3. Band Director Survey - Full Report
- Campus Communications Services
- Jan 26
- 25 min read
Updated: Feb 27
"The State of the High School Marching Band Director 2025: Workload, Stress and the Role of Technology & AI"
Table Of Contents
Quick read: Executive Summary
Quick presentation: Slides
Full Report (Best viewed on desktop, due to response formats):
Executive Summary
Being a marching band director is a passion-driven but high-pressure role. Directors are motivated by teaching, mentoring, fostering student growth, and building meaningful program culture, with recognition or competitive success largely secondary. Yet, this work comes with intense, sustained demands (and not only throughout the marching season; the focus of this survey. A band director's role never really slows down). 84% report working over 40 hours per week during marching season, and 40% exceed 70 hours. 65% report their workload as unhealthy and unsustainable. These hours encompass not only rehearsals but extensive administrative, logistical, and communication responsibilities, often carried out with insufficient staffing. 53% of directors report staffing is insufficient, therefore requiring a heavy reliance on volunteers.
Stress is systemic and multifaceted. Nearly all directors (98%) experience moderate to high stress, with 61% reporting levels the same or worse than previous years. Director stress is most present in contexts involving long working hours, staffing gaps and heavy volunteer reliance, especially in larger, higher classification programs. Common top stressors include parent communication, schedule planning and student behavior management, with personal investment and imposter syndrome compounding the risk of burnout.
Staffing constraints and volunteers shape the daily experience. Head band director positions broadly remain fixed at one, while program growth and complexity is absorbed through assistants and specialist directors. Patterns in the data indicate this doesn't fully offset head director workload however, and assistant positions plateau at the highest competitive classifications leaving a disproportionate effect. Additional leadership roles are non-existent and administrative support is inconsistent, leaving head band directors to oversee operational, instructional, and compliance responsibilities simultaneously; major factors contributing to long working hours. Excessive workload is a clear signal of structural staffing gaps. Volunteers are critical, particularly in mid-size programs to bridge instructional gaps, and remain a supplemental operational support even in the largest programs. Outside funding from club fees and fundraising is essential for sustaining staffing needs - especially as programs scale.
Directors currently rely on a fragmented array of tools for communications, operations, and administrative tasks, adding to workload and stress. Technology and AI offer potential relief opportunities - 66% of directors view AI as moderately to extremely important in the future of marching band communications, operations and administrative work, though enthusiasm is tempered by concerns around accuracy, privacy and ethics. AI tools are mainly being used by directors to speed up repetitive tasks such as drafting and editing communications, basic data analysis and content and image generation. Directors working higher hours are most likely to experiment with AI tools, eager to find workload relief. While 68% of directors are already experimenting with AI, comfort is mixed (34% very comfortable, 23% neutral, 25% not comfortable). Directors emphasize AI as a support tool to reduce operational workload, not as a replacement for instruction or mentorship. Time saved through AI would be reinvested in instruction, mentorship and student experience.
Directors' greatest needs for sustainable support
SUPPORT STRUCTURES
Instructional staffing proportional to program growth
- Assistant and specialist director positions that scale with program size, not solely competitive classification
- Financial backing to bridge seasonal staffing gaps/prevent reliance on volunteers for instructional needs while ensuring equity across all programs within a district
Administrative and operational support
- Additional leadership role or coordination capacity in the largest/highest classification bands, to distribute operational oversight
- Access to administrative support with communications, operations and administrative tasks (fine arts secretary) for medium - large size/classification bands
Reduce reliance on informal systems through clearer structures
- Clarify, document and regularly review roles, responsibilities, processes, and governance structures across directors, staff and volunteers to reduce reliance on informal, person-dependent systems and support the director-booster collaboration
TOOLS
Funding specifically for technology
- Assign dedicated funding towards technologies essential for safely and effectively managing modern marching band programs, while ensuring equity across all programs within a district
AI
- Provide clarity, governance, and confidence for directors to adopt AI safely
- Explore structured, low-risk environments for digitally engaged early-adopter directors interested in experimenting with AI, with appropriate guidance and district oversight
SYSTEMS
Technology integrations
- Consolidate fragmented tools - integrate tools, or opt for unified platforms where possible (particularly important for communications)
Equip with standardized, ready-to-use/re-useable assets for non-instructional tasks
- Empower directors with standardized assets such as templates, brand guidelines/toolkits, and user-management permissions to reduce time spent on non-instructional tasks
Streamlined processes
- Identify and eliminate process bottlenecks between program-campus and program-district levels
IN ADDITION...
