Winds for Marching Band, Symphonic Band, & Freshman Band Contact: Mrs. Elizabeth Puyear E-Mail Winds for Wind Symphony & Jazz Ensembles, Percussion for Jazz Ensembles Contact: Dr. Tim Allshouse E-Mail Percussion for Marching Band, Wind Symphony, Symphonic Band, & Freshman Band Contact: Mr. Joseph DeSantis E-Mail Color Guard for Marching Band & Winter Guard Contact: Ms. Kaitlynn Kaminski E-Mail Music Appreciation & Music Theory Contact: Mrs. Elizabeth Puyear E-Mail CTC - Audio Engineering Contact: Mr. Matt Chang E-Mail CTC - Instrument Repair Contact: Dr. Tim Allshouse E-Mail

Fees Designated for Payment Through Friends of the Golden Regiment Contact: Kari Barchers (bookkeeper) E-Mail Fees Designated for Payment Through Blue Springs High School (RevTrak) Contact: Karen Walls (Administrative Assistant) E-Mail Travel Fees Designated for Payment Through Music Travel Consultants (MTC) Contact: Music Travel Consultants E-Mail Travel Fees Designated for Payment Through Gateway Travel Contact: Gateway Travel E-Mail All Other Payment Questions Contact: Karen Walls E-Mail

Costumes Karen Walls E-Mail School Owned Wind Instruments Karen Walls E-Mail School Owned Percussion Instruments Joseph DeSantis E-Mail Color Guard Equipment Kaitlynn Kaminski E-Mail

Rehearsal are closed to parents unless the staff sends out a notification otherwise. Typically a portion of Thursday night marching band rehearsals may be open to parents to attend. But this will be at the discretion of the band staff with notification made through the Band app. ​ When entering an open rehearsal it is important not to distract the students from their work. Please be quiet and do not draw additional attention to your specific student. When participating in open rehearsal, no video or photography is allowed as the staff desires to keep any competitive rehearsal advantages out of social media view. ​ Technical rehearsals, band camp, and other after school rehearsals are closed to parents. ​ Whenever the band staff is finishing a rehearsal, please understand their first priority is on the students. You may have questions that you would like to direct to them in person. However, this is not the appropriate time as they have other responsibilities that they need to follow through with. If you would like to meet with the band staff in person, it is better to email them to schedule a time.

Teachers are often in the classroom away from their phones and computers during the day. Leaving voice mails can require additional follow-up time when they're oftentimes working from home on administrative activities during the evening. With that, email contact is the preferred method of contact. When emailing, please understand you may not receive an immediate response. If you have questions relative to a specific student, please make sure that their name is included in the communication as they may not always recognize a parent's name in their follow-up work. For the quickest results, make sure your communication is being routed through the correct person by using the "Who Should I Contact?" details on this website.

Every band student will receive a locker for storage of their instrument and belongings. These lockers will include a padlock with combination code access so that the school administration and band staff can access them, as needed. If a student is using a school instrument and their own personal instrument, a larger locker may be provided to accommodate both.

It is not necessary to launder your student's costume after every use. The band staff will coordinate a mid-season laundering of all costumes. They will ask for volunteers to complete these in large batches. If your student's costume is having any specific issues with stains, damage, or odor, please contact Elizabeth Puyear to help coordinate a special cleaning. E-Mail

Costumes typically arrive prior to the first competition of the season. Students will require additional fittings and adjustments by the sewing committee. Please note that even after the costumes arrive and are fitted, they will be stored at the high school at all times. The students will not be taking their costumes home. Warm-ups typically arrive prior to the first trip that requires travel. When they arrive, Mrs. Walls will distribute them to the students. They will take these home. Marching shoes will be delivered prior to the start of school. An event will be scheduled at the end of August in which parents can make final payments, pick-up shoes, and the students will take their official photograph for the season.

Costumes Karen Walls E-Mail School Owned Wind Instruments Karen Walls E-Mail School Owned Percussion Instruments Joseph DeSantis E-Mail Color Guard Equipment Kaitlynn Kaminski E-Mail

At the end of the season, the band staff will make the determination about whether the costumes might be reused in future seasons. If they are not needed or there are components of the costume that won't need to be reused, they will be given to the students. It is not assumed that any purchased costume components will be given back at the end of the season.

