We now have enough information from the Troy School District (TSD) to at least begin the registration process, and adjust our summer schedule at this time. There are so many moving parts and conversations happening that have delayed the official kickoff of our season. I feel terrible that we had to begin our registration process today, but we just didn't have enough answers to even send this email out until now.
First, I am so happy to finally be able to say registration has officially begun for the 2020 Athens marching band season! Please register by Thursday, June 11th if you plan on participating here: https://www.troyathensbands.com/marching-band-registration.html. No money is required at this time to register, and this link will only take a few minutes. We will send out more forms when we need to!
Next, we made the difficult decision to move our away band camp to Athens High School for this year. While this decision was extremely hard to make, we know it is the right move to make. Almost all High School bands have already announced this, but we were holding on to the last moment before having to make this decision. As a result, the cost of band will be discounted to under $250, as you can see in the registration link. As soon as we know how many people will be participating, we will be publishing the exact cost, and when payments will be due. Since we aren't going to camp, we can wait a bit longer to begin collecting payments!
Our start date has still yet to be decided by TSD. However, the Michigan High School Athletic Association (MHSAA) has provided insight for administrators on how to safely practice this summer, and TSD will be creating their own policies based on what MHSAA presented. I know that many families are eager to make plans for the summer, which is why today we are publishing a rehearsal start date of July 27th. We are confident that our leadership team will be trained well enough this month to begin virtual sectionals so friendships can begin to be made before in-person sectionals begin. Besides the cancellation of June/early July rehearsals, all remaining events are still on our calendar!
If TSD allows summer practices to begin before July 27th, we will allow sectionals to take place right away while following TSD protocol. There will be many new requirements this year like social distancing, temperature checks, not sharing equipment, flexible attendance policies, and much more. That is the biggest reason why TSD hasn't started any summer programs yet. All of this information will be presented to you when TSD has published their plans for the summer. I have a meeting Tuesday evening to learn more about summer policies, and will share any information right away if I learn anything new. It is my full expectation that we can meet in small groups before July 27th. Be on the look out for any emails from Kerry Birmingham to provide updates to us all.
Here is a list of what is next: 6/7 MB Registration Starts 6/7 Students should fill out this form if they need a marching band instrument from me: https://forms.gle/tKgc8RE1o9vz8faq8 6/11 MB Registration Concludes 6/16 at 7pm, MB Kickoff Event via Zoom (code will be sent later)
The Kickoff Event will go into much more detail about our season, protocol, and is for all students and parents. We will reveal our show at that time, and will get you even more excited about our upcoming season!!! If you cannot attend the kickoff event, a video will be recorded. However, it is expected that one person per family watches this event.
I look forward to seeing the registrations come in, and can't wait to see you all at our kickoff on 6/16!