Wellness strategies to sustain career-long health
- Implement formalized mentorship programs for all director levels - understand changing challenges and motivations
- Provide workload management support - propose realistic methods of reducing hours and improving stress levels. 'Re-normalize' sustainable working hours
- Create regular opportunities for directors to provide feedback on what's adding to their workload/causing more stress (anonymously if they wish) - with an actionable 'you said, we did' response to build trust
In summary: Directors are deeply committed to their students and programs but face sustained high workloads, staffing bottlenecks, and systemic stressors. Survey responses consistently indicate that workload sustainability is most constrained by limited staffing, heavy reliance on volunteers, and fragmented communications and administrative systems. Directors identify the greatest opportunity for relief in reducing operational friction -particularly through improved staffing support and more effective use of technology - so they can refocus time and energy on their core motivations: teaching, mentorship, and long-term program growth.
Introduction
In our previous post 'Marching Band: More Than Music - A Pathway to Student Success' we explored why marching band offers a truly transformative experience for students - and why that impact depends on intentional, thoughtful support. Those core benefits to students have remained consistent over time. Over the last couple of decades or so, however, the marching band world has changed in many ways, expanding the director role from musical instruction to complex program management:
Role of the director: Mostly focused on rehearsal and instruction
→ Now spans design, administration, logistics, communications, technology, marketing & PR, fundraising, and more
Show design: Simpler drill and stock arrangements
→ Now includes electronics, large and intricate props, complex drill, and theatrical, concept-driven productions
Competitive pressures: Present but less intense
→ Now highly public and closely scrutinized by administration, community members and families to achieve high competitive scores
Competition circuits: Less elaborate
→ Now with higher expectations for performance and participation
Time commitment: Long hours during marching season
→ Now long hours year-round
Stakeholder engagement: Limited to students and administration
→ Now involves parents, boosters, and the broader community
Stress load: typically high
→ Now tied to multiple domains/higher loads
Documentation of burnout: Less documented
→ Now increasingly documented quantitatively
During that same time period, support structures for directors have largely remained the same, creating a growing gap between demands and available resources. In 'Fork In The Road - Unsustainable Workloads or Smarter Support?' we turned our focus to those mounting pressures facing band directors, highlighting the growing risk of burnout and attrition. Together, these realities point to a critical opportunity: to rethink the tools, support structures and systems that surround the role, and better empower those who guide these programs. To better understand the real challenges and bottlenecks directors face, we launched a survey to capture their perspectives directly. This blog presents the findings from that survey, offering a data-informed view of the experiences, needs, and opportunities identified by directors themselves.
Respondent Overview
Total responses
53
What is your age bracket?
42% Millennial (1981-1996)
33% Gen X (1965-1980)
21% Gen Z (1997-2012)
4% Baby Boomer (1946-1964)
What is your current role(s)?
*Totals more than 100% due to multiple roles undertaken by some respondents
46% Head Band Director
35% Assistant Band Director
21% Percussion Director
10% Color Guard Director
2% Other:
Fine Arts Director
Including this school year, how many years have you been teaching?
35% 20+ years
27% 11-20 years
21% 6-10 years
17% 0-5 years
What keeps you doing what you do?
*Respondents were able to select their top 3 reasons
48% Love of teaching and mentorship
48% Sense of accomplishment, personal growth and fulfillment
44% Fostering music and performance passion in students - inspiring the next generation of musicians
42% Building program culture through experiences, traditions and legacies
37% Passion for music and performance
35% Student centered motivations - leadership development, building confidence and self-esteem
15% Artistic and creative challenge
15% Collaborating and camaraderie with fellow directors and staff
12% Performance pride - competitions and achievements
4% Building school and community pride
The survey sample includes 53 respondents spanning multiple age cohorts, professional roles, and levels of teaching experience. Participants include early career through veteran educators and represent a mix of leadership and specialist positions, providing a diverse set of perspectives across career stage and role responsibility.
Trends suggest that although motivations shift with years of experience - from a task- and role-focused identity toward mentorship and legacy-building - respondents overwhelmingly emphasize intrinsic factors such as mentoring, fostering student growth, and building meaningful programs as having the highest value. These consistently outweigh external or competitive drivers, highlighting that long-term commitment to the profession is rooted in purpose and impact rather than recognition or results. This is a profession sustained by passion!
"It is both exhausting and rewarding - often in the same breath"
Key Insights - Respondent Overview
→ 53 respondents represent a broad mix of age groups, professional roles, and teaching experience, ranging from early-career assistants to veteran head directors.