If you student's instrument is not school owned, it is recommended to take it to Meyer Music's repair shop. If the instrument is going to prohibit your student's involvement in class while it is repaired, please notify Karen Walls so that she can check to see if a loaner instrument might be available. ​ If your student's instrument is school owned, please notify Karen Walls immediately. If the damage is from misuse, it is important that this is still communicated right away so that it doesn't prohibit the student from participation. Do not take school-owned instruments to Meyer Music without proper pre-approval from Karen Walls. E-Mail Karen Walls

The Blue Springs High School Band Department is not responsible for personal instruments that are lost or stolen, even when stored inside a locked locker. It is important for you to double check your property insurance or maintenance policies on rental instruments to ensure that you have the appropriate level of protection in the event that the instrument is lost or stolen.

It is understandable if damage occurs to your student's costume. While precautions are taken throughout the season to keep them looking good, damage can happen. The most important thing that can be done is to make sure someone is aware of the problem as quickly as possible so that the damage can be fixed. ​ For costume damage, please contact Karen Walls. E-Mail

This is dependent on the student's instrument and section. For more costly brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments, the student will likely be provided an instrument on a check-in/out basis. ​ The Golden Regiment will provide school instruments to the bass clarinets, tenor saxophones, trumpets, mellophones, euphoniums, contra tubas, front-line percussion, and battery percussion. The school owned bass clarinets, tenor saxophones, mellophones, and euphoniums will be checked out to students early in band camp and are available for students to take home for practice. Contra tubas and battery percussion will be assigned to students early in band camp and are to be kept at the school at all times. Trumpets will be checked out to students after the school year begins, so trumpet students will need to have their own instrument available for band camp. Once checked out, students will be able to take their trumpets home for practice. ​ For wind symphony, symphonic band, and freshman concert band, school instruments will be provided for bass clarinets, bassoons, tenor saxophones, bari saxophones, trumpets (wind symphony members only), bass trombones, French horns, euphoniums, tubas, and percussion. The school-owned bass clarinets, tenor saxophones, bari saxophones, bass trombones, French horns, and euphoniums will be checked out at the end of marching season and students will be able to take them home for practice. For trumpets, the instruments checked out for Golden Regiment will be kept for use in Wind Symphony. Symphonic and concert band trumpet students will need to provide their own instruments. Tubas and percussion instruments will be assigned but not allowed to leave the school. ​ For jazz ensembles, students will be provided instruments for percussion, tenor and bari saxophones, bass trombones, and any other specialty instruments that might be needed for individual arrangements. These instruments are all to be kept at the school unless otherwise instructed by the teaching staff.

Blue Springs High School does not charge for the use of school-owned instruments. The only additional costs that may be incurred are the provision of a mouthpiece for brass and woodwind instruments, and sticks & mallets for percussion instruments. Students are responsible for keeping their instrument in good performing and working condition. If the student is found to have caused damage to their instrument because of misuse, they may be responsible for the costs associated with repairing the instrument back to the original condition at the time of check-out.

Students are allowed to bring home school instruments for practice with only a few exceptions. School-owned percussion instruments, including mallet, timpani, and battery percussion, are not able to be taken home. Large instruments, such as contra tubas and concert tubas, are also not allowed to be taken home. For those instruments, it is recommended that students take advantage of practice time before or after school.

