Looking Back and Closing Out

With nearly a year as the "new" band director and music director, Mr. McKenney and Mrs. McKenney McKenney took the time from their busy end-of-the-year schedule to summarize the year in a glance and a glimpse.

Mr. McKenney said the year has been a nice transitional year for the family, they have made tome adjustments to their new lifestyle and the students have been outstanding. "We feel very welcomed by them and we look forward to building upon this years work."

Coming to Malta from a AA school setting has been an adjustment, in some ways, yet the McKenney's feel blessed. They were able to step into the positions of Erik Engebretson and Nancy Murdock and transition so smoothly because of the programs they were leaving were of such high standards.

Mr. McKenney, band director, stated, "I feel like the students have adjusted to the change and have responded well. But, I make it a point to never let them forget the impact Mr. E has had on this program and community. I'm simply just continuing what has been done here for many years."

Mrs. McKenney said, "This year has been a good one overall. The first year in a new school district always has its bumps and challenges as I get used to the school, the students, the community and getting to know traditions and expectations. It's always a learning curve, especially discovering what the kids know and what they don't and bridging that gap."

While there are not any substantial adjustments this year, next year will see some big adjustments to the program with the implementation of the 4-day week. Within music, just like learning any new skill or action, to learn the skill takes repetition or frequency at learning that skill verses working on it in larger time periods, but with less frequency.

Mr. McKenney added, "While my wife and I are very good at what we do, we are going to see the impact of the 4-day on the music program in the coming years due to so many hours of lost rehearsal time each year. While we do our best to mitigate a drop in the quality of the program, just like any other teacher we aren't magicians."

"One of the challenges for next year will be moving to the 4-day school week. I've seen the schedule and I'm losing 30-35 minutes of class each week with all of my students, K-12. It's disappointing, and it will create a new challenge helping students continue to perform at a higher level," Mrs. McKenney said.

As far as the biggest challenge of the year, Mr. McKenney stated, "...has been dealing with my expectations for the students. Coming from the AA realm when we have a student in band most often times, this is the only co-cirricular activity they do. In Malta, our students do EVERYTHING! I love this about our students and I think it makes for a much more rounded final product of a young adult. However, that comes from a mindset shift on my part after seven years of going from students that only live and breathe all things band to students that also love other things like volleyball, FFA, football, E-sports, basketball, 4-H and many other activities."

Mrs. McKenney stated, "I think the challenge this year has just been finding out what the students know and getting to know the students. It's been a lot of fun to see them succeed in sports and other activities." She added that the choir has been working on fundamentals of singing, breathing, tone production and sight reading.

The McKenney family has made some adjustments in their own lifestyle as well. They are the parents of a son and a daughter. "It certainly has been an adjustment for them. This is the first time they've seen both Mom and Dad at work at the same time. But, overall, they've done well. It helps GREATLY to have such kind students to work with that take our kids under their wings and watch out for them."

From the "mom" perspective of adjustments, Mrs. McKenney also felt their children had made the adjustment from full-time mom to joining their parents at sporting events. She said, "Being in a small town makes it a lot safer to go watch the pep band and cheer on the students playing, instead of the types of crowds and situations we experienced in Billings." She added that the kids have enjoyed different activities and events in town.

Mr. McKenney shared, "The learning never stops! I'm constantly exposing students to different music and possibilities within music. I think doing things this year like going to the Jazz Jam at Craft Local during state basketball were really eye-opening experiences for these students. Also, showing students that music is SO much more than sitting in band or choir. That's where we build the foundation to be able to do really fun things like arranging Tennessee Whisky and Creep."

As band teacher, Mr. McKenney presented the John Philip Sousa Award to E'Mbow SaintLouis, the Louis Armstrong Jazz Award was also presented to SaintLouis and the Director's Award was presented to Addison Ulrich.

Mrs. McKenney shared that Layla Messerly and Emree Stuart lettered in music and qualified for State Music Festival. She added that the selection for the Most Improved Choral Singer was a difficult decision, she awarded this honor to Layla Messerly. The award for the National Choral Director Award was also a difficult one to determine. She awarded this honor to Kash Stiles.

Their summer plans and "down time" will include a variety of events and activities. The plans are to help Mr. McKenney's folks on a project this summer in Wyoming, and then, "it's on to haying and harvest."

Mr. McKenney added, "We will be camping during this experience and we will just enjoy unplugging for a while and just spending time as a family not teaching. Our dog of 11 years passed away in February, so we are also looking forward to possible getting a puppy and starting our dog adventure over again. I keep telling Mrs. McKenney that we need a music therapy dog for all of the students and us. So that ought to be a thing. Might look into some of that. I can hear the sigh coming from Mr. Bleth as I'm writing this! Haha!"

While Mr. McKenney has his plans all figured out, some of Mrs. McKenney's plans are slightly different.

"This summer, I'm planning on going to a choral conducting workshop in Bozeman, it's a great chance to improve my skills, as well as learn from other teachers. We'll spend a little time in Sundance, Wyoming; we'll also spend time prepping for next year. I learned a long time ago that I needed the summer to recharge my batteries. Sometimes the hard thing about working a job you're passionate about is that it's really easy to push myself too far. I really care about the students and about them getting the tools they need to become better musicians and better humans so they can have a bright future. But giving so much all the time does take a toll. So it will be good to rest, spend some time with my family, and get ready for the next year." Mrs. McKenney's family lives in Lustre, Montana.

McKenney's, thank you for the year of memories and time put toward our students and music/band programs. We look forward to new chapters this fall.