→ Responses suggest an evolution in job motivations over time, moving from task and role focused identity, toward mentorship and legacy-building
“What I do” (CEO)
“Who I impact” (Mentor)
“What I leave behind” (Culture keeper)
→ Purpose and student impact motivations consistently outweigh competition and recognition. Passion - not performance metrics - sustains long term commitment
Marching Band Program Information
What state is your marching band in?
*Totals more than 100% due to rounding to nearest whole numbers
73% Texas
12% Indiana
4% Illinois
2% Ohio
12% Other:
Alabama
Kentucky
Missouri
South Carolina
If you are comfortable providing region information, please do so here
*Duplications and individual school names removed
Region 7, 8, 9, 12, 13, 16, 17, 18, 32
ATSSB Region 3
Houston, TX
Austin/Austin Metro, TX
Dallas Fort Worth, TX
San Antonio/Hill country/Greater San Antonio, TX
Central Texas
Texas gulf coast
Southern Louisiana
Harvest, AL
Suburbs of Chicago
Indianapolis Metro
Southeastern Indiana. We also compete in Ohio for MidStates shows
Upstate
BOA Classification
51% Class AAAA
22% Class AAA
16% Class AA
11% Class A
UIL Classification
*Totals less than 100% due to rounding to nearest whole numbers
42% Class 6A
20% Class 5A, Division I
4% Class 4A, Division II
4% Class 4A, Division I
4% Class 3A, Division I
4% Class 2A, Division II
2% Class 2A, Division I
2% Class 1A, Division I
0% Class 5A, Division II
0% Class 3A, Division II
0% Class 1A, Division II
16% Other *Question only applied to Texas bands
Approximate number of students in your marching band program
*Totals more than 100% due to rounding to nearest whole numbers
24% 200-249
24% 150-199
14% 100-149
14% 50-99
12% 250-299
8% Fewer than 50
6% 300+
While the majority of respondents are from Texas, the survey includes programs across multiple states, BOA and UIL classifications, and a range of band sizes. This variation creates the opportunity to examine patterns across program scale and competitive context.
Responses suggest that as programs grow in size and complexity, director focus increasingly shifts toward mentorship, leadership impact, and sustaining program culture. Performance pride and competition remain low on the list of director motivations - unaffected by program demographics.
"I created a marching band monster, and now the pressure to keep the competitive success is very stressful"
Key Insights - Program Information
→ Texas (73%) plus Midwest (18%) directors dominate survey responses
→ Director motivations point to an evolving leadership identity as programs increase in size and complexity, along the lines of:
Musician → Teacher → Program Manager → Organizational Leader → Legacy Steward
Staffing
Size of band staff in your marching band program, paid directly by your school district
*Full time + [part time]
*Averages - Cross tabulated with number of band students:
Band Head Band Assistant Percussion Color Guard Fine Arts/Band
Students Director Director Director Director Secretary
<50 1 [0] 0.50 [0.25] 0 [0] 0 [0.25] 0 [0]
50-99 1.29 [0] 0.71 [0.14] 0.29 [0.57] 0.29 [0.43] 0.14 [0.29]
100-149 1 [0] 1.86 [0] 0.71 [0.14] 0.43 [0.86] 0.14 [0]
150-199 1 [0.42] 1.67 [0] 0.83 [0.08] 0.83 [0.17] 0.25 [0]
200-249 1 [0] 2.13 [1] 0.88 [0.38] 0.75 [0.50] 0.38 [0.13]
250-299 1 [0] 1.75 [0] 1 [0] 0.5 [0.25] 0.75 [0]
300+ 1 [0] 2 [0] 1 [0.50] 1 [0] 0 [0]
*Averages - Cross tabulated with BOA classification:
BOA Head Band Assistant Percussion Color Guard Fine Arts/Band
Classification Director Director Director Director Secretary
A 1.20 [0] 0.60 [0.20] 0.40 [0] 0 [0.80] 0 [0.20]
AA 1.14 [0] 1.43 [0.14] 0.29 [0.43] 0.71 [0.14] 0.14 [0]
AAA 1 [0.50] 1.70 [0.80] 0.90 [0.40] 0.60 [0.60] 0.20 [0.10]
AAAA 1 [0] 1.88 [0] 0.82 [0.12] 0.76 [0.18] 0.47 [0]
*Averages - Cross tabulated with UIL classification:
UIL Head Band Assistant Percussion Color Guard Fine Arts/Band
Classification Director Director Director Director Secretary
1A 1 [0] 1 [0] 0 [0] 0 [0] 0 [0]
2A 1.33 [0] 0.67 [0.33] 0 [0] 0 [0.33] 0 [0]
3A 1.50 [0] 1 [0] 1 [0] 0 [1] 0 [0.50]
4A 1 [0] 3 [0] 1 [0] 0.50 [0.75] 0.50 [0]
5A 1 [0] 1.67 [0.89] 0.78 [0.44] 0.56 [0.67] 0.33 [0]
6A 1 [0.38] 1.77 [0] 0.92 [0.08] 0.77 [0.15] 0.23 [0]
Do you feel that staffing allocations are sufficient to meet the needs of the students and your marching band program's goals?