The booster organizations at Blue Springs High School make every effort possible to work with students and families that have needs for additional financial assistance. While these assistance resources are not always available to cover 100% of the student costs, there are other areas that might be considered to reduce the burden. ​ Individual Fundraising Several times throughout the year, students are provided opportunities to participate in individual fundraising. Funds raised in these projects are applied directly to student's accounts and do not support the general fundraising efforts. These are additional opportunities for you your students to get involved raising money to support your individual needs. ​ Fox4 KC and Meyer Music's Band of Angels Program Each year the Band of Angels program provides music scholarships to help students offset the costs of participation of activities. You can learn more about this program by clicking the link at the bottom of this page. ​ Friends of the Golden Regiment Golden Circle Music Scholarships The Friends of the Golden Regiment works to raise money each year outside of the normal general fund needs, solely for the purpose of scholarships for students needing additional financial assistance. These are provided through the Golden Circle. You can learn more about this program and apply for assistance by clicking the link at the bottom of this page. Please note that the Golden Circle funds are not available to students who are participating in optional trips. ​

There are several opportunities throughout the year for individual fundraising activities. The money raised in these projects is applied directly to the student accounts for those who actively participated in raising funds at the level in which they raised the money. It is important to share with Karen Walls exactly where money raised in individual fundraising projects needs to be applied to ensure it makes it to the correct accounts. ​ For more details on individual fundraising activities, please contact Betty Jo Smith Douglas or Karen Walls via email. E-Mail Betty Jo Smith Douglas E-Mail Karen Walls

Fees Designated for Payment Through Friends of the Golden Regiment Contact: Kari Barchers (bookkeeper) E-Mail Fees Designated for Payment Through Blue Springs High School (RevTrak) Contact: Karen Walls (Administrative Assistant) E-Mail Travel Fees Designated for Payment Through Music Travel Consultants (MTC) Contact: Music Travel Consultants E-Mail Travel Fees Designated for Payment Through Gateway Travel Contact: Gateway Travel E-Mail All Other Payment Questions Contact: Karen Walls E-Mail

During band camp, Karen Walls will provide information to the students about purchasing reserved seats for football games. Seats are limited in availability. But you can select seats from what are available on a first-come-first-serve basis. These seats sell for approximately $75 each (subject to change from year-to-year). This is a fundraiser for the band in which the money goes to supporting our activities for the seats that are sold to band family members. These seats are located in the middle of the stadium bleachers on the home side and include backs and arm rests. The reserved seating ensures that you do not have to arrive too early for home football games to get the best seats. ​ For additional questions regarding reserved seating, contact Karen Walls. E-Mail

There are four different payee groups for fees and student charges. It is important to know which payee you need to submit payment to in order to make sure it goes to the right account. You can find this information on the schedule located on the payment page of this website. As an example, if you access "Golden Regiment Payments" under the "Parents & Family" navigation heading, you will find a payment schedule for winds, percussion, and color guard. The schedule will show whether the payment needs to be made to The Friends of the Golden Regiment, the BSSD RevTrak System, Music Travel Consultants, or Gateway Music Festivals & Tours. ​ The Friends of the Golden Regiment Contact: Kari Barchers (bookkeeper) ​E-Mail ​ BSSD RevTrak System Contact: Karen Walls (Administrative Assistant)​ E-Mail Music Travel Consultants Contact: Music Travel Consultants E-Mail Gateway Music Festivals & Tours Contact: Gateway Travel​ E-Mail

Volunteering is optional for parents and students. And it is not required when it comes to fundraisers. However, it should be noted that the involvement of parents in these efforts is very important to helping reduce the costs for participation in various programs. Without the work of parent volunteers to help raise these funds, the individual fees and costs would be much higher. While it is not required to participate in fundraising activities, it should be the responsibility of all parents to find ways to get involved. Additionally, for major projects like BOA-St Louis and the Golden Regiment Invitational Marching Festival it takes a lot of parent involvement. We simply could not put these activities together without the help and support of all parents.

