If you were among the millions who grooved along to the Super Bowl LII halftime show last Sunday, you probably noticed the marching band that accompanied Justin Timberlake throughout the show. The 320-member “Pride of Minnesota” Marching Band played alongside the pop superstar on the field of U.S. Bank Stadium in downtown Minneapolis, and marching within the ranks of the University of Minnesota ensemble was a familiar face to the Lusk community -- myself! I write today not only to tell you a little bit about the journey to the Super Bowl that I helped shape, but to use this experience to show the amazing places that involvement in music can take our students. While the halftime show only lasted 13 minutes, the journey to get the band there was much longer.?As the Super Bowl crept closer, we were intrigued by the possibility of being involved with the halftime festivities, after the band performed in Super Bowl XXVI back in 1992. Taking our Super Bowl destiny into our own hands, I helped lead the charge in launching a social media campaign to make the dream a reality. The initial call-to-action was incredibly successful, and in a matter of hours, there were hundreds of posts from friends, family, alumni, and the Midwestern marching community, all pulling for us to take the field in February. With local support in place, I produced a promo video asking the general public to join in on the action. The video blew up, and since being posted has been shared hundreds of times and viewed by more than 43,000. Our strategic approach continued and various NFL, Super Bowl hosting committee, and halftime production contacts were approached, working to convince them of the energy the band would bring to the show. Several weeks later at our end-of-season banquet, our band director made the announcement that we would be taking part in Super Bowl LII! Rehearsing for an event like the Super Bowl packs a lot of pressure and intensity into a very short amount of time. We began practicing and learning the music weeks before coming together for the first rehearsal. With around two weeks until game day and having to keep details about the upcoming performance under wraps, we started rehearsals on campus with the halftime production crew. Choreography and movement was added, along with a steady stream of small changes and tweaks. Rehearsals eventually expanded to include hundreds of dancers sourced from the Twin Cities area — including the Minnesota Vikings Cheerleaders. The multitude of performers moved seamlessly across the practice field each night, living their normal lives during the day and meeting secretly for rehearsals when the sun went down. Little did anyone know outside the music department what historic things were going on inside that practice facility. With one week left, it was time for dress rehearsals inside U.S. Bank Stadium. All of us made the necessary academic sacrifices to miss classes for the eight-hour practices that allowed us to fit all the pieces of the halftime production together, including moving stages, pyrotechnics, and eventually the talents of Justin Timberlake. The buzz of Super Bowl Sunday was felt all around the Twin Cities, despite frigid single-digit temperatures that made it the coldest on record. As we took the field at halftime, we ran out to our preset positions and heard Justin give us a little “let’s get this show, guys” in our in-ear monitors. Marching through the transition from “Cry Me a River” to the Grammy-award winning “Suit and Tie,” was our drumline. We marched out in the dim light and met Justin Timberlake at centerfield, where we began stick tricks and choreography, with a rudimental intro on our drums that led into the song’s chorus. After a tribute to the late music icon, Prince, a large portion of the band traded in their flags and instruments for reflective props, taking their role as dancers in the song, “Mirrors.” The stadium’s spotlights beamed down on the members that encircled the stage, sending shimmers around the stands that mesmerized onlookers. The show’s finale brought our tuxedo-clad band back for “Can’t Stop the Feeling,” to end the show with the entire cast on the field. The hundreds of dancers got the audience members on their feet and clapping along to the catchy tune, as illuminated bracelets painted rainbow colors across the entire stadium. We finished the final hit of the song, struck a pose, and absorbed the moment, where the magnitude of people cheered in approval before it was time to run off the field. It was such an incredible experience. There was so much pride and passion on our faces as we performed alongside an artist that we admire so much -- but also the shock that we just performed for 150 million people. But how does one get from piano lessons in 4th grade to performing on national television for one of the world’s most watched events? The simple answer is that music inspires -- by sticking with music and having fun with it, doors open and you get to have some of the most unforgettable experiences of your life. Aside from the performance opportunities, students in music learn real-world skills that not only help them become better people, but they perform at higher levels in all areas of their lives when you engage that creative mindset. Early on in elementary school, music teaches the persistence of practice, where putting in those hours on the instrument leads to the proud moment of learning a whole song or reaching new notes that are harder to play. It teaches you the fundamentals of the music language, it teaches you the basis of learning to play with others all at the same time, and it teaches you to focus. Moving on to something like high school, music can be more rigorous and you’re learning to push yourself to new heights and be open to playing in different styles. You’re continuing the goal of “mastering” your instrument and many branch off during this time to learn second or third instruments. Not only does music in high school give you personal challenges, but it forces you to work well with others, whether you like it or not. You are part of a team, creating something so powerful to share with the world, and you’re dependent on one another. You’re spending time with your friends in a place where you matter, where you belong, where you can call