*Some respondents answering 'additional comments' did not select one of the first 3 options, therefore does not total 100%
53% Insufficient
37% Sufficient
7% Unsure/Don't know
12% Additional comments:
"Almost"
"Depends on the quality of staff"
"Not enough funding to pay guard staff"
"We've never had anything different here over the past 50 years"
"We depend on a percussion lesson teacher who serves as a 2nd percussion director during the season"
Other staff working with students during marching season
Band Percussion Color Guard Other
Program dir Percussion dir Guard dir M'class teacher
Brass tech Percussion assistant Guard tech Choreographer
Wind tech Percussion tech Clinician Design team
Marching tech FE specialist
Visual instructor Battery instructor
Clinician Sound specialist
University students
Lay staff
On top of paid staff, approximately how many volunteers do you depend on to be able to run your marching band program safely and successfully?
*Totals less than 100% due to rounding to nearest whole numbers
57% 0-25
21% 26-50
17% 51-75
2% 101+
2% 76-100
Head Band Director
Position broadly remains fixed at one for most programs. Program growth is absorbed almost entirely by additional assistant and specialist director roles, not by increased top-level leadership allocations or operational infrastructure/administrative support, concentrating responsibility, decision-making, and accountability on a single role.
Assistant Director
Positions increase with band size and classification, but growth is not linear, and plateaus at the highest competitive levels, suggesting assistant director roles may be constrained by staffing allocation ceilings or funding limits.
Percussion and Color Guard Director
There is a stronger correlation with specialist staffing and increasing competitive classification than band size alone, reflecting the complexity and specialization demands of a competitive performance.
Fine Arts Secretary
Administrative support is inconsistent and fragile, even in very large programs.
More than half of respondents indicate that current staffing allocations are insufficient to meet the needs of their students and program goals. As bands grow in size and complexity, head band directors must be responsible for increasing instructional, logistical, and compliance demands without any additional leadership or administrative support. Furthermore, the largest bands do not receive proportionally more assistant directors, creating potential bottlenecks.
"One meaningful change that would significantly reduce stress is the addition of a Fine Arts secretary"
The question about 'other staff' reveal the wide variability and informal nature of supplemental staffing, making it difficult to quantify hours and roles, but valuable for identifying funding patterns. As band size and classification increase, responses suggest a shift in funding sources for supplemental instructional staff from unfunded/volunteer based support and stipends, to school funds and club fees. Booster funding is the most universal funding source to function as a de facto staffing extension across the board, and becomes more essential as bands grow and competitive demands increase.
Survey responses indicate that volunteer reliance is highest in programs that are large enough to exceed the capacity of existing paid staff, but not large enough to be fully staffed through district-funded positions. In these programs, volunteers function as a critical means of bridging staffing gaps when paid roles are limited. As BOA and UIL classification rises and district-paid staff increases, volunteers remain functionally essential but their role tends to shift away from instructional necessity, toward logistical and operational support. A similar pattern appears with head band director years of experience: as directors gain tenure, volunteer use tends to move from workload survival to more strategic, structured support.
Key Insights - Staffing
→ As programs scale, instructional growth is considered through the addition of assistants and specialist directors, but dedicated roles to spread operational load (leadership roles/administrative support) is not addressed
→ Program growth outpaces proportional staffing - assistant director support plateaus, disproportionately impacting the largest bands
→ 53% respondents felt staffing was insufficient to meet student needs and goals of the program
→ Volunteers, club fees and booster funding is essential for sustaining staffing needs - especially as programs scale
→ Volunteer reliance peaks in mid-sized programs (150-249 students)
→ As paid staff increases, volunteer use generally shifts from necessity to supplemental support
Insufficient paid staff → volunteers as workforce
Adequate paid staff → volunteers as support
Workload
During the most recent marching season, about how many hours per week did you spend on marching band related work (including evenings and weekends)?
26% 70-79
23% 50-59
16% 60-69
16% Fewer than 40
14% 80+
5% 40-49
Do you feel this is healthy and sustainable?
65% No
19% Unsure
16% Yes
Outside of rehearsal, what tasks or responsibilities take up most of your time?