There are four different payee groups for fees and student charges. It is important to know which payee you need to submit payment to to make sure it goes to the right account. You can find this information on the schedule located on the payment page of this website. As an example, if you access "Golden Regiment Payments" under the "Parents & Family" navigation heading, you will find a payment schedule for winds, percussion, and color guard. The schedule will show whether the payment needs to be made to The Friends of the Golden Regiment, the BSSD RevTrak System, Music Travel Consultants, or Gateway Music Festivals & Tours. ​ The Friends of the Golden Regiment Payments made to The Friends of the Golden Regiment can be made online via this site. The payment page for your activity (i.e. Golden Regiment Payments) includes a link to all of the different payment types to select and pay. You can use Visa, MasterCard, Discover, or American Express to pay through this site. Additionally, payments can be made by check using the black lock box in the band room located next to Karen Walls' office. It is important to notate what the payment is for when paying by check using the lock box. To ensure that all checks are processed correctly, it is important that checks are only deposited through this lock box. Do not give checks to staff members or other parent volunteers as they may get lost or incorrectly posted to the correct account. ​ BSSD RevTrak System Payments made to the BSSD RevTrak system can be made online. A link for this system is included on the payment page for your activity (i.e. Golden Regiment Payments). You can use Visa, MasterCard, or Discover for payments through this system. The BSSD RevTrak system does not allow for payment by check. ​ Music Travel Consultants Payments made to Music Travel Consultants (MTC) can be made online through their web portal. A link for this site is included on the payment page for your activity (i.e. Golden Regiment Payments). You can use Visa, MasterCard, Discover, or American Express for payments through this system. Payments can be made by check. However, they must be postmarked by the due date to avoid any late fees. If paying by check, make sure the traveler's name and trip number are included in the memo line to ensure it is posted to the correct account. ​ Gateway Music Festivals & Tours Payments made to Gateway Music Festivals & Tours can be made online through their web portal. A link for this site is included on the payment page for your activity (i.e. Golden Regiment Payments). You can use Visa, MasterCard, Discover, or American Express for payments through this system. Please be aware that Gateway Music Festivals & Tours charges an additional handling fee for payments made online. Payments can be made by check. However, they must be postmarked by the due date to avoid any late fees. If paying by check, make sure the traveler's name and trip number are included in the memo line to ensure it is posted to the correct account. ​

The Team Store will set-up multiple displays throughout the year to sell these items along with additional limited time offers for fan tour shirts, senior shirts, special apparel, and spirit yard signs. These events may include the Parent Volunteer Fair in May, the Parent Preview Event in August, and the Golden Regiment Invitational Marching Festival in late September / early October. ​ Additional pop-up sales may be scheduled throughout the year and publicized through this site or the Band app.

Apparel purchased for the students should not be worn by parents or other family members. These items are designed for two purposes. The first is that they help the band staff in identifying students in larger groups during travel. Items like the Purple hoodie sweatshirt, and warm-up apparel are used to ensure that our students are visible in large crowds. When parents or other family members wear these items, it makes it more difficult for the staff to keep track of the students. ​ The second purpose of some of the apparel is to showcase traditions that apply directly to our students with their own significant meaning. Student show shirts are an example of this type of apparel that should not be worn by parents or other family members. These shirts may include logos like "HOFMOI" in which the meaning is special to the students. Parents are offered the opportunity to purchase their own "fan tour shirts" that have complimentary styling to the student shirts with subtle differences. ​ The band staff asks that parents and family members respect these requests to ensure that all apparel is being treated uniformly throughout the organization.

The Team Store is operated by The Friends of the Golden Regiment. Profits on merchandise and apparel offered through the Team Store goes directly to supporting the activities of the Blue Springs High School Department of Bands. The Team Store sells merchandise and apparel with brand names associated with the Department of Bands. The designs of these items are all approved by the band staff to ensure that the organization is being represented properly. It is discouraged for parents to print their own merchandise and apparel with these logos as they are not approved for use by the band staff. The Team Store will set-up multiple displays throughout the year to sell these items along with additional limited time offers for fan tour shirts, senior shirts, special apparel, and spirit yard signs. Additionally, these items can be purchased online through this website. Payments for the Team Store merchandise can be made using Visa, MasterCard, Discover, and American Express credit cards through this site or at in-person events. Cash is also accepted at in-person events. The Team Store does not accept checks for purchases. For additional questions about the Team Store, please use the contact link below. E-Mail

Payments for the Team Store merchandise can be made using Visa, MasterCard, Discover, and American Express credit cards through this site or at in-person events. Cash is also accepted at in-person events. The Team Store does not accept checks for purchases.

