Kingdom of the Sun band presses Marion County School Board to keep historic $16/hour facility rate; board agrees to freeze historic nonprofit rates pending work

Dozens of musicians and supporters of the Kingdom of the Sun community band told the Marion County School Board on Jan. 14 that sudden fee increases for school facility rentals threaten the nonprofit ensemble’s ability to rehearse and present free community concerts.

The band’s president, Marcia Muncaster, told the board the group has historically paid $16 an hour for use of district facilities and asked the board to “waive rather than raise all usage fees or alternately waive all rehearsal fees and keep MTI fees at $16 an hour.” She said the group’s membership ranges from school-age students to people in their 90s and that a large proposed increase would push annual costs beyond the band’s capacity.

The dispute surfaced after the district’s operations office, which now processes rental requests, applied a Board‑approved fee schedule. Operations staff member Miss Dobbins told the board that the district “applied the board‑approved fee schedule to Kingdom of the Sun” after the rental paperwork arrived in the operations office and that she could not find a board‑approved memorandum of understanding (MOU) authorizing the lower rate.

Why it matters: the band provides free concerts and student mentoring, and its supporters said the ensemble has…