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A Friendly Ear and A Helping Hand

Ben Burge | February March 2021

 
    Good mentors are essential for educators, particularly in difficult times like the current pandemic. In a typical school year, an administrator might assign a mentor to help new teachers learn the ropes at a particular school. That type of mentor helps young teachers get a good start, but what happens after that? How long do we follow through before the new teacher stops asking for help? Mentorship shouldn’t have a start or end date, but ought to be a natural part of basic relationships. We share what we know to those who may benefit. Unfortunately, many directors feel isolated on campus. New directors need the wisdom of veteran educators to cope with the realities of the job.
    A mentor wears many hats. The mentor is a trusted resource for information on how things work. The mentor can provide advice on the many trivial matters that over time become overwhelming. The mentor serves as a listener or sounding board. At times, a mentor can become a cheerleader in this role.
    Directors speak often of mentorship and take action to promote the concept. We rely on the experience of our colleagues for guidance on programming, show design, competition, and other major components of the job. We seek their knowledge on starting beginners, instrument branding, fundraising ideas, and for a voice of reason in seasons of change. Most importantly, we depend on their encouragement.
    Young directors need encouragement now. Teaching in the pandemic has created more chaos for music than any other discipline on campus. The ever changing list of demands placed on classroom teachers is overwhelming. Combining those demands with safety protocols based on space and numbers have complicated an already stressful job. Time limitations and the cancellation of so many normal activities have created disappointment for students and teachers.
    A director must rise to a variety of challenges to hold the program together while trying to plan for what is next. The volume of students and equipment in any ensemble situation can overwhelm a director in a normal school day. A pandemic school day requires the director to be even more creative, energetic, patient, and aware of all the new things they are  expected to do. None of us took courses in temperature taking or sanitation. None of us could have predicted that our profession would be impacted as it has.
    The feelings of helplessness and frustration are only part of what everyone feels. Grief is real. Grief for those lost to the virus is everywhere. Everyone has been impacted in some way by this terrible sickness away from school.  Families are changed by loss and by the negative effects that unemployment, quarantine, and virtual school have created. Students need band and the normalcy it brings like never before. Students need their directors like never before.      Directors need their mentors like never before. Mentors have an opportunity to encourage like never before.
    Starting a mentor program does not have to be complicated. One of the ways directors in my home state of Mississippi have developed a framework for mentorship is through our chapter of Phi Beta Mu. Our members started a mentorship program that encouraged directors to form relationships with both new teachers and new to our state teachers. These veteran educators offered assistance throughout the school year in many ways. Some directors visited rehearsals and provided feedback to both the teacher and students. Many developed lasting friendships and have invested time and resources into the young programs. Our chapter of Phi Beta Mu is pursuing other ways to enhance this mentoring initiative to benefit as many young professionals as we can, especially during the pandemic.
    I am grateful for the wonderful people I call my mentors. I have had some of the very best. I thank them for their support and friendship through the years, and their love and guidance during this pandemic. I appreciate their honesty and coaching at the beginning of my career and I appreciate that same honesty today. The role they have played in my life and career stretches beyond the wall of the band room. Mentors do that. They remember that it is more than just about the job.  
    I learned even more from my mentors by watching them interact and rehearse my groups. The resource of experience is a wonderful thing to have on hand. Veteran teachers have a wealth of knowledge to share. While times are certain to change and policy and theory constantly evolve, there is something special about watching a master teacher enforce the basics, teach fundamentals, and connect the music to the students with inspiring confidence.
    Encouragement comes in many forms. These days, a simple text, a silly meme, or a handwritten note from someone who truly cares is priceless.  Let us all make a point to reach out to our students who need us and to the young directors who are watching how we are handling things. Check in with that solo director in the nearby small school who needs more support than we can imagine. Check in with that director of the large program who has so many staff members and students to lead through these strange times. Offer your ear for more than just the wrong notes. Offer your experience and wisdom. None of us have all the answers, but it makes for a lighter load to figure things out together.