Students are required to have dedicated clothing for rehearsals and travel. This is a required uniform and all students must purchase it. If you purchase rehearsal gear your freshman year and no changes are made to the design, they will be able to continue using this apparel throughout the rest of their time at Blue Springs High School. ​ It is recommended to purchase at least two pairs of rehearsal clothing as it will help with laundry during the busy marching season. Students are required to wear this at every after-school rehearsal. Oftentimes this happens in consecutive days. ​ For additional questions regarding rehearsal clothing, contact Karen Walls. E-Mail

The desire for offering Golden Regiment merchandise and apparel is to allow the profits from the sales to go back to supporting the activities of the Department of Bands. When students or parents design their own apparel using these logos, the power of this fundraising activity is diminished. And there is a risk of the band staff losing control of how these brands are being represented. With this, it is discouraged to create branded apparel using the Golden Regiment logo or any other Department of Band logos without pre-approval from the band staff.

The Team Store is operated by The Friends of the Golden Regiment. 100% of the profits raised from merchandise and apparel sales through the Team Store support the activities of the Blue Springs Department of Bands. The Team Store is operated by parent volunteers associated with The Friends of the Golden Regiment. ​ The Liddle's Team Store is operated by Liddle's Sports & Apparel. Liddle's is a generous supporter of the the Blue Springs High School Department of Bands. They provide donations for raffle events and sponsor other activities for our program. It is important to support their business with apparel needs whenever possible. Liddle's is an independently operated business from the booster organization and they do not operate on the premises of the high school. ​ If you're talking to a representative of The Team Store at Blue Springs High School, you are not working with Liddle's Sports & Apparel. Questions regarding orders or merchandise through Liddle's Sports & Apparel should be directed to them.

Golden Regiment apparel or merchandise is meant to be a keepsake of the memories and time with the organization. If after graduation, you or your student wishes to dispose of apparel or merchandise the band staff kindly asks that you consider donating it directly to the band program for distribution to students that may have additional financial needs. It is discouraged to sell these items through sites like the Purple Wave, Facebook marketplace, or any other social media outlet as it may end up being purchased by individuals that don't recognize the significance of the work that was put into the organizations the apparel represents. Additionally, please refrain from making donations of this apparel to thrift stores or other charities as the items may also end up being worn by individuals not associated with the program. The best way to dispose of these items is to make a donation directly to the Department of Bands.

Items purchased through the Team Store (online) are not available for shipping. Local delivery is the only option. Delivery can be made in-person at a Team Store event (i.e. Parent Preview, Golden Regiment Invitational, etc.). Additionally, prepaid orders can be delivered to the high school to be sent home with your student. When purchasing online, please select from the delivery option for each product.

Marching shoes and rehearsal clothing will be delivered mid-to-late August. If they arrive from the supplier in time, they may be available for pick-up at the August payment, picture, and pick-up event. If they don't arrive in time, they will be given directly to your student in class. Warm-ups will be delivered in late September. These will be used when the students travel. When they arrive, they will be given directly to your student in class. ​ Costumes will be delivered in mid-September in preparation for the Golden Regiment Invitational. These will not be distributed to students as they are kept at the high school in between practices and performances. Your student may be asked to try on their costume in mid-September to ensure it fits properly, allowing the sewing committee time to make alterations, as necessary.

At the May Parent and Volunteer Fair meeting, the band staff will outline the plans for the marching season. They'll provide which competitions we're planning to attend along with the dates and costs. ​ Additional details including the departure and arrival times, hotel information, and meal plans will be provided at a later date (typically two weeks prior to the first travel event). It is recommended that if you are planning to travel to band competitions as a parent spectator, that you arrange your own hotel reservations after the May meeting as they will likely fill up. It will be difficult for you to reserve a room at the same hotel the students are staying at. If you book a hotel room for yourself, please make sure the arrival and departure dates are flexible and cancellable. The band staff may announce a change in the arrival and departure dates at the travel meeting prior to the event that could cause additional charges for you if you've made a reservation through a non-refundable site. ​ For other performance group travel, a handout will be sent home to let you know which trips will be occurring. Additional information regarding costs and travel details will be shared prior to the event. Depending on the distance of the trip and the overall expense, the band staff may elect not to hold a travel meeting relative to that trip and instead just send home handouts with the details.

