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Parents urge Oak County school board to protect band and performing arts amid budget shifts
Summary
A parent representing Sica High School band boosters told the Oak County School Board on May 11 that transportation cuts and funding pressures threaten marching band, concert band and color guard and urged the board to prioritize sustaining music programs for student belonging and academic benefit.
Gail Steel, speaking for the Sica High School band boosters, urged the Oak County School District Board of Trustees on May 11 to keep music and performing-arts programs intact as the district finalizes its FY2026–27 budget. “Band and color guard are where [students] find acceptance, belonging, and confidence,” Steel said during the public-comment period, asking the board not to eliminate mandatory away-game transportation or other supports that make participation possible.
Steel, who identified herself as a resident and a preschool educator, detailed the ways limited program funding forces parents and volunteers to shoulder costs through sponsorships and fundraisers. She said transportation is one of the largest expenses and warned that ending trips to away performances would “build school spirit, strengthen community relationships, and create unforgettable memories” only if trips continue. “No child should lose access to these opportunities because of financial hardship,” she said.
The appeal linked arts participation to measurable student outcomes. Steel cited research — without naming a specific study — that arts involvement correlates with stronger academic performance, improved social-emotional skills and higher graduation rates, and stressed that students from low-income families disproportionately rely on school music programs for access to extracurricular learning.
Board members reacted to the comment period with explicit expressions of support. One member said the arts “provide structure, encouragement and a sense of purpose,” recounting personal experience in color guard, and several members thanked Steel and the booster club for their advocacy.
The comment occurred before the board’s budget vote later in the meeting. Board leaders did not make a funding commitment during public comment; instead, they said they would review the concerns as they finalize budget and calendar items. The district’s detailed budget discussion later in the meeting referenced a projected enrollment decline of about 300 students and shifts in revenue sources that could affect program funding.
