FRANKLIN HIGH SCHOOL BAND BOOSTERS INC

The Franklin Band was established in 1937 with a modest membership of just twenty-one members. With the exception of a brief respite during WWII, the band has consistently been an integral part of Franklin High School and community of Franklin, Tennessee. As the school and community have grown, so has the size of the band. Today the band has over 200 members.

Being a part of the band provides many benefits to the student, school and the community at large. Arts involvement teaches children many skills necessary to succeed in life, including problem solving and decision making, building self-confidence and self-discipline, the ability to imagine what might be and accept responsibility for it, teamwork, the development of informed perception, and articulating a vision.

Being a part of the band program gives underclassmen a connection to upperclassmen, aiding the transition to high school. The upperclassmen help younger students get acclimated to high school by mentoring and tutoring. The encourages students to stay involved in school and graduate. Band students support one another and challenges them to succeed in the classroom and excel academically. The lessons learned in band also prepare students to succeed as individuals.

Being a part of the The Franklin Band can mean one or more of the following: the marching band, concert band, percussion ensemble, winterguard, or chamber winds. There are several opportunities to get involved with the band.

The Franklin High School Band is nationally recognized as follows: 2013 and 2017 Music for All National Percussion Festival, 2014 Sudler Shield, presented by the John Philip Sousa Foundation, 2015 and 2017 Music for All National Chamber Music Festival, 2012,2013,2015 Band of America Class AAA national Runner Up and our color guard is the 2015 Southeastern Color Guard Circuit Champ.

In the past 3-5 years The Franklin Band has grown and has had significant growth. The students, volunteers and parents have raised over $200,000 to provide for the purchase of additional band uniforms to accommodate growth of more students to be able to participate in the band. They have hired band techs (part-time student band alumni) who work with different student sections to provide teaching and support. A used five octave marimba at a cost of $25,000 was purchased to be able to meet the need of students wanting to play. Another big accomplishment over the past 2 years is that The Franklin Band began hosting a marching band contest, called Sonic Boom. This contest provides smaller band an opportunity to perform in front of world class adjudicators and be encouraged and mentored by the Franklin Band. This has been so popular among other bands that we have expanded to accommodate even more Tennessee bands this year. The Franklin Band has also expanded their community service by putting out over 1,400 flags throughout the City of Franklin on Memorial Day, Flag Day, July 4th, Labor Day and Veterans Day. Additionally the band supports the local community by playing in the Veterans Day Parade, Christmas Parade, Rodeo Parade and other civic functions.

The Franklin Band Boosters have expenses that run over $350,000 annually. Dues are not collected, however field trip fees are. We work with families who may not be financially able to pay for all of the field trip fees, as we do not want to exclude anyone from participating. However, field trip fees do not cover any of the other expenses incurred. The students, volunteers and parents have year round fundraisers to bring in an additional $125,000. The annual expenses include uniforms, instructors fees, travel and competition related expenses. Additionally, the biggest financial need is for new tubas and bassoons. These instruments cost several thousand dollars each and we do not have enough for students currently who would like to play them.