*Duplications removed. Responses can be categorized as follows:
COMMUNICATIONS
Parent/student/admin/staff communication
PR, social media
OPERATIONS
Scheduling & facilities booking
Calendar management/itineraries
Transportation and logistics planning
Uniform management, meals coordination
ADMINISTRATIVE
Administrative paperwork, registration/trip forms, grading, attendance
District/state compliance tasks and UIL eligibility, PD
Staff & contractor coordination/paperwork, hiring, supervising/delegating/oversight/mentoring
Managing Booster systems, volunteer coordination, student leadership coordination
Coordinating finances, tracking student fees, budgeting, fundraising, and financial approvals/support
Instrument and uniform inventory, maintaining music library
Meetings
OTHER
Football games, competitions (and travel), pep rallies, feeder school support, recruiting/retention events, trips
Program planning and show design
(score/drill study & rewrites, rehearsal planning, preparing music, choreography & instructional videos, designing/building props)
Hands on operations (maintaining trucks, building and moving props)
Instrument maintenance and repairs, troubleshooting electronics
Serve on competitive circuit, judging
Watering and lining/painting grass field by hand
Campus responsibilities
Mediating student relationships & behaviors
Cleaning classroom
Anxiety
With 84% of directors reporting work weeks exceeding 40 hours, and 40% reporting more than 70 hours per week, marching band is not episodic work, but a sustained high-time commitment throughout the marching season. 65% of respondents acknowledge that this kind of working pattern is neither healthy nor sustainable (plus 19% 'unsure'), revealing a disconnect: the field appears desensitized to extreme hours; despite widespread recognition of harm, high workloads are normalized.
As band size and BOA/UIL classification increase, directors report longer workweeks, indicating that additional instructional staffing does not fully offset the workload connected to rising program complexity. While age and experience modestly moderate hours worked, they do not substantially reduce it, suggesting that increased working hours are more closely associated with program size and competitive demands than tenure.
Directors reporting higher weekly work hours are also more likely to report fewer district paid staff, insufficient staffing overall, and greater reliance on volunteers, reinforcing excessive workload as a clear signal of structural staffing gaps.
Many of the outside-rehearsal tasks identified by directors are communications-based, operational or administrative in nature. In the context of reported staffing and funding patterns, these responsibilities appear to fall into areas where specific district-funded support is limited and programs report using volunteers, boosters, or informal arrangements to supplement staffing. The director workload problem is not about rehearsals - it’s about everything surrounding rehearsals.
"The general attitude about competition combined with long work hours make this an incredibly physically and mentally demanding activity, that I can only assume is taking years off my life expectancy"
Key Insights - Workload
→ During the 2025 marching band season;
84% of directors report working over a standard 40 hour work week
40% of directors report working 70+ hours/week!
→ Many directors are desensitized to extreme hours; 65% acknowledge a unhealthy and unsustainable workload (plus 19% 'unsure')
→ Workload growth is closely tied to program size and complexity - hours not completely offset by additional instructional staffing
→ Excessive workload is a clear signal of structural staffing gaps:
Higher director work hours =
Higher reports of insufficient staffing
+
Greater reliance on volunteers
→ Outside of rehearsal, director time is dominated by administrative work, communications, and operational logistics - tasks that are not consistently supported by paid dedicated staffing positions
Stress
How would you describe your overall stress level during the most recent marching season?
54% 4
24% 3
20% 5 (Very high)
2% 2
0% 1 (Very low)
Compared to previous years, how have your stress levels changed this season?
*Totals more than 100% due to rounding to nearest whole numbers
32% Worsened
34% Improved
29% Same
5% Unknown - this is my first year!
Additional comments about stress
*General observations and reflections about stress levels among marching band directors this season
*Duplications removed. Responses can be categorized as follows:
FACTORS THAT ADDED TO STRESS | IMPACT |
|
|
FACTORS THAT EASED STRESS | IMPACT |
|
|
OTHER COMMENTS ABOUT FACTORS THAT ADDED TO STRESS (NO SPECIFIC IMPACT MENTIONED)
|
Please rate how the following COMMUNICATIONS aspects of running your marching band program contribute to your overall stress levels during marching season
Please rate how the following OPERATIONS aspects of running your marching band program contribute to your overall stress levels during marching season
Please rate how the following ADMINISTRATIVE aspects of running your marching band program contribute to your overall stress levels during marching season
If there are other communications, operations or administrative aspects of running a marching band program that contribute to your stress levels (to any degree), please list them here
*Directors reported the following additional communications, operations, and administrative stressors - beyond those already explicitly listed in the survey questions above. Responses that did not align with those specific categories have been moved to the "additional comments about stress" section.
