While they were originally part of a baseball tradition at Harvard, letterman jackets slowly made their way into other sports to recognize how hard a student worked. The tradition then progressed into high schools where students can now earn them in extracurricular activities other than sports. While some students choose to voice their opinions about non-athletes receiving them, it’s important to recognize these students work just as hard.

Students in programs such as band, choir, orchestra, debate and theater put in the extra work, stay just as many hours after school, have early morning practices and go to just as many contests and events as sports teams do. So why should the fine arts students not be able to qualify for letterman jackets?

In 2015 theater won state with its one act play, “The African Company presents Richard III by Carlyle Brown.” Theater had roughly 55 rehearsals after school and on the weekends that lasted between three to six hours each. You try memorizing lines, knowing when and where to stand on queue, and performing on stage in front of hundreds of people all while not breaking character. Even the tech theater students work diligently behind the scenes on stage design, lighting, makeup, costumes and sound check. Without these students, the actors would have nothing to perform with. It may seem easy on paper, but try getting on the stage to see for yourself how tough being under (or behind) the spotlight can really be.

One of the most underappreciated groups is the marching band. Words can’t describe how many hours the students spend in preparation of everything they do for the school. Summer band camp starts on Aug. 1 and lasts until the first day of school. They’re up practicing at 5:30 in the morning before school and can be found practicing right after school until 6:30 p.m. In addition, they endure the Texas heat and weather just as much as any other outdoor sports teams do.

Learning to march, staying in cover downs and memorizing entire show pieces all while playing an instrument is not simple. Sounding good on an instrument can be tough enough just sitting down, not to mention marching a seven minute show. The marching band members support the football team every Friday night, while also preparing their contest show that they perform every Saturday in October at different competitions. Just go into the band hall and see all of the trophies they win every year; the work they do should at least should earn them letterman jackets.

Orchestra and band work the same when it comes to earning the jackets. It’s a ten point system where points are earned throughout the year by getting ones in UIL, including solo and ensemble. Orchestra hits it hard when it comes to UIL because they don’t get the chance to perform really anywhere else.

At the choir, band and orchestra UIL contests, students sing or perform three pieces of challenging music designed to show off skills in different formats. Only a select few are chosen to advance to the higher stages – all region and all state.

Senior Matthew Garrett made 36 out of 38 in state 2015 on string bass, which means out of all the string basses in the state of Texas, he ranked 36 out of the 38 chosen. Senior Jordan Stubblefield also made 42 out of 42 on viola in 2016, barely making the cut off to make state, but she still beat all of the other viola players in the state of Texas. The orchestra may not be included in as many events that represent the school, but they still put in the work for their own concerts and produce talented players within the school.

So many school organizations go unrecognized for how hard they work. Now is it silly to give every organization the chance to have the ability to have letterman jackets? Maybe. But the fine arts programs deserve a little more appreciation for the hard work that is put in every day to represent the school in a positive way. What’s a world without fine arts anyway?