The ingredients of these factors always make for a great night and the euphoria of the season is made official by this performance.  But, for this year, the release of the CD more than added a next level of  “coolness” to it.  For many, this was their first time being part of a recorded album.  We all own cd’s and take it for granted, but, when you get to see your name listed on a professionally made cd, there is just something very special about that.  I designed and created the artwork and liner notes for the album and Discmakers from Pennsauken, NJ made them for us. Since I had put this together, I obviously was aware of what it looked like and was used to seeing it.  But, for the members, it was a cool experience for me to see the look of excitement and feeling of accomplishment on many of their faces. As we handed out the cd’s and they finally had a chance to see them for the first time, that was well worth the time and effort in designing this project.   Our CD, REJOICE, was finally available and after so many years, we now have a professional recording that will last forever.  I do believe that many of us DID rejoice that night in celebration of a wonderful event all led by founder and trumpeter Ken Brader.  For without him, none of this would be possible.

Since scheduling in December is never easy, our attendance can vary and usually does.  But, this year was really awesome as we had one of our largest groups ever with 43 people playing!  We had 2 great shows and both Ken I really feel this was one of, if not, the best performance of the group in many years if not ever.  Whether it was the cd or something else, the night was just great for everyone and the sound was awesome.  One thing that made it special for me was the addition of a few long time members who had not played with us in many years due to scheduling and travel.  Paul Chepolis and Eric Martin were former students of Ken’s and had not played in almost 20 years.  When I was in high school, Eric went to rival Easton HS and we spent many years playing together at Christmas time.  I hadn’t seen Eric in many years.  He came up as a surprise to Ken and his parents and it was awesome to see him there.  Paul also went to Easton and is a few years younger than I am, but it was great to have him back and be able to relive and tell stories of the past.  As the eldest member of the group, this opportunity was really good for me. To be able to not just see longtime friends but also perform with them was a great feeling.

I am very thankful to everyone who played and helped to make this night a great success.  Ken was so overjoyed and full of emotion that this was an even greater night for him.  With all the health issues that Ken is dealing with, it is such a good feeling to see him have such a rewarding night and a chance to lead again.

Educational Institutions, like many public entities are constantly dealing with new laws and regulations on what information can be disseminated and the methods used to collect it.  Gone are the days of just filling out a form and sending it in with your child. Today, there are so many consequences that could arise from not being able to read the form, improperly filling it out out or even worse. However, these issues can all be alleviated with one product from a very reputable and growing company.  SRC Solutions of Center Valley, Pa, is the innovative leader world wide in creating registration software to help facilitate proper record keeping in all areas of a students’ school career.  I certainly can speak from an area of experience in understanding why school districts could benefit from this product.  As an educator in a public school, one thing many music programs do is travel.  As great as a trip or competition can be, it requires a mountain of preparation before it can happen.  Unlike many teachers who just work according to the school day, music teachers have to spend a great deal of time after school preparing and maintaining accurate files for every kid to be permitted to go on a trip.  This includes permission forms, medical forms (including doctor’s prescriptions), as well as emergency forms.  Regularly communications with the main office and nurse always have to occur to coordinate the large task of compiling the mound of paperwork.  Then it all has to be sorted through and organized.  It is a task that has nothing to do with the job of preparing student musicians and can be very frustrating to complete.  A teacher can never assume that every parent took the time necessary to complete the hand written forms accurately.   One has to review and go over every form making notes of potential issues.   Also, a visit to the nurse’s office with a full list of students attending on a trip is required. The nurse then will have to also go through every student to make alerts of those who have medical issues or require medication throughout the trip.

This whole situation is always tedious and energy draining.  Not every parent fills out his or her forms in a timely manner.  It is usually last minute when the teacher is trying to finalize the preparations for the trip that one can go crazy trying to get forms turned in as and making plans for any medical issues that could arise.

As you can see, a lot of time can be spent handling forms.  You want to make sure there aren’t errors or issues that could come up.  The first concern always is for the students and their safety.  If a mistake is made along the way, it could be a problem and ultimately would come back to the teacher who is stressed from all this additional work.  The nurse and main office secretary who are involved with this process all have their regular jobs to do.  Requesting for personal attention to help with a trip needs was something above and beyond their workday.  They have to fit it in when they can to complete the task.  This can lead to an error or typo somewhere along the way.

If I were an administrator examining this situation I would be concerned. Due to this process, there are several potential red flags that would go up in my mind.  Detailed personal info being passed around through several channels, the potential of miscommunications between staff of students issues, sloppy and illegible writing causing a concern just to name a few. Overall, a lack of efficiency existed which could easily lead to a potentially unwanted negative situation.

If a district has the use of Registration Gateway Products, I believe some benefits to this process would include:

-increased accuracy of information/records

-be streamlined to accomplish in a much faster time

-provide privacy for every student

-lack of excess paperwork

Throughout these benefits, I believe efficiency is the thread tied to each of them.  A lack of efficiency can easily be the opening for a major problem to develop.

If I were again that administrator, I am naturally concerned for my students and staff at all times.  If I am allowing a group to go on a trip and the preparation for it includes paperwork that is rushed or hurried, is this best for my students? No!  This single situation alone is worth the price of improving communication through the registration process.  I am ultimately responsible for the safety of every child.  Why would I let this archaic way of handling paperwork throughout the district continue and possibly lead to a problem under my watch? The benefits moving forward for everyone throughout the district are significant.  In the time we live in with contempt felt for public education, who would not want to improve the accuracy of record keeping?

Although cost is a factor for everything in public education, investing in a program like this will vastly improve the overall efficiency throughout the district leading to better production and accuracy proving just how valuable this will be! SRC Solutions and the products they offer can be found at  www.registrationgateway.com .  A truly innovative approach to streamlining paperwork for any school district!