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Farmington parents, students and music teachers urge board to retain 5th‑grade band
Summary
Four speakers at the Farmington Board of Education's first meeting of 2025 argued the proposed elimination of the 5th‑grade beginning band would damage the district's music pipeline and student opportunities. Speakers promised further data and volunteer support to the board.
Jeremy Mann, Nicole Colson, Benjamin Cirek and retired instrumental teacher Jan Ellingsen told the Farmington Board of Education at its first meeting of 2025 that removing the 5th‑grade beginning band from the district budget would harm students and the district's longstanding music program.
Those speakers said the proposed elimination follows the failure of a referendum to renew an operating levy and is part of a list of possible program cuts being discussed by district leaders. The commentators urged the board to treat the beginning band as a foundational program that supports later student achievement and participation in music across grades.
"As a member of the community for over 20 years, I feel we have the need to get past this notion that the 5th grade band program is somehow extraneous, optional, or at any less vital to the core curriculum in this district," said Jeremy Mann, who spoke during the public‑comment period. Mann described the program as a low‑cost, district‑wide, shared‑FTE offering that provides early instrument instruction and screening across five elementary schools.
Nicole Colson, president of the Farmington Tiger Band Boosters, said the boosters have engaged a national consultant to gather participation, staffing and academic context and will present a detailed report to the board the week of Jan. 27. "Music education touches all of us and that's why we've engaged a national consultant to gather data and resources related to student participation, staffing, academic and economic factors in this district," Colson said.
Benjamin Cirek, a senior in Farmington's band program who previously served as the student representative to the board, described his start in band after a pep‑band visit in elementary school and credited 5th‑grade band with shaping his decision to pursue music education: "That extra year was what really drove us to be able to play ... and have that fun." Jan Ellingsen, who retired in 2019 after 30 years as an instrumental music teacher in Farmington, said a program evaluation previously recommended restoring 5th‑grade band because it increases enrollment and raises playing levels at the middle school.
Speakers emphasized that Farmington runs music programs "on a shoestring" compared with other districts and highlighted community volunteer and donation support that subsidizes music instruction. They asked the board to measure participation across the five elementary sites, quantify the portion of FTE devoted to 5th‑grade instruction, and consider alternatives that would preserve early instrumental access.
The speakers did not ask for an immediate vote; they delivered public comment during the allotted five‑minute period. Nicole Colson said boosters will return with a data report at the Jan. 27 meeting to inform the board's budget deliberations.