*Duplications removed. Responses can be categorized as follows:
COMMUNICATIONS
Communication with show designers
ADMINISTRATIVE
STAFF MANAGEMENT
Managing conflicting director organization styles and design opinions
Balancing design team relationships with wants and needs/separating friendships with colleagues
Finding quality staff - especially color guard
Show design team coordination (hiring a program coordinator helped)
BOOSTER CLUB/VOLUNTEER MANAGEMENT
Volunteer reliability
BUDGET AND FUNDRAISING
Funding cuts
Ensuring adequate funding is raised
DISTRICT OR CAMPUS ADMIN PAPERWORK/REQUIREMENTS
New administration/staff = new systems, new communications patterns
Purely in relation to the communications, operations and administrative side of running your band program, what changes, supports, or tools would make your job less stressful?
If there are other changes, supports, or tools that would make your job less stressful, please list them here
A district secretary to help with paperwork
Addition of a Fine Arts secretary
District funded color guard director
District/campus financial support towards our staffing and inventory
Improved facilities and storage
Stop making us drive 4 hours to away games
The hours
More confidence in the public school system for the mental health side
District provided electronics
Supportive administration - don't micromanage curriculum /program goals - creates a strong sense of ownership and control
BOA as well competitive systems need to be improved. Like at Grand Nationals going on Thursday morning and expecting to make Semi-Finals is a tall order, so the draw for performance becomes stressful. As a BOA Regional Finalist - I believe that Grand Nationals should be somewhat seeded
"I had no expectations going in to this season and so far it's been ok, but I am wary of the future and how long I can sustain this type of schedule"
Responses indicate that 98% of directors experienced moderate to high stress (rating 3-5 out of 5) during the most recent marching season, with 61% reporting that their stress levels have worsened or stayed the same as previous years. Taken together, these responses suggest that heightened stress is not an isolated or temporary issue, but part of a broader upward trend experienced by directors across programs.
Stress levels generally trend upwards and worsening with staffing insufficiencies/greater volunteer reliance, and higher working hours. Differences in reported stress sources across experience levels appear to reflect role assignments: newer directors more often describe hands-on operational and technological burdens, while veteran head band directors emphasize staff, volunteer, and program-wide management responsibilities.
While band size or classification alone do not predict stress levels, higher stress is more commonly described in large, high-classification programs where workload and staffing demands compound. (The survey does not indicate clear direct correlations between stress levels and state, age, or years of teaching experience).
"Actually had a TIA during the season"
Directors report many sources of stress during the marching season, but this survey focusses on the communications, operations and administrative stressors. Parental and external communications stress directors most. Operational stress arises primarily from overall schedule planning/changes and logistics, while administrative stress comes mostly from student behavior, budgeting/fundraising and attendance tracking/grading.
In larger and higher-classification programs, these combined responsibilities are most intense, especially where district-paid additional leadership or administrative support is absent or minimal. Programs with fewer paid staff rely heavily on volunteers and informal arrangements, further increasing director workload. Communication stress is amplified by the use of multiple fragmented tools. Cumulatively, these non-instructional demands constitute a core, systemic source of stress that significantly contributes to overall workload and burnout risk.
Some directors mention an element of stress stemming from imposter syndrome, personal investment and high expectations ("caring too much"). This psychological aspect and emotional investment amplifies stress, particularly when combined with other factors, reinforcing that solutions should not only address tools, systems, support structures and workload, but emotional and mentorship support too.
Directors identify that reducing stress on the communications, operations, and administrative side of running their programs would require better staffing and administrative support (which would allow for clearer structures and more formal processes), improved funding for technology, and integrated/streamlined tools. Such supports would help distribute workload, reduce stress levels, and enhance the quality and sustainability of programs, allowing more director focus on instruction and student engagement.
"Stress doesn't come from the program failing; it comes from caring deeply while trying to hold all the pieces together"
Key Insights - Stress
→ 98% experience moderate to high stress levels (3-5 out of 5)
→ 61% report stress levels as being the same or worse than the previous year
→ Director stress is most frequently described in contexts involving long working hours, staffing gaps, and heavy volunteer reliance, especially in larger, higher-classification programs
→ Communications, operations and administrative demands are major sources of director stress, especially in large, high-classification programs with limited paid support. Top scoring stressors:
Parent communication
Overall schedule planning/last minute adjustments
Student management (behavior/motivation)
→ Personal investment and imposter syndrome amplify director stress
→ Top stress reducers:
Additional staff - administrative/secretarial support
Funding for technology needed to run a marching band program
Improved district/campus technology integrations and processes
Current Use of Technology
Which tools or software platforms does your marching band program currently use for communications, operations and administrative tasks?
