Real test ahead for candidates
Hayes wins national Dem support; low-key Santos pushes ‘right’ message
On paper, the differences couldn’t be greater between the two candidates for Connecticut’s most competitive congressional seat.
Democrat Jahana Hayes is a charismatic first-time candidate who raised the most money in the 5th District primary and has the support of top Democrats, who have promised to help her raise money for the Nov. 6 election.
In contrast, Republican Manny Santos is a reserved Marine veteran and former mayor of Meriden who raised the least money in the primary race, and whose support from the GOP stops short of offers to help with fundraising.
Santos’ comfortable primary win Tuesday as the endorsed candidate over two challengers earned him regional media attention, but
In the mid-1990s, Brookfield’s marching band was considered a Class IV program, making it among the largest. By
2010, the band had dropped to a Class I, for groups with 40 students or less. Between the fall of
2014 to the fall of 2017, participation dropped from 28 to 16 students.
St. Georges said it is more challenging to choreograph a routine for a small group because one mistake is more noticeable. The students also look smaller on the large football field where they perform.
“You don’t want them to be lost in the sea of green,” St. Georges said.
Efforts to recruit students to the program have been unsuccessful, and St. Georges said he is unsure why.
“The kids who are involved in the program would tell you they love it and they would tell all their friends they love it,” he said.
The big time commitment could be a factor, he said. The students practice a few days a week after school and spend 12 hours on Saturdays for the competitions.
Other schools in the state have also struggled with membership, St. Georges said.
But the new model was successful for Amity High School, which had 60 students in marching band six years ago and now has 250 kids in Blast!, he said.
Brookfield High School Principal Marc Balanda has seen the shows at Amity and played a video of Amity’s performance of Bruno Mars’ “Uptown Funk” during the school board’s recent meeting.
“The energy that’s there is just amazing,” he said.
Under the new model, in-school band students would be required to participate, but would not need to practice after school. Students who want to be more involved would practice after school.
The students will not compete as part of the new program, but might be able to attend competitions for fun or join a winter competition for
wind players, St. Georges said.
The change would also save $7,000 in stipends for instructors, in addition to travel savings.
St. Georges said the students already in the program are “cautiously optimistic” about the change.
“They’re excited to still apply their craft and certainly excited to draw more members,” he said.
Joy Greenstein, a school board member, said she appreciated St. Georges’ “out-of-the-box” thinking.
“This breathes a fresh, modern day change,” she said. “It will be very motivating for students in music and the arts to really express themselves.”
Vice Chairman Bob Belden was the lone member to vote against the idea. His kids were in the marching band and have thrived because of the discipline and other skills it taught them, he said.
“It was the most formative experience for my two boys,” Belden said. “As adults, they are better for it.”
St. Georges said he hopes the shift will attract enough students to restart competitive marching band again.
“This is not something we’re looking at eliminating and walking away from,” he said. “It’s got a good history. It’s got a strong tradition. My main concern was that if we do nothing differently, then we can’t expect any different results.”
“This is not something we’re looking at eliminating and walking away from. It’s got a good history. It’s got a strong tradition. My main concern was that if we do nothing differently, then we can’t expect any different results.” Stephen St. Georges, the band director