District music department discusses staffing

Hamburg Area School District offers a wonderful music program, however, there are some concerns regarding a lack of adequate staffing throughout the district music department. The majority of the high school music department staff members teach multiple classes and ensembles on multiple different grade levels. For example, Mrs. Kline teaches 7th & 8th grade band lessons, 7th & 8th grade band, 9th-12th band lessons, 9th-12th concert band, high school jazz band, high school marching band, high school small ensembles (caroling, chamber ensembles as needed, etc.), and music theory class at the high school. Mrs. Dowd teaches lessons and Orchestra for Perry, Tilden, MS, and HS in grades 3-12.

     Along with teaching so many classes on different grade levels comes traveling between multiple school buildings. Mrs. Kline travels between the middle school and the high school every other day. She states that, “sometimes it’s like doing double-duty…setting up, maintaining, and managing multiple classrooms, paperwork, seating charts, grade books etc.” She adds that “in Mrs. Dowd’s case-she’s doing quadruple-duty at all buildings,” referring to her coworker as “Superwoman.” Mrs. Dowd travels between buildings “at least twice a day and sometimes three times a day.” She offers her opinion on working in multiple buildings, expressing that she, “wouldn’t mind a few buildings, but all four buildings is somewhat overwhelming.” 

     Although teaching in multiple buildings can prove to be daunting for the hardworking faculty members, it is not all negative. Both teachers agree that they love to “work with multiple grade levels of students,” and Mrs. Kline states that “it’s wonderful helping to transition them from middle to high school.” Mrs. Dowd adds another positive aspect of working in different buildings, articulating that, “it is nice to get to know many different teachers.”

     Even with the positive aspects of working with multiple grade levels and in different buildings, the staff members still have many responsibilities. If there were more music department employees, not only would their responsibilities be lessened, but the students would also benefit. Mrs. Kline voices that “it would be more helpful to the students to have their music teacher in their building more often,” adding that “an additional music teacher would allow us to focus on a smaller group of students. We would have the opportunity to offer more educational support and encouragement.”

     Unfortunately, hiring more music teachers is not as simple as it sounds. According to a study done by RIME many states and US territories have reported shortages of music teachers between 2011-12 and 2020-21. This puts administrators in a difficult position, because even if they had plans to hire more music teachers, they may have no choice if there are none available. The study offers a possible solution that also benefits students. By allowing high school students who have an interest in music education to assist in their home district (whether that be through teaching lessons to lower grade levels, co-teaching classes, or helping with administrative aspects), schools could reduce the responsibilities of their music teachers without having to hire more employees, while also offering a chance for students to consider music teaching as a possible career. This could be done through Tri-M, a national music honor society for secondary students, which is something that HAHS already offers to students. 

     Hamburg Area School District’s music program is a wonderful space for students to express themselves, and it is all thanks to the hard work and dedication of the music department staff. Thank you for everything you do while still providing a positive environment for the students. 

     For more information go to https://commons.lib.jmu.edu/rime/vol16/iss1/3/