Longtime Dimond Band Teacher Moves on to Mears

At the end of every school year there are celebrations for the students who are graduating and moving on to the next step in their lives; however, there are not these types of celebrations for teachers who are moving on.

Every year, Dimond High School has many teachers who are retiring or moving to different schools. But some of these teachers have put in decades of hard work and need some appreciation.

After 16 musical years, the Dimond High band teacher, Jason Edwards is moving on to teach at Mears Middle School.

Edwards has been teaching at the school since 2004. He has conducted countless concerts and even more rehearsals.

Although he loves performing at concerts in front of his students, Edwards said, “For me the best part is the rehearsals and all the interactions with the students.”

Students are the most important aspect of teaching for Edwards, and he cherishes many memories with each class. One of his favorite memories being at the 2017 Hawaii festival, where the band won a superior rating.

Edwards said, “My other favorite memories will have to be all the graduations and seeing my students walking through the gauntlet of teachers, with smiles on their faces and tears in their eyes.” 

Not only did he teach at Dimond for almost two decades, Edwards also put in countless hours before and after school. 

He was the Dimond Jazz band director and came to the school at 6:30 in the morning every day, as well as staying late after school for students who need help or more practice.

Putting in extra work like this was not required, but Edwards did it anyway. 

Edwards said, “I converted countless scores to Braille so my blind, All-State flute player could read the music with us.”

Although he will still be teaching band at a different school, there are some things that he will definitely miss about Dimond.

Edwards said, “I will miss the band room/hall, the visual memories in the room and mostly the students whom I will miss dearly.”

Since band is a class that can be taken throughout all four years of high school, many students have formed bonds with Edwards, one in particular being Dimond High Senior Antonio Hernandez. 

Hernandez said, “Edwards helped me achieve a better tone and helped me expand my playing abilities with my instrument.” 

Hernandez followed with, “More importantly however, he drove music theory into my brain.”

Even though Edwards is leaving this year, it does not mean that his impact on Dimond is completely gone. 

Edwards said, “I’m really looking forward to packing the seats with incoming ninth  graders from Mears.”

He plans on teaching at Mears for the next 10 plus years and will always have his Dimond pride. 

He said, “DHS band will always be the best in the land!”

Dimond High will always be incredibly important to Edwards as he also was a student at the school. 

Edwards said, “I want to say that it has been my greatest honor to be a teacher at my alma mater.”

Being both a student and a teacher at Dimond, Edwards has a deep connection with the school and its music program. But, even in a different environment, he plans on continuing to teach students the art of music, and what it has to offer.