendships, both in the percussion section and out. Wanting to do better than those who had come before me, I volunteered to become a teaching assistant in one of our lower bands. It pushed me out of my comfort zone, allowing me to develop new relationships. I have mentored several percussionists who came to me looking for help. I am so glad I could be there for them like I wish someone had been for me. Improving my leadership skills continues to be important to me. I was chosen to attend a Women’s Leadership Seminar and have already implemented many ideas. Being in influential roles such as Drum Major, a member of our Band Leadership Team, and Percussion Section Leader, I aim to make all students feel welcome, heard, and valued. I desire to become a music teacher who is a positive influence in the lives of my students. My experiences in band allow me to more easily recognize exclusivity, passivity, and poor leadership. I aspire to create an encouraging environment where students can learn, grow, experiment, feel safe, and ultimately improve their musicianship. Inclusivity will not be just a goal, but an expectation. We will not be just a band, but a family.