Summerland Secondary School will offer a band program for its students in the new school year in September, but the program will not be during regular school hours.
Todd Manuel, superintendent of schools with the Okanagan Skaha School District, said the program will be offered in the morning, before the school day begins, or immediately after school.
Having the band program outside of the class timetable allows the school to provide the program to the greatest number of students, since the timing does not conflict with core courses or electives.
“We want to see band as an option for Summerland Secondary School students,” he aid. “We want to give kids as much choice as possible.”
The school did not have a band program since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic until this past school year. As a result, the school is continuing to rebuild its band program, Manuel said.
During the past year, the band program was taught by Justin Glibbery, who is retiring at the end of this school year.
Next year, because of school configuration changes, the high school will accommodate students from Grade 7 to Grade 12. The community’s middle school will close and the building will be used to house an elementary school.
Gisette Edis, band teacher at Summerland Middle School, said music programs are important for schools.
“Music is a really important part of kids’ lives,” she said.
She said there has been significant interest among students in having a band program at the high school.
Edis added that the high school has a music room and instruments available for its music students.
Parents in the community have expressed their concerns about a band program at the high school level for next year.
Arianne d'Aoust, the mother of a band student at Summerland Middle School, said a band program scheduled outside the school day will be difficult for those families who do not have the means to bring their children to school early or pick them up late. Scheduling a program outside of the school day is also a challenger for students who are enrolled in extracurricular activities such as hockey or dance, which are also held outside of school hours.
She also said a program offered outside of the timetable may be seen as a lower priority.
“One of the reasons I have always valued Summerland is the way that we celebrate a wide variety of cultural interests,” she said. “Let’s make sure that our young people have the chance to explore all of these options at school. We need to have the band program as a part of the school timetable and give music a chance.”
