Here’s my small annoyance for the day…

[mommy_jules]

DH is a teacher and the majority of our friends are teachers as well as coaches and school club sponsors of some kind, and knowing how much time, effort, and their own money they put into some of these things and how small the compensation is for much of it makes me a bit biased. I will say this would be a great opportunity for some local churches to help with school staff retention in the area. With a school that has 5 band directors, there’s gotta be a few churches with million dollar budgets in the area.

[Slimshandy]

I may have missed it.....who covers the expense of these "special snacks"?

The parents.

I can see reasons for this being an annoyance and a burden for some parent's, and due to THIS alone.

Maybe the director's and coaches need to understand this?

And that’s exactly it. As band parents, we’re working to fund dinner for 150 students plus band directors and parents that volunteer, so it ends up being dinner for 170 people, sometimes twice a week in the busiest competition time… and then on top of that we don’t have a lot of volunteers that go to the shows so taking one away for a Starbucks run is just too much to take away from what the kids need the volunteers for…

[AZOldGal66]

The parents.

I can see reasons for this being an annoyance and a burden for some parent's, and due to THIS alone.

Maybe the director's and coaches need to understand this?

And that’s exactly it. As band parents, we’re working to fund dinner for 150 students plus band directors and parents that volunteer, so it ends up being dinner for 170 people, sometimes twice a week in the busiest competition time… and then on top of that we don’t have a lot of volunteers that go to the shows so taking one away for a Starbucks run is just too much to take away from what the kids need the volunteers for…

And for some parent's, especially those with multiple children in different activities, this can get very expensive.

What about a "pool" fund with every parent putting in what they can afford and this way, things like a Starbucks won't be so expensive for the parent's who do show up?

What about a pot luck for these events with everyone, including the Starbucks drinkers, participating in and bringing a dish to pass? Would that help?

[WellPreserved]

DH is a teacher and the majority of our friends are teachers as well as coaches and school club sponsors of some kind, and knowing how much time, effort, and their own money they put into some of these things and how small the compensation is for much of it makes me a bit biased. I will say this would be a great opportunity for some local churches to help with school staff retention in the area. With a school that has 5 band directors, there’s gotta be a few churches with million dollar budgets in the area.

This is very true and again eons ago, local businesses and churches sponsored our band, theater, and sports teams and that included, at least partially, providing food/snacks. Our school was in an under served county so while I thought that was the norm, perhaps it isn't in more affluent counties.

That being said, no matter what snacks/food was provided to the kids, Mr. Shaw (band) always got his foot long meat ball sub, Ms. Pathos (theater) always got a veggie single thin crust pizza, and Mr. Hagee (track) always got a gyros. I thought that was the norm as well!

[LiveWhatULove]

I can see both sides. I do not think our choir teachers would ever request Starbucks orders. But man, for all the hours they put in outside of the school day and extra effort their job requires, it does not seem that unusual that they would be rewarded with food items & perks that cater towards them.

I also think it depends largely on the socioeconomic status of the community & depend on the culture of the school; we live in a well-funded district, teens & parents are already showing up with gourmet coffee, like how hard is it to bring some for the teacher??

Some of my teacher acquaintances count the number of the students that drive nicer vehicles than they do in our district, lol, so it’s not like a Starbucks’s order is going to cause financial strain for many choir families.

I donate money every year to choir & theater, with the intention that some goes would go directly to reimburse the teacher for their expenses or pay for their treats.

[RIZZY]

I was in choir for nearly 15 years. My kids have been in orchestra and theatre for 6 years. And I was a teacher. I've never heard of special teacher/directors snacks. We always brought our own or had the same things what the kids had. If you live in an affluent area, I can see the teachers/directors asking for this. But otherwise, it's extremely presumptuous and I don't know a single teacher who would be comfortable placing that burden on the parents, especially Starbucks, ffs. Leaving to go get a Starbucks order? No. LOL

If someone wants to do it and if it's in the budget, sounds great.

I can't have just pizza, else I get lethargic and tummy troubles. And I can't have anything high in sugar so most sodas and juices won't do for me. That's why I bring my own.

[jas]

Too bad, so sad. Every band director I've been around (2 kids, 5 schools) would be just fine with what the kids get. They can kick rocks. Now if someone wants to give them something for staff appreciation week? Absolutely. But all the time? Nope.

[Anonymous 1]

Too bad, so sad. Every band director I've been around (2 kids, 5 schools) would be just fine with what the kids get. They can kick rocks. Now if someone wants to give them something for staff appreciation week? Absolutely. But all the time? Nope.

LEO should be limited to acknowledgment to a police appreciation week too.

[Slimshandy]

Too bad, so sad. Every band director I've been around (2 kids, 5 schools) would be just fine with what the kids get. They can kick rocks. Now if someone wants to give them something for staff appreciation week? Absolutely. But all the time? Nope.

LEO should be limited to acknowledgment to a police appreciation week too.

Limited to acknowledgment?
Like they’re only able to be acknowledged on that week, or just that they should be included too?

[jas]

Too bad, so sad. Every band director I've been around (2 kids, 5 schools) would be just fine with what the kids get. They can kick rocks. Now if someone wants to give them something for staff appreciation week? Absolutely. But all the time? Nope.

LEO should be limited to acknowledgment to a police appreciation week too.

the point is the matter of gracefully accepting something that is given out of kindness vs. expecting and assuming parents will comply with nonsense.