Ermmmmm, What the Mentor? by Parker

Ermmmmm, What the Mentor? by Parker - January 2025 Scholarship Essay

A teacher or mentor who has had a significant impact on my academic journey was my Band Director Mr. Homan. Throughout my time spent as a member of the band whether that be in middle school or highschool, I have experienced being taught by 4 different directors due to the previous ones leaving for other jobs or for other reasons. This routine-esque changing of directors has led to nothing but confusion as they would have different teaching styles and different ways of going about everything. Despite this, this year in my final year of band, my most recent director Mr. Homan has managed to overcome this and managed to direct us to an objectively successful season. This is due to not only the way that he teaches things and directs but also because he seems to care more than his predecessors. He ensures that we understand everything that we are playing through down to dynamics and accents and doesn’t get overly upset when we continually mess something up. That being said he is still serious in his teaching which allows him to connect with us while simultaneously getting work done and getting it done in a timely manner. These have lead to him having a significant impact on my academic journey, despite him only being my teacher for a year.