Man I Love (Funding) This Band

Photo Credits: Patty Green

The media below contains the opinion of an individual student and therefore does not represent or speak to the values of Vestavia Hills High School and Vestavia Hills City Schools

“Man I love this band” is a phrase you’re familiar with if you’ve ever spent time with the Vestavia Hills High School band. As a member of the band, I can truthfully say that I love being a part of it. Dr. Jerell Horton and Mrs. Heather Palmer both strive to make the band a safe and loving environment, but it is also an environment with high expectations that push us to become better people. Dr. Horton talks to us all the time about how we’re not only learning how to be good musicians; we’re learning about how to care about the people on the left and right of us. 

I can’t imagine my high school experience without band, and I’m sure most people in the band would agree with me. There are many schools that don’t even have a band, and for many people, that raises a question. If this band thing is so spectacular, then why don’t all schools have it? Well, it takes a lot more than passion to run a band. It takes funding: a true beast most people are unaware of when it comes to keeping the band running. By looking at three different high school bands, we’ll discover how much funding plays a part in the band as a whole.

Vestavia Hills Band Funding

Photo Credits: MJ Horton

Vestavia Hills High School is an extremely well-rounded school, and funding must be dispersed among several different things rather than being focused on one particular activity. As stated at the first band parent meeting of the season, the projected band budget for the 2025-2026 school year is $192,000. This may be a surprise to most, but our band is largely funded by the students and parents of the band themselves. The band booster committee, made up entirely of band parents, is a driving force in the fundraising of the band. Throughout the year, we hold tons of fundraisers, including the mattress sale and the sock fundraiser, and all of our band fees go towards funding the band as well. In order to be in the band, students must pay a fee of $550, but some students have to pay more depending on their instrument and band class. With fundraisers, fees, and donations from parents and students, this may seem like a lot of money that the band is raising, but music and instruments are expensive, and that’s only one aspect that the band has to pay for. 

Oak Mountain Band Fundraising

The Oak Mountain Band is largely funded by themselves as well, but they also have a heaping amount of support from their community in addition to fundraising. Oak Mountain is heavily invested in the success of their band, and it seems like people in the community love to see their band thrive. Similar to Vestavia, Oak Mountain has a band booster committee, and their committee has several parents on their staff. They have a chair for almost every aspect of the band, creating a tremendous amount of aid for the band program. Oak Mountain band also has a very large number of sponsors, thirty-six to be exact, supplying them with the materials and funding they need. 

Chelsea Band Funding

Chelsea High School also relies largely on fundraising for its band. Although they do have six corporate sponsors, they don’t have the same number of sponsors that Oak Mountain does, suggesting that the monetary support for their band is not the same as it is for Oak Mountain. Chelsea faces problems that Vestavia doesn’t have to deal with as well. Unlike Vestavia, Chelsea is a smaller school in Alabama, so they have fewer students and parents in their program, therefore creating fewer opportunities to fundraise. Chelsea is also a part of the Shelby County school system, so funding is split between several different schools rather than being focused on one school. Vestavia has its own board of education, so more money can be allotted for these programs.

The True Secret to Funding a Band

As seen from the schools mentioned above, the true secret to funding a band all depends on the situation. A school may be loved by its community, but it may not have access to the resources needed to make the band thrive. On the other hand, schools may have all the resources they need, and the immense amount of community support only heightens the opportunities available to them. No matter the situation, these bands all have one thing in common: the band is largely funded by community support paired with the dedication students and parents have to the band. The band program truly is worth maintaining, and all it takes is someone being willing to help a good cause. 

Photo Credits: Patty Green