For generations, the podium has symbolized authority, expertise, and leadership in the band room. It’s where we learned to conduct, where we were taught to stand, and where many of us still instinctively go when rehearsal begins. But in a modern classroom—one shaped by collaboration, student voice, and social-emotional awareness—it may be worth asking an important question: What does the podium communicate to our students today?

Sharon Selinger, Band Program Director, Music Production Teacher, Digital Music Librarian at Pine Crest School, FL - When I think about great leaders, I think about the commitment they’ve made to do better, be better, and to keep on keeping on until they’re happy with the outcome. It’s that same perseverance, drive, and determination I’ve found in myself.

By Dr. Frank Machos, Vice President & Director of the Mann Center Institute for Creative Arts and Community Impact, Philadelphia, PA - The music that students create in many of today’s classrooms looks a lot more like the music they enjoy outside of it. For a long time, this wasn’t the case.

Franklin J. Willis Director of Visual and Performing Arts, Metro Nashville Public Schools, TN - For more than a decade, my greatest joy was standing in front of a classroom of elementary music students, watching their eyes light up as they discovered their own musical gifts.