When the groups travel, they go as a team. It is also difficult for the staff to keep track of individual arrangements that are made for single students. Therefore, it is discouraged by the band staff for individual students to make their own travel arrangements. ​ There may be exceptions where this is required. Those exceptions need to be communicated well in advance of the trip (at least one week) and the staff will require students to complete "yellow card" documentation for when the student will be separated from the group. The "yellow card" must be signed off by high school administration at least one week before the trip. And the student will only be released to the parent or guardian included on the "yellow card."

It is not required for family members to travel with their students on all trips. However, the student's biggest fans are their parents and family. It is always encouraged for you to travel to the same locations whenever possible. ​ When students travel in a group, there are protections in place to ensure their safety if you're not travelling with them. As part of the PRIVIT process for enrolling in activities, you will be required to provide a medical release with insurance documentation in the event of an emergency. This will give the band staff the ability to provide medical assistance through local hospitals while they travel (in the event of an emergency only). It also provides medical contact information to ensure the staff can quickly reach you if you're not with the students. The groups also typically travel with a band physician to help with minor health concerns. ​ For students that require medications while they travel, a release will need to be provided by the parents documenting the type of medicine and the dosage instructions. The medications will be maintained by the student. But the staff must be aware of what they are traveling with. ​ If there is a behavioral issue (that involves administrative action) with your student that forces them to end their travel early, they will be sent home at an additional expense to you if you're not available to take them with you. This could be the cost of a flight or individual transportation costs if they misbehave. As Dr. Allshouse reiterates at the travel meetings, "Do not be the reason for another rule. "

Yes, and no. Your student will be required to travel on all mandated trips for their activity. This includes marching competitions, band performances, and color guard events. These activities perform as a team and it is important for all team members to be present. ​ Your student is not required to travel on optional trips. This may include trips to Hawaii, Ireland, New York, etc. The band staff will make it known which trips are considered optional. ​ If you have scheduling conflicts with any trips (required or optional) they should be communicated to the band staff early. For marching band, those conflicts should be reported by the end of summer band camp to allow the staff time to make visual design changes, if needed. Exceptions to this rule would include death of a family member, or a medical emergency. Other school activity conflicts are not considered an emergency.

Volunteering is optional for parents. However, there are a lot of support activities that require parent involvement. The success of our students is heavily dependent on that support. Additionally, the experience you have with the band department and your student's overall experience at Blue Springs High School will be heightened when you have a stronger involvement in their activities. You will meet other parents with common interests. You will understand and appreciate the effort of the activities your student is participating in. And you will be able to have more meaningful and encouraging conversations with your students when you are involved. There are many ways you can volunteer with differing levels of time commitment and effort. If you need assistance in finding ways you can get involved that will meet your schedule or commitment ability, please contact our volunteer coordinator. E-Mail

The Blue Springs High School is the host school for the Bands of America St Louis Super Regional band competition. That means that we provide volunteer personnel for critical functions for running the marching competition. The Blue Springs Department of Bands earns compensation from Bands of America that is used to support the marching band activities. ​ It is not required to volunteer for this competition. However, it does take a lot of people for us to keep this commitment to Bands of America. If you are attending this competition, please do your best to volunteer for at least one shift. ​ In your own compensation for this volunteer work, you will receive a FREE Bands of America volunteer t-shirt. And you will receive FREE admission to the entire competition. This is valued at over $100. ​ And as volunteer activities go, the work required is not that strenuous. It is generally fun to spend time with other parents that have similar interests. And the shifts are generally short enough that the time will pass quickly. ​ For additional questions regarding the Bands of America Super Regional, please contact Betty Jo Smith Douglas. E-Mail

The sign-up lists for the Bands of America Super Regional will be available starting at the May Parent Meeting and Volunteer Fair. Please visit Betty Jo Smith Douglas at the Volunteer Fair to sign up for a time. ​ After the Volunteer Fair, Betty Jo Smith Douglas will have the lists available at Parent Preview, Thursday night rehearsal and the fall travel meeting. You can also email her directly to sign-up for a shift. E-Mail

