Former Huntington High School Teacher Caught With Underage Girl
December 30, 2008
SHREVEPORT, LA (KSLA) - A former Ark-La-Tex high school teacher faces a number of charges after authorities caught him with a 16 year-old girl.
Caddo Sheriff’s say a deputy found 38 year-old Brandon Bates just off Jefferson Paige Road with the girl on Christmas Day. According to the deputy, Bates said the girl was his niece and he was taking her home. But later the girl admitted they were planning to have sex.
Bates was charged with contributing to the delinquency of a juvenile, indecent behavior, driving under suspicion, and unlawful flight. Bates is a former teacher at Shreveport’s Huntington High School.
Drummer without hands mixes fun, hard work
December 24, 2008
Tredante Bias pounds out a beat on the snare drum that hangs from his shoulder. Flanked by good friends Quenton Woods and Ty Sims, a smile escapes his lips as the three do a show-style number that has become a trademark of the Central Medical Magnet High School Marching Band.
“I do everything they do,” said Bias, a sophomore at Central.
“Yeah, we keep him out of trouble,” said longtime friend Todrrick Poullard. “I taught him everything he knows.”
The students had just left a practice where they prepared for Christmas performances and spring competitions. As Bias had pounded out his part in the song “This Christmas,” the hall came alive with the sounds of the season and the spirit of the band members.
Bias is at home here in the band hall, dancing, laughing and smiling - a teen among other teens.
But unlike most 15-year-old students, Bias does not have two complete arms, both stopping before the elbow, or a right leg, which stops above the knee. A prosthetic helps him walk.
But what some might see as a disability, Bias sees as a catalyst for creativity.
“Don’t let nobody tell you that you can’t do anything,” is the mantra he has lived by and the words his family instilled in him when he was growing up.
FAMU band strives for six-figure goal to go to Obama’s inauguration
December 24, 2008
Expenses for Florida A&M University’s marching band to participate in Barack Obama’s inaugural parade have increased by $75,000.
Originally, $100,000 was needed for the Marching 100. That figure covered travel, lodging and food to go to Washington, D.C. for the Jan. 20 event. Now, $175,000 is needed, Carla Willis, vice president of university relations, said on Tuesday.
The earlier figure was attributed to expenses needed when the band participated in former President Bill Clinton’s inaugural parade, Willis said. The past 11 years weren’t taken into account, she said. But the increase hasn’t stopped donors. So far, more than $80,000 has been raised.
DRUMLine Live in Houston, Texas
December 22, 2008
Houston’s Society for the Performing Arts has announced that it will present DRUMLine Live to Jones Hall for one performance in January.
The performance will take place, Tuesday, Jan. 13. Curtain time is 7:30 p.m.
DRUMLine Live is a new attraction created by the music team behind 20th Century Fox’s hit movie “Drumline.” The production brings show-style marching bands from America’s top Historically Black Colleges and Universities to the theatrical stage for the first time.
Featuring a 40-member cast of colorful and flamboyant performers from Florida A&M, Tennessee State, South Carolina State and Winston Salem State universities, as well as Miles College, Morris Brown College and the University of Georgia, the show presents the sounds of the great brass past including Earth, Wind, and Fire and Tower of Power side by side with the hottest contemporary hip hop and R&B. Read more
Brooklyn Steppers Marching Band Chosen to Perform At Presidential Inaugeration
December 17, 2008
How do you get to the White House? Practice.
Last Wednesday, Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz announced that the Brooklyn Steppers Marching Band will perform at the 2009 Presidential Inauguration Parade in Washington, DC.
The Brooklyn Steppers, made up of students from roughly 40 schools across the borough, was chosen from almost 1,400 applicants to perform during the grand march up Pennsylvania Avenue. The renowned band has already performed before crowds at Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall, Yankees Stadium, Giant Stadium, Shea Stadium. Read more
Help Send the Ballou Marching Band to the Rose Bowl!
December 17, 2008
Source | Ellen Show Blog
Last year, Ellen told you about the Ballou Senior High School Marching Band from Washington, D.C. The band has been part of a struggling inner city school that had a 50% dropout rate. After appearing on the show, the band was invited to The White House for a screening of a documentary about their program.
They have now been invited to perform at The Rose Bowl, but need to raise funds to pay for the trip! Watch this video to see a brief history of the marching band and then click here to donate to help make their dream become a reality!
Documentary on Shaw High School band journey to China now on DVD
December 16, 2008
Source: Cleveland.com
News and notes surrounding TV, movies and radio in Northeast Ohio:
Harding band entertains Panthers tailgaters
December 14, 2008
The pep band from Harding High School will entertain fans headed to this afternoon’s Carolina Panthers game, as part of an effort to help raise money for the school’s marching band to play at President-elect Obama’s inaugural parade next month.
Officials with Charlotte Center City Partners said the agency and the Panthers are helping the Harding marching band raise the $50,000 they need to go to inauguration event.
The band is expected to arrive at the corner of Tryon and Fourth streets at 1 p.m. today, and entertain fans tailgating on the north side of Bank of America stadium for about an hour. Then at 2 p.m. they’ll play at the Panthers’ booth at Mint and Morehead streets. The team has invited the band to play on its stage at 3:40 p.m. Read more
Howard University Marching Band Invited to Inaugural Parade
December 11, 2008
Howard University’s Showtime Marching Band, landed a coveted spot in the 56th Inaugural Parade for President-elect Barack Obama. Howard University became A Conn-Selmer School in 2007 to support the short and long term growth of music performance and education, and increases the institution’s national and international profile as a music school. Among the nation’s historically Black institutions of higher learning, Howard University and its Department of Music stand at the forefront, revered for its illustrious past and renowned as a premier provider of education for those who aspire to a career in music.
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Inauguration Schedule Announced / Hampton Univ. Invited!
December 11, 2008
President-elect Barack Obama’s team on Wednesday released a preliminary schedule of inauguration events, which will take place over a four day period and include a national day of service to honor Martin Luther King’s holiday.
Under the theme “Renewing America’s Promise,” the schedule also includes a national prayer service the day after Obama and Vice President-elect Joe Biden take office on Jan. 20.
Obama says in a statement that the events are designed to renew Americans’ faith in their country. He says he hopes the events unify the country amid its economic struggles.
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