Athens City Schools

Jason Quick is inspired by the depth and growth of the Athens City Schools fine arts program over the past year.

As the school system’s fine arts director, Quick gave Athens school board members an overview of the successes achieved during the 2019-20 school year. He made the presentation during the school board’s December meeting.

“I wanted to give some recognition of what we are doing in the fine arts program and how our children are continuing to develop by participating in the fine arts,” Quick told board members after advising them he planned to bestow awards on students at the end of his presentation. Those winners, honored for their achievements, scholarships and other awards, will appear in one of next week’s editions of The News Courier.

“If you look at the Athens High School marching band, jazz band and symphonic band as well as Athens Middle School’s sixth, seventh and eighth grade bands and the winter and color guards, we have 353 total slots of children participating within our band program,” Quick said. “Some of them are going to be replicated, meaning we have some members who are in both the marching band and the symphonic band.”

As every performance ended, it was better than the one before, he said.

“The band I think did a phenomenal job this year under some very tough conditions,” Quick said. “I tell them this all the time, I don’t know many 14, 18-year-olds that are going to give up their entire summer to march in 95-degree heat — twisted ankles, ice, all those kinds of things, for anywhere from 8 to 12 hours a day and not complain. They do it because they love the program, and it has really shown in their performance, but also in the pride that they have.”

During the fall semester, Athens High School Marching Band had 88 members, including 65 instrumentalists and 23 auxiliary numbers.

AHS Jazz Band had 16 members, and AHS Symphonic Band had, during the spring semester, 67 members, he said.

Athens Middle School Band had 153 students, including 58 in sixth grade, 32 in seventh grade and 63 in eighth grade, Quick said.

Athens High School Winter Guard had six members, Athens Middle School Winter Guard had nine members and AMS Color Guard had 14 members, he said.

Honors

Some of the year’s accolades included:

• Earning superior ratings and best in class awards at the Mud Creek Marching Festival, including highest scores for color guard and drum line;

• Performing in the second annual Alabama State Marching Festival;

• Participating in the AHS Homecoming Parade, Huntsville Christmas Parade and Athens Christmas Parade;

• Seeing both AHS and AMS band members perform to an overflow crowd of 850 people during the Christmas concert at Athens Performing Arts Center;

• Having the jazz band perform at several community events, local assisted living facilities and elementary schools during the semester; and

• Having nine students participate in Auburn University’s Honor Marching Band.

Performance invitations

Quick rattled off just a few of recent performances in which Athens students performed. He said eight students performed with the University of North Alabama Extravaganza, eight students were named to the Limestone County Honor Band, three students participated at Auburn University flute day, three students were chosen for Auburn University’s Symphonic Honor Band, and one student participated in the University of Alabama’s Symphonic Honor Band.

Band members have also been invited to some important upcoming performances. AHS Marching Band will be going to the Sugar Bowl and AHS Symphonic Band will be going to the University of Alabama Crimson Festival of Winds, Quick said. In addition, 19 students are auditioning for Alabama Bandmasters All State Honor Band, the highest number of participants for the school system, he said.

Singers, too

Band members are not the only ones making music in the city. AHS Choir has 27 students, AMS Choir has 27 students, AMS Sixth Grade Choir has 22 members and AMS seventh and eighth grade choir has 40 students. Among their activities have been:

• Performing for Athens Intermediate School classes;

• Performing for Athens Health and Rehab;

• Singing on The Square, an outdoor choral event;

• Performing at the middle and high schools; and

• Performing in the 2019 Winter Concert.

Dancers also

The city school’s dance program is in its first year at AMS and its third year at AHS, Quick said. This year, there are 20 girls in grades 7-12 in the program. AHS learned six new routines and AMS learned three. The program hosted 42 children during a two-day mini dance clinic for ages 4 through fifth grades. Dance team members and mini campers performed during half time at recent AHS basketball games. All routines were choreographed by AHS students.

Actors as well

Some 62 students are involved in theater at AHS, Quick said, including 14 in the drama troupe, two accepted to the Academy of Musical and Dramatic Arts in New York, one accepted into the dance/theater program at Troy University and one accepted into the theater program at the University of North Alabama.

Artists galore

There are a total of 88 student artists at AHS, said Quick, who added 38 are members of the National Art Honor Society or NAHS. Recent projects include a wall of American-themed art for Veterans Day, which is still on display in the gallery, and three drawings for the Youth Art Month Flag competition. In addition, six works of art were recently submitted for the Alabama Superintendent Art Competition.

Coming up, students will be producing art for the annual Martin Luther King Jr. art competition. Other projects include the Empty Bowls Project for Athens-Limestone County and NAHS ceramic art lessons with students at FAME Academy at Brookhill Elementary School.