The Golden Regiment Invitational Marching Festival is the largest fundraiser for the Department of Bands. It requires a lot of volunteers to run the various aspects of the competition. This includes assistance in parking lots, selling admissions and merchandise, operating a concession stand, helping with equipment movement, monitoring the performance and warm-up areas, and providing volunteer and hospitality assistance. ​ It is not required to volunteer for this competition. However, it does take a lot of people for us to keep this commitment to put on this activity. And unlike the Bands of America St Louis competition, this does not require additional travel for parents to participate as a volunteer. All parents are encouraged to sign up for at least two shifts of volunteer work for the festival. ​​ In your own compensation for this volunteer work, you will receive FREE admission to the entire competition. A volunteer t-shirt is provided for the day that is then returned at the end of your shift(s). ​ And as volunteer activities go, the work required is not that strenuous. It is generally fun to spend time with other parents that have similar interests. And the shifts are generally short enough that the time will pass quickly. ​ For additional questions regarding the Golden Regiment Invitational Marching Festival, please contact the festival coordinator. E-Mail

The Blue Springs School District goes to great length to help keep parents and students safe. While this is not ever a complete guarantee, there are a lot of safeguards put in place to ensure students are protected. ​ The Blue Springs School District requires that any parent that has the potential for one-to-one interaction with a student to undergo a criminal background screening. This applies to all committee head members for the parent booster organization. Additionally, committee heads are trained that they should not be spending time individually with a student in a non-public, non-open air environment. Parents are taught that they should be receiving permission from other parents to take their students in a vehicle and that should only occur if other students who have sought similar approval are present. ​ It is also important for you as a parent to share these expectations with your student. Make sure they understand that if a parent is asking them to do something that is inappropriate or makes them feel uncomfortable, they should report the issue immediately to the band staff. ​ When students travel in a group, there are protections in place to ensure their safety if you're not travelling with them. As part of the PRIVIT process for enrolling in activities, you will be required to provide a medical release with insurance documentation in the event of an emergency. This will give the band staff the ability to provide medical assistance through local hospitals while they travel (in the event of an emergency only). It also provides medical contact information to ensure the staff can quickly reach you if you're not with the students. The groups also typically travel with a band physician to help with minor health concerns. ​ For students that require medications while they travel, a release will need to be provided by the parents documenting the type of medicine and the dosage instructions. The medications will be maintained by the student. But the staff must be aware of what they are traveling with.

No. Your child's grade will never depend on you or anyone associated with your child volunteering at any band event. The Band Staff understands everyone's time availability is unique and will never tie the student's grade to parent/guardian involvement. ​ It is, however, important to note the significant needs of the program. There are ways parents can volunteer in just about every capacity or in whatever time constraints might be required. It is from the great work of our parents that the program can be so successful. Please direct any questions or concerns about grades to Dr. Tim Allshouse. E-Mail

The volunteer coordination for the Golden Regiment Invitational Marching Festival is managed through a SignUpGenius link. The link will be distributed to parents starting at the May Parent Meeting and Volunteer Fair. It will frequently be sent out through the Band app and through email communication up until a few days before the competition. It is important to sign up for a shift early so that the coordinator can determine areas where coverage isn't available and then to make adjustments. Please make the commitment to sign up for at least two volunteer shifts at least three weeks prior to the competition. ​ For additional questions regarding volunteering for the Golden Regiment Invitational Marching Festival, contact the festival coordinator. E-Mail

There are many ways to get involved as a volunteer. The first time to learn about volunteer opportunities is to attend the Parent Meeting and Volunteer Fair in May. At the Volunteer Fair, committees will display examples of what they do to support the organization. You will be able to have individual conversations to find out if you would be a good fit for that group. ​ Additionally, you can find information about the various volunteer committee leads on this website by visiting the "Parent Booster Organizations" page on this site. Use the link below. You can reach out to individual leaders via email to ask questions about the respective volunteer area. For all other questions regarding volunteer opportunities, please contact our volunteer coordinator. E-Mail