*Respondents were able to select all that applied
70% Google Workspace
62% Personal cellphones
59% Facebook
57% BAND
51% Instagram
49% Canva
49% Sign Up Genius
38% Remind
32% CutTime
27% ParentSquare
22% Microsoft 365
16% Student Information System
14% Smore
8% Landline phones
3% Charms
If there are other tools or software platforms used by your marching band program for communications, operations and administrative tasks, list them here
*Duplications removed
Presto Assistant
SportsYou
Own website
Ryzer - online registration, data storage, payments
GiveButter
Asana
BoosterHub
GroupMe
Canvas
District provided iPads
BEAM
UDB
SmartMusic
Marching band programs use a wide and fragmented set of digital tools to manage communications, operations, and administrative tasks. Directors frequently describe managing information across multiple systems, which not only increases cognitive load, workload and stress, but also blurs work-life boundaries and amplifies administrative burdens and reliance on informal systems involving other band staff and volunteers. Streamlined technology could help formalize workflows, improve compliance and reduce dependence on volunteers for coordination, while making staffing allocations more effective.
"It is never ending"
Key Insights - Current Use of Technology
→ Managing information across multiple, fragmented tools and workflows for communications, operations, and administrative tasks contribute to director workload and stress
→ Fragmented tools and workflows increase administrative burdens on staff and volunteers and reliance on informal systems
Current Use of AI
How comfortable do you feel using AI tools in your workflow?
*Totals more than 100% due to rounding to nearest whole numbers
34% 5 (Very comfortable)
26% 1 (Not at all comfortable)
23% 3
12% 4
6% 2
What concerns, if any, do you have about using AI in your work?
*Respondents were able to select all that applied
69% Information accuracy
54% Data privacy
46% Energy consumption
40% Ethics
34% Lack of school district guidance
23% Lack of high-level governance
17% Cyber attacks/hacking
11% Bias/discrimination
6% Job security
6% Other:
Lack of measurable effects
Using AI for convenience and what that models for our students
Have you personally experimented with any technologies or AI tools to support communications, operations or administrative aspects of running your marching band program?
*Totals more than 100% due to rounding to nearest whole numbers
38% Occasionally
30% Yes, regularly
22% Not yet, and I'm not currently interested
11% Not yet but I'm interested
If you have experimented with AI tools used to support communications, operations or administrative aspects of running your marching band program, provide more details here
*Duplications removed. Responses can be categorized as follows:
ChatGPT (most common!)
Draft/edit/proofread emails/messages/posts
Recommendation letters
Advocacy proposals
Scripts
Write rubrics - more consistent student assessment
Plan schedules/logistics/itineraries
Organize tasks
Idea generation
Perspective
Synthesize judges comments
Sort and analyze data
Revamp handbook
Google Gemini
Proofreading/editing
Image generation
Generate data searches
Write rubrics
Idea generation
Perspective
Sort and analyze data
Meta AI
PR/showcasing performances & student achievement
Perplexity
Proofreading/editing
Idea generation
Perspective
Sort and analyze data
Grok
Scripts
Imagery
Personal insight
Grammarly
Proofread emails
Canva
Newsletter
Flyers
Social media posts
Marching design
Logo edits
Notion AI
Organizing tasks and projects
Directors report using AI tools primarily for automating communications, generating schedules, drafting routine emails, and creating/editing documentation or administrative tasks. Comfort with AI is polarized rather than uniformly high or low, with many directors actively experimenting while expressing caution around accuracy, privacy, governance, ethical and environmental considerations, and the learning curve required to accelerate AI adoption safely and effectively.
There is a clear trend between directors with a higher AI comfort level and those who have already experimented with tools. AI adoption appears largely driven by workload pressure, with directors working 70+ hours are more likely to experiment with AI tools. The survey does not indicate a clear relationship between director age and AI comfort/concerns/likelihood of experimenting with AI.
Overall, directors see potential for AI to reduce repetitive work, but adoption is tempered by practical and ethical apprehensions.
"AI tools have already become an indispensable extension of my staff [...] It has saved countless hours"
Key Insights - Current Use of AI
→ Comfort level with using AI is mixed (34% positive, 23% neutral, 26% negative)
→ Biggest AI concern? Information accuracy (69%)
→ AI comfort predicts adoption; AI concern predict caution
→ 68% of directors are already experimenting with technology and AI to assist with communications, operations and administrative tasks
→ Directors working 70+ hours/week more likely to experiment with AI tools
→ Main use cases for AI:
Drafting and editing communications
Sorting and analyzing data
Content and image generation
Potential Opportunities for AI Support
How important do you believe AI is in the future of marching band communications, operations and administrative tasks?