home. Not many other classes out there will teach students how to thrive within group settings, as they’ll expected to do when they enter the workforce. Music shows them how to thrive in these settings, where they are able to lead with confidence or follow with integrity. Music is the fabric of our society, and helps to positively shape personal character. It has been shown that band and choir students are less likely to abuse substances during their lives, and they are more emotionally developed, with the ability to cope with anxiety better. These barely cover the tip of the iceberg of why music plays such a foundational and formative part in our students’ education. Many may ask, “but what if I don’t want to just play a trumpet for the rest of my life?” We’re right there with you -- the vast majority of the 320 members in the Minnesota band are NOT music majors, and are studying everything from nursing to engineering. I remember many of my drum students asking me, “Mr. Man, why I can’t play as fast as you? Why can’t I just get into All-State or a drum corps like you?” Music isn’t just going to come easy, even for those who have natural-born talent on an instrument. I didn’t wake up one day, strap on a drum, and magically played. Years of piano lessons and choir helped me when I got to high school and wanted to play snare drum. But I auditioned and completely failed -- being put on cymbals my first year. It took me two years to work my way up to snare, spending hours practicing every single night. I worked my way to the top of my band program, and then got to college, where I had to start back at the beginning. Thankfully, I was good enough to make snare my first year -- and section leader the following year onward, but drum corps was a whole different beast. Professional drum and bugle corps had caught my eye ever since high school, because everything these musicians did was with a purpose and was done at the highest level possible. I first auditioned for drum corps when I was 13 years old. I flew by myself to Chicago, where I auditioned as one of 2,500 snare drummers to fill 10 spots. Needless to say, I didn’t make it. So I spent the year practicing, and went back the following year. I honestly auditioned five more times and still didn’t make it. But when I did, I ended up in the leadership role of drum major, and was a percussion soloist for the corps. And in case you think I’m crazy, and music can’t be that important, take it from Dontae Winslow, Justin Timberlake’s music arranger. We had the chance to sit on a recording session with him, where we were blending the brass and drumline parts with the electronic effects that accompanied us on the “Suit and Tie” track. This guy has not only worked with JT, but a majority of the top artists on the charts today -- in all genres. Dontae chatted with us in between takes and I remember vividly when he said, “Man, it don’t matter if you’re a lawyer, plumber, or professional musician, it is so important that you always keep music as a part of your life. Music teaches you life lessons, man. It teaches you dedication, self-discipline, and how connect to someone’s soul. It helps remind you of what’s really important in life, man -- working hard, spending quality time with others, and having fun.” It has been over half a year now that Becky and I left Lusk to pursue graduate school in Minnesota, and we have missed our small town community dearly. We continue to want nothing but the best for our students in the community, a majority of whom we keep in frequent contact with. We are rooting for their continual involvement in music, and are open and willing resources for whatever they need! I will say it was extremely disheartening to learn that the high-school music program was taken away for the second half of this academic year, not only for the hard work that was done to rebuild the foundations of the music program in the last several years, but moreso for the lack of opportunity and connectivity that our students are now experiencing without music. It is not only a situation that was entirely avoidable, but one that can only be remedied with proactive leadership -- with our students’ needs coming first. Reinstating the music program next year should be at the top of the district’s priorities and should not be handled as a political issue. Some may say that creating the momentum necessary to reimplement the program may take time, and there multiple factors involved. I don’t buy that -- especially as STEM has moved to STEAM, and the arts are now a federally required part of the national education curriculum. As someone whose life is building on the intersection of politics and leadership, I can confidently say the solution is, “it’s always the right thing to do the right thing”. I urge the district’s decision makers to take their 7 Habits training to heart, and to set our students up for long-term success with a music program reintroduction that will breathe life back into the program and the many who are missing it. Music will only help achieve the goals of higher graduation rates and higher SAT scores. (Music students score an average of 63 points higher on the verbal and 44 points higher on the math sections of the SAT!) I applaud the efforts of the students who have taken it upon themselves to organize a pep band in the meantime, and the LEMS general music teacher for supporting their dedication. Don’t stop your love for music. Keep practicing, keep dreaming. The sky is truly the limit when you stick with music! Izaak Mendoza was a correctional peace officer at the Wyoming Women’s Center and served as a paraprofessional for the Niobrara County School District during his time in Lusk. Izaak is pursuing a dual masters degree at the University of Minnesota, where he marches on the snareline of the Pride of Minnesota Marching Band. He is completing a Master of Business Administration and a Master of Public Policy, focusing on U.S. Foreign and National Security Policy -- as well as earning graduate minors in Integrative Leadership and Integrative Healing Practices. He works as a Education Policy Fellow at the Minnesota State Capitol, and is gearing up for a summer internship at the U.S. State Department. Izaak wants to pursue a career in international diplomacy as a Foreign Service Officer.