Having a Vision

What is vision? Why is it important? How does it affect us as a music educator?

Vision is a word we often hear in education, but what does it truly mean, and why does it matter so much for those of us shaping music programs?

By definition, vision is defined as:

• The faculty or state of being able to see
• The ability to think about or plan the future with imagination or wisdom

Both definitions matter deeply to music educators. The first is literal, you have to be able to clearly see your program as it exists right now. The second is where the magic happens: the ability to imagine what it could become.

Why Vision Matters in Music Education

As an educator of 15 years, I’ve taught grades K-12, Band, Orchestra, Mariachi, and Choir as a Head Director with no Assistant Director. Each time I’ve walked into a program(s), I’ve had to carefully assess where the program is, its needs, and where I want it to be in the future. It’s been vital for me to be able to see and have the ability to think about and plan for the future of each program with both wisdom and imagination. 

In most of my cases, I’ve either started programs from scratch or rebuilt them after they’ve fallen apart from previous directors. I’ve had to think about how I want these programs to become my own and to head in the direction that I envision and want them to go in.

Breaking Free from the Blueprint

Here's something I've noticed, and maybe you've felt it too. As young educators (and even seasoned ones), we can fall into the trap of trying to recreate the programs we grew up in. The ensembles that shaped us, the directors who inspired us…it's natural to want to replicate that experience for our own students.

But here's the truth: that's rarely plausible, and honestly, it's not even the goal.

Every program you encounter is unique. It has its own history, its own community, its own set of challenges and opportunities. Your job isn't to carbon-copy someone else's success story, it's to meet the program where it is, and then take it somewhere great.

Building Your Vision: Questions Worth Sitting With

So how do you actually create a vision? It starts with asking the right questions, and being honest with the answers. Before you can lead a program forward, you need to understand the full picture of where you're standing.

Your Community & Culture

• Who are your students, and what are their backgrounds? What can they afford to do or not to do?
• What’s important to them culturally? What are their limitations?
• What is the history of the program(s), and how has that shaped the community's expectations?

Your Resources & Support

• What is the school community willing to support or not support?
• What are your financial capabilities based on school budgets, boosters, and fundraising?
• What fundraisers are well supported within that community?
• What resources are available? What resources can you bring to them that are new and innovative?

Your Program’s Direction

• What type of program(s) are you trying to build? Competitive? Non-competitive? A blend of both?
• How much will the school community allow you to change them? How long will that change take?
• What performance level do you want to get your program(s) to achieve? How will you get it there? How will you get the school community to buy into it?

Your Foundation

• What mission, goals, standards, values, and expectations will be important to your program(s)?
• What will the school community support and how will you achieve buy-in?

Your Sustainability

• How will you recruit and sustain this vision and be able to push it forward from year to year?
• How quickly do students cycle through your program? Middle school and junior high programs present a unique challenge here, you often have far less time with students than at the high school level.
• How long will it take to make this vision a reality?
• How will you advance this vision from year to year?

Vision in Action: Being Intentional

Creating your vision based on the items listed above is important and vital to allowing your program(s) to be successful. It promotes growth, gives your program(s) shape, direction, and keeps pushing it forward. Your decisions need to be well thought out, intentional, and meaningful.

Sometimes you may need to be flexible and roll out changes slowly per the feelings of the school community and what it's been used to from the past. Creating changes too fast can lead to heavy pushback, resistance, and be a turn-off . Understand your situation, the school community, and implement changes as you can. 

And if you find yourself in a situation where the challenges feel insurmountable - where the resistance is too great, the support too thin - it's okay to take an honest look at whether this is the right place for your vision to live. Some programs are far more ready for transformation than others, and knowing the difference is wisdom in itself.

So I leave you with this: what is your vision and where will it take you and your program(s)?