If you haven't been keeping up with the Pride of Oklahoma, and all it's controversy over the past year and half, I'll try to catch you up to speed. Every detail might not be exact but I've tried to summarize. The position of the director came open when Mr. Brian Britt took a position that allowed him to be closer and spend more time with his family. There were mumblings of candidates, but the one that stuck out in our minds was one who'd already been doing the job as the assistant director. "Surely, she will get the job!", as many of us thought, but when they hired someone we'd never heard of from Wisconsin, we were all a bit shocked and confused. It seems there was many issues with hiring him, but the main ones were: 1) he did not meet the qualifications listed for the job, and 2) he was not the choice for those directly involved in the band, but instead the choice of the President of OU and a donor. Since he was hired, there has been a general decline in the program as the "new guy" decided to make changes to rehearsals, pre-game, game day practices, the audition process, game day concert and parade, and half-time performances, just to name a few. These changes eerily resemble that of the university band where he came from, Wisonsin. And rightly so, these changes have also not set well with most of the alumni, not just because they are changes to tradition, but changes to the tradition of excellence which the Pride has always upheld. There are many other issues and details that I don't want to include here, but this is just the tip of the iceberg.
This dismantling of the Pride that we have always known, loved, and been so proud of has been more than difficult to watch, and many alumni and fans have been left feeling hopeless and helpless. It sounds a bit dramatic, but it's been a process of grief for so many of us, and in that grief, there have been different reactions. Some have led a campaign to restore the Pride, some have walked away completely, some have been so angry they have said things they probably shouldn't have, some are simply too busy with their lives as working people or parents or whatever, some have written letters, and some have just stood back and read all of the different sides through social media, wondering what could be done to bring our band back to some of the pride we used to have in it. These varied reactions have caused dissension with the current students, many other great alumni, and the general public. I find myself now in the last category listed, and until now only wished that there was something I could do too, and I think maybe I've finally discovered it. What can we do? For me, I am going to still keep believing in the Pride.
So why do I still believe in the Pride of Oklahoma?
I believe in it because it is FAMILY, with doting mothers, encouraging fathers, crazy aunts, and sometimes drunk uncles. With cousins you don't get to see often enough, but when you do, you pick up right where you left off. We're siblings who have shared the same challenges, triumphs, memories, sometimes tears, but more often laughs. And maybe this is the reason it hurts so much to us. THESE are our people...the nerdy or awkward or lovers of music who know how it makes such a huge difference in the world, and we finally found a place to belong. We will forever be connected to one another, even when we argue or have differing opinions from one another. The people I met in Pride have been and will continue to be some of the most important people in my life, and I want to believe that can still exist for it's members.I believe in it because the spirit of the Pride can't be carried on if it's not taught to those who are still in it. How will they know where it all started, or the way they used to march, or the crazy stories if we're not there to teach them and tell them about it? There is a work to be done with these young adults, just as others did for me when I was in the Pride. There is a legacy to continue, and it's all of our jobs to do it.
I believe in it because often times the hard thing is the right thing, and leaving it behind and shutting it out of our lives is the easy thing to do. Being kind and encouraging is not always easy, but it's the right thing for me.
For some people, it's too much to handle and don't have the energy to care about it, and that's understandable. We each have to make our choice and decide what we're going to do, and there's nothing wrong with that. What I am saying is what I have to do, and that is still be a part of this. To me, walking away feels like abandoning my family, and so I am going to continue to be part of the OUBAA and participate in Homecoming as always. I can't let my anger and disappointment make me become someone I am not. And the someone I am is someone who will always always have a special place in my heart for the Pride of Oklahoma.
What does believing in the Pride of Oklahoma look like?
Current Students - You are in the most difficult position right now, out of all of us affiliated with the Pride, that none of us were forced to face, when you should be having the best days cheering on our Sooners. We hear you, and we're so sorry that anything we've done has heaped more coals onto your back. Our support for you as individuals has been overshadowed by the dissatisfaction expressed towards your leadership. Make the most out of your days in the Pride, and hold yourself to a higher standard than that of which is expected of you. None of this is your fault, and know that none of us blame you. Do we wish for some of the old traditions to be reinstated? Of course we do. But more than that, we hope you uphold the tradition of excellence and have the time of your life, like many of us did. And that the year after you graduate, you become one of us, and join Alumni Band!Mr. Stolarik - I've never met you face-to-face, but I think you're probably in a tricky position yourself. Please stop trying to change everything to only what you know, but listen to those that know Oklahoma and the Pride, and learn from them. Challenge the students - they will amaze you at how they rise to the occasion. They are smart, hardworking, and talented individuals, and your job is to showcase THEM. Because it's about the students, not any drill writer, music arranger, university president, or donor. It's about them, and they deserve your very best. And if you find you're not the best for them, it's time to go and let someone else give them their all.
Alumni - We all have different opinions and ideas on how to fix the debacle that we never saw coming, but I do know that what we've been doing hasn't worked. So whether you choose to participate in Alumni Band Association, Homecoming, or whatever else, please do something positive for these students, whether it be a kind word, a hand shake, or a goody bag. The current students are our only hope to bring it back, and we must invest our time and resources in them, which we in fact can do without supporting the dismantling of the Pride we once knew.
Sooner Fans & Supporters of the Pride - As Alumni, we've tried to spur a change back to all that was good about the Pride, but now we need you. We need you to write letters and send them to the people listed in the attachment below, and know what the public truly thinks. We have been perceived as a small angry group of fuddy-duddies wanting "our Pride" back. We do want "our Pride" back, and we mean that by returning the tradition of excellence to our students and providing them with the experiences that we were all lucky enough to have ourselves.
Well spoken!
ReplyDeleteWell done!
ReplyDeleteWell done, Kiley. I would not have have a problem with the changes to tradition if the young man knew what he wants to do and was able to do it. Unfortunately, he seems to have no creative vision of his own. He thinks it is okay to pass out the music to a forgotten 1970s TV show to visiting high school students--I looked up the Wikipedia entry for "And then there's Maude" for some insight of its relevance to today's youth, for a clue as to why a music teacher would choose it for his curriculum, and found that it is played before every U. of Wisconsin home hockey game. (Oh! That's why!) The Pride had 40 sitting on the sidelines for its pre-game floating W simply because Dr. Stolarik was not able to add 40 more dots to his previous employer's 45-year-old drill charts. I am puzzled that the university sees fit to pay this photocopy boy a hundred grand a year, and that his assistants are tasked with revising his previous employer's drill for the Pride students. A band program's CEO is a special combination of someone who should be musical beyond reproach, respectful of the classics, experienced (teaching middle school for five years in Texas is an excellent way to start a career, followed by a high school job somewhere in the Panhandle), and a "people person." Why the administration made this choice so casually and so thoughtlessly is beyond head-shaking. Anyway, again, well-said, and I hope your message gets to the right people.
ReplyDeleteGREAT!
ReplyDelete