A Tradition of Excellence

I had always admired The Ohio State University Marching Band. As the daughter of an OSU alum, I grew up watching the band practice on Friday afternoons before games on Saturday, listening to CDs of the band in the car on the long drives from Atlanta to Columbus and religiously attending Skull Session before each home game.

In middle school I joined band and, naturally, chose the trumpet (although for the record, originally I wanted to play clarinet, but my orthodontist had other ideas). I went on to become a core member of my high school band program: as section leader and then drum major of the marching band, and member of the top symphonic band and district honor band.  When the time came to choose colleges, Ohio State was an easy choice. It offered me the opportunity to spread my wings and leave home for the first time and to attend a university with virtually every opportunity at my fingertips.

And there was the band.

Although I considered myself an above-average musician, the marching style of TBDBITL was 180-degrees opposite from my high school band and the learning curve was steep. Nevertheless, I packed up my things over a month before classes began and moved to Columbus, Ohio to try out for The Ohio State University Marching Band in August of 2003. That first year I made the band by the skin of my teeth and will never forget the feeling of hearing my name called as a member of T-row. The rest, you could say, is history.

I was a proud 4 year member of T-row and felt honored to serve as assistant squad leader my senior year of college. I have always been a vocal and proud TBDBITL alum, and the last few years of innovation by the band have done nothing more than strengthen my pride in the organization.

The news today saddens me.

This post is not meant to address each and every issue raised in the University’s 23-page report, nor to demonize those that felt the need to complain; however there are some things weighing on me that I felt the need to say.

I came to Ohio State as a very sheltered and naïve 17 year old (sorry Mom and Dad). I had never smoked a cigarette (and still haven’t) or drank any significant amount of alcohol. My knowledge of the opposite sex was limited at best. Upon making the band, I found myself as a young, female member of a male-dominated organization of 17-23 year olds.

Was there alcohol? Of course. Were there crude jokes? Of course. Did some people make questionable decisions? Absolutely. 

However, never once did I feel unsafe or forced to participate in something that made me uncomfortable. I was always free to walk away. The idiot outliers were not part of mainstream OSUMB culture, and more frequently were laughed at than revered. The guys I was in the band with were some of my best friends, and fiercely protective of me. I trust them wholeheartedly. 

I would challenge you to scrutinize any organization of over 200 college students, as these vilified behaviors are undoubtedly present in each and every one of them. And anyone that truly believes otherwise is kidding themselves.

It sickens me that we will now be judged by the “outside world” from a few extreme examples in a university report. However, what saddens me most is that this organization, which is over 120 years old, will now be remembered for this debacle and not the decades of exceptional music and marching. It is our job as alumni to bring the conversation back to those basics: the music, the marching and the tradition of excellence.

The people I was in band with are some of the best people I’ve known in my life. Despite how we will be described, we were good kids. My fellow alumni are now scientists, accountants, teachers, lawyers, NASA engineers, meteorologists, police officers and physicians.  They are moms and dads, little league coaches and volunteers. They are leaders in their communities and they will continue to be - because that is who they are to the core.

When I became a member of TBDBITL, I became a part of a family. My time with the OSUMB was the pinnacle of my experience at Ohio State. I will always be honored to have been a part of this organization and will stand up for it now more than ever. I can only hope that the thousands of TBDBITL alumni will stand with me.

How firm thy friendship ... WB.