3rd&10 Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 Nice attempt at humor. too bad it failed. Try this scenario on for size - a drum corps organization applies for a grant. The entity that offers the money has no idea what this activity is all about. All they can grasp is that it is some sort of educational opportunity for high school & college age students, akin to a Summer music symposium. Ironically, many Summer camps and symposiums are staffed with an education faculty. I am sure college educators will survive if a drum corps decides to brand its teaching staff "faculty". I'm calling shenanigans on this one. I can pretty much assure you that business owners aren't sitting around their offices eating gold flaked candy bars looking for websites that use the word "faculty" to pour their money into. Here is how that probably plays out: Otto the Shop Owner: "Hey Bruno. Come check out the website of this fancy-pants marching band that got themselves some faculty." Bruno: "Cool. Now can I get back to work doing something meaningful with my life?" If a business owner in the community wanted to know what a drill writer is, they most likely will have a relationship with the organization already and can then just ask. Plus, calling themselves faculty is somewhat insulting to the many hardworking faculty members on college campuses throughout this country. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim K Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 1352770168[/url]' post='3227671']Who the hell from the outside actually cares enough to check that deep into a drum corps? The only newbies we get are kids in band programs. Parents of minors who may be marching and away from home for the first time. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glory Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 (edited) Parents of minors who may be marching and away from home for the first time. It's a good point. I'll even concede that many of the staff are in fact teachers, faculty, in the best sense and with all that implies. Where I can't yield is with the many (so many) staff at lower ranks who sometimes display less maturity than the members. Listing them as faculty has no more basis than there would have been to list me as faculty at major state university when I was given two sections of the U.S. History survey class to teach. I was a graduate assistant - maybe even a teacher. In no way was I "faculty." Which brings me to the real point. Why are they listed at all? I think we all can agree that a Klesch or a May belong on the staff/faculty. How many levels below them are really worthwhile? HH Edited November 13, 2012 by glory Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kickhaltsforlife Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 I'm not gonna send my kids to this drum corps because they only have a staff. This other corps has a faculty, it will be a much better experience!!! Yeah right. Who the #### cares. And who cares if they want to use the term faculty.... I don't. Doesn't make a difference to me. It doesn't really make a difference with anything. I just hope Leon May doesn't lose them another shot at the title this year. If they are even a part of DCI..... 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
perc2100 Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 Wouldn't this make more sense? Supervisor, deputy supervisor, assistant supervisor, tech ... You might even throw in, if you want, some staff associates, adjuncts, etc. Or even go the other way: Executive supervisor. But the supervisor/coordinator/manager mess makes us look like we're contestants for Upper Class Twit of the Year. Not directing this at Crown, per se - rather at all the corps who sow confusion with titles that don't make sense. By the way, I also hate "faculty." We're not in one place long enough for ivy to grow here. Besides - and no offense - not everyone staff rates the "faculty" label. We all know who I'm talking about. He/she travel with every corps. Staff maybe. Faculty not. HH I'm just gonna be blunt: WHO CARES?!?! We're arguing goofy semantics. If the industry standard titles are what is being used, who really cares? Other teachers and directors understand the title designations: to those of us in the cheap seats it doesn't really matter what the titles are. Corps do us a service by providing us with fairly detailed information regarding what staffer does what. In the end, titles don't mean anything. Differences between "staff," "faculty," whatever mean nothing. It's all sementics 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xtreme0204 Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 Wouldn't this make more sense? Supervisor, deputy supervisor, assistant supervisor, tech ... You might even throw in, if you want, some staff associates, adjuncts, etc. Or even go the other way: Executive supervisor. But the supervisor/coordinator/manager mess makes us look like we're contestants for Upper Class Twit of the Year. Not directing this at Crown, per se - rather at all the corps who sow confusion with titles that don't make sense. By the way, I also hate "faculty." We're not in one place long enough for ivy to grow here. Besides - and no offense - not everyone staff rates the "faculty" label. We all know who I'm talking about. He/she travel with every corps. Staff maybe. Faculty not. HH I actually think this is a great business model and makes A LOT of sense. If they are going to call them "faculty", which they will even if we moan about it forever, they should then make it look like a faculty. To call it a "faculty" and then have all these obsolete titles is a bit odd. If I were an outsider I'd wonder why they call them a faculty then there seems to be a breakdown in understanding of the job titles. Supervisor, manager, caption head, tech..... if I were on the outside I would possibly get that the manager is important, be unsure if the supervisor is higher up than the manager, and be wondering why they call the techs , techs. Are they like automotive technicians? Do they fix the equipment? I know it sounds "pretentious" but it would help the outside world understand what in the world we do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
perc2100 Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 While the term "faculty" may seem pretentious to drum corps insiders, it makes perfect sense from the outside looking in. If you're going to pitch your drum corps as a youth-oriented educational non-profit, using terms like faculty (and even supervisor and coordinator) make more sense to those unfamiliar with drum corps. EXACTLY! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glory Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 (edited) I'm just gonna be blunt: WHO CARES?!?!... I do - though only a little. Hardly at all - though enough to make conversation about it. Why do I care - if only a little? Because it's confusing. Because I personally have been confused and frustrated by this. I would agree it's semantic; and it's pedantic to argue the merits of caption supervisor vs. caption supremo. I probably wouldn't care if that were the case because director or supremo it should be clear who's in charge. Where I've actually been confused in the past, where I've stopped and asked myself "Why not choose terms that aid our undertanding rather than confuse it." (or less politely: "Who's the dope who thinks we're mind-readers?") that's why I bothered to share my (tedious) thoughts. Anyway, you're right. It's not a big deal - unless it's November, which it is. HH Edited November 13, 2012 by glory 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
corpsband Posted November 13, 2012 Author Share Posted November 13, 2012 I'm just gonna be blunt: WHO CARES?!?! Apparently the offended squad on DCP :-) Anyway my kid will be spending her 5th (and age out) season with Crown this year! Get It Crown !! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
critter Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 Nice attempt at humor. too bad it failed. Try this scenario on for size - a drum corps organization applies for a grant. The entity that offers the money has no idea what this activity is all about. All they can grasp is that it is some sort of educational opportunity for high school & college age students, akin to a Summer music symposium. Ironically, many Summer camps and symposiums are staffed with an education faculty. I am sure college educators will survive if a drum corps decides to brand its teaching staff "faculty". Name 10 grant proposals that were funded in the past 10 years where a relationship didn't already exist between the drum corps and the donor. The key here is looking at an already established relationship. Successful development officers who lead fund raising campaigns are all about leveraging that relationship. Philanthropic organizations receive numerous grants for programs that provide "some sort of educational opportunity for high school & college age students" all the time. While it may not be a popluar opinion for those involved in this activity, many of these donors can see much better use of their money. It's all based on perception. Provide funding for programs that serve disadvantaged youth or donate funds to a program that charges its members $2500 in tuition and simply serves as another outlet for its "faculty" members? In my opinion, if a drum corps really wanted to connect with the understanding of donors, they should just call staff members coaches instead. People get that, and you can then educate them on the benefits of the activity instead of the names of all the positions. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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