37% 3
23% 5 (Extremely important)
23% 1 (Not at all important)
11% 2
6% 4
If AI tools could help save time on communications, operations and administrative tasks, where would you focus that time to add value the most?
*Duplications removed. Responses can be categorized as follows:
Teaching, going to feeder schools
Mentoring students/individualized feedback/supporting musical and personal growth
Staff development/coaching, supporting lesson planning, strengthening our team
Strategic growth - community partnerships, university collaboration, longer term initiatives
Improving program quality/have more polish
Streamlining processes & communications
Creating planning efficiencies/templates
Creative inspiration
Work on schedule, library, budgeting, communications, planning
Working fewer hours to reduce risk of burnout
Reduce time spent on computer
Which of these aspects of running a marching band program do you think technology/AI could potentially lighten your workload/reduce stress the most?
Additional comments about how AI might offer valuable support going forward
"At this time I am not comfortable allowing AI to be my "voice" to the humans I interact with in this position. I use AI as a tool behind the scenes, but I personally present to humans"
"Things like translating are beyond my ability and certainly helpful - I like that part of AI"
"Image generation for publicity/communication, Idea management - help narrow thoughts and goals, etc"
Any final words of wisdom?
"I think this is an awesome subject to explore and see what the future holds for us all!"
"I appreciate you gathering this data. I hope it’s used to elongate band directors teaching careers! Our jobs are not getting any easier that’s for sure."
"I am very interested in your results. This is a high stress job which is ok. I believe the biggest stress is the overall profession of teaching being a political hot topic and not being paid commensurate with the amount of work the job entails. If teachers were treated like doctors and paid accordingly it would change the profession!"
"I believe paying public school teachers more instead of gambling in the trillion dollar AI bubble is a more viable path towards stability"
"As the marching band activity matures and evolves, so do its responsibilities. Marching Band in Texas is an arms race where the only option to stay competitive is to increase responsibilities for directors, students, and parents. This is not only burning out directors that work 80+ hour weeks, but students as well, who are also dealing with increased workloads (AP classes, honors courses, Dual Credit, job responsibilities, other electives...). My vision for a more technology-forward music classroom involves allowing students to learn at their own pace through structured asynchronous lessons, assignments, and discussions. I don't think AI is necessarily the future uniquely for this activity, which is so human in nature."
"The job can be stressful, but come up with routines and systems to help keep everything in order and it doesn't feel as stressful. It takes time to develop those things. You don't know what you don't know."
66% of directors view AI as important to extremely important in the future of marching band communications, operations, and administrative work, particularly as program complexity and workload grow. When asked where technology or AI could most reduce workload and stress, directors rank communications at the top of the list. Many emphasize that the value of AI lies not in replacing instructional judgment, but in offloading repetitive, time-consuming tasks that currently absorb significant director time outside of rehearsal.
When asked how they would reinvest time saved through AI, directors consistently point to instructional quality, student mentorship, program planning, and relationship-building. Directors with larger bands (200+ students) tend to emphasize staff development and program growth in time-reinvestment, not just teaching. Directors with smaller programs (<150 students) emphasize direct student mentorship and instruction.
Additional comments reinforce that AI is seen as a supporting tool rather than a substitute, with the greatest potential to improve sustainability by creating space for higher-impact, human-centered work. Overall, responses suggest that directors see AI as a practical mechanism for restoring balance - reducing administrative friction so that professional focus can return to teaching, leadership, and student experience.
"I'm ready for more integrated automation capabilities"
Key Insights - Potential Opportunities for AI
→ 66% of directors view AI as important to extremely important in the future of marching band communications, operations, and administrative work
→ Directors see AI primarily as a tool to reduce communications, operations and administrative workload, not replace instruction
→ Time saved through AI would be reinvested in instruction, mentorship, and student experience
→ Directors with larger bands (200+ students) emphasize staff development and program growth; smaller bands (<150 students) focus on direct student mentorship and instruction
→ Adoption interest is driven more by workload relief than by innovation or competition
Survey Notes
Survey was conducted online throughout the month of December 2025
Survey was open to any current high school marching band director, assistant marching band director, percussion director, or color guard director
Survey was anonymous, unless directors specifically requested to be informed when findings were available (contact details ONLY used for that purpose)
Percentages have been rounded to the nearest whole number and may not always total exactly 100%
All questions were optional; percentages shown reflect only the respondents who chose to answer each question
Survey responses were reviewed and cross-checked for consistency; free-text responses were categorized thematically for analysis.
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