I was, am, and always will be, a theater girl. I’ve been doing theater for 18 years and the time I spent in my high school’s music program will forever be a fond memory. And before I start, you need to know that I do really love my Alma Mater. However, every rose has its thorn. And this thorn is high school sports.

The sports teams in my high school always took precedence over the arts. Our football team, which couldn’t (and still can’t) win a game to save their lives, got new uniforms, while my choir hasn’t gotten new robes in 30 years. My junior year, we got a new gym floor, but our first place marching band still had to painstakingly raise money to get new uniforms.

Having to constantly remind my classmates of the successes of our music department gets exhausting after a while. Our concert choir that travels to Atlanta and Chicago to perform, our musical which brought in over double our annual budget, our marching band which never brings home less than second place and won first in states in 2015 and second in 2016, all are lucky to get a one sentence mention in the principal’s morning announcements, while the football team gets lauded for scoring one touch down at homecoming.

Now, it should be said that not every sports team of ours is ill performing. Our soccer teams continually kick butt, takes names, and break records, and our co-ed competition cheerleading team won first place at nationals in 2015. And, overall, I think sports are great. They teach teamwork and the value of working hard and promote a healthy lifestyle, but when they take away from our arts programs that actually show results and sell out our auditorium, that’s when I start to have a problem.

Once in a while, go support your local high school’s music and arts programs. Attend a competition or concert, go see the musical or play, and support the arts. Show that football isn’t the only thing that deserves recognition.