**2025-26 Foothill High School Music Program’s Newsletter **

👏 Announcements

**NEW EVENT! **

**FHS Honors Jazz will be performing in collaboration with Dr. Ghysels on Wed., April 15 at Nonni’s Restaurant from 6-8pm. **

15% of food sales during that time will go to our boosters (for the kids!). Look for our direct tip jar and QR flyer at the event! Come out and enjoy fantastic music with good friends and enjoy great food while you support our music program!

For the early planners in the crowd:

Save the Dates!

Marching Band and Color Guard Camp 2026: Monday – Friday, August 3-7, 2026

Pancake and Dosa Breakfast: Saturday, August 8, 2026

First Day of School for PUSD 2026-27 School Year: Thursday, August 13, 2026

You Sound Amazing!

**Winter Percussion competed on Saturday, March 7th and made a 10 point jump from their prior competition score. They also received First Place in the Percussion Scholastic Open (PSO) which earned the group a YAMAHA gift certificate for us to use on new equipment! Way to go! **

Honors Wind Ensemble & Honors Symphony Orchestra went to Sonoma State to perform on March 11th! Both groups were amazing!

ONLY THREE DAYS LEFT …

See’s Candy Spring Yum-raiser! Click HERE to Order!

Candy purchased will cost the same as in store, no mark up!
Our organization earns between 20-50 percent per item
Items will be shipped directly to purchaser’s home; anywhere in the US
A flyer to share can be found on our web sitefoothillmusic.org
Sales run until this FRIDAY, 3/20

📔 All Parents – General Board Meetings

NEW DATE! The next Parent General Board Meeting will be our Mar/Apr meeting on Tuesday, April 21, for board nominations and budget discussions and after that our last Parent General Board Meeting of the 25-26 school year is on MAY 12, for new board members to be voted in and our final budget vote!

Parents, every one of us is a booster member! Many hands make light work!

We need to elect new board members both extended and executive, as well as raise up a Band Review Chair and various Band Review leads. The majority of our Board Members are going to age out so, we need to have shadows this next year, URGENTLY! The sooner you volunteer, the easier the job becomes under the tutelage of a mentor!

Executive Board Positions needed (or to shadow) for 2026-27:

Student Treasurer – NEW volunteer to co lead with current volunteer
Communications Lead – NEEDED NOW/OPEN
Secretary – NEW
VP of Fundraising – NEW
Vice President -NEW volunteer to co lead with current volunteer
President – NEW volunteer to co lead with current volunteer
BAND REVIEW CHAIR or Co-Chairs Recommended – NEW

🗓️ Important Dates

ENDS Fri. 3/20See’s Candy Spring YUM-raiser: Order HERE!

3/23-27 Honors Wind Ensemble Auditions – email sent via GC 1/20 from Fagundes

3/31 – Friends and Family Winter Percussion Performance at Dublin HS from 6-9pm; ALL invited!

**
4/1 – 5/15 Silent Auction Fundraiser **

Goes online April 1st, closes in person at our May 15 at Jazz Night; ALL invited!

4/1 (Wed) – “End of Year Banquet” Ticket Purchase Deadline

**Students attend free of charge **
Adult Meal Ticket $20; Purchase Meal Tickets HERE

**4/1 (Wed) – Seniors! Personal Yearbook Page Submissions: 8.5×11 PDF (details below) **

4/1 (Wed) –2025-26 Music Program Yearbook Order HERE $35 Due

4/14 (Tue) – Senior Scholarship Application Due by 5 pmApplication HERE (details below)

4/15 (Wed) – NEW DATE! PPIE/Foothill Music Event at Nonni’s Bistro from 6-8pm (Honors Jazz performing with Superintendent Dr. Ghysels singing)

4/16-19 (Thu-Sun) San Diego Trip!

4/21 (Tue) – NEW DATE! All Parent Meeting/General Board for Mar/Apr in FHS Library 7:00-8:00pm

Google Meet linkHERE
Board Member nominations and Booster Budget discussions

4/24 (Fri) End of the Year Student Banquet & Senior “Toast”

Catered buffet dinner for all program students- 9th- 12th grades: strings, band & guard
In FHS small gym; set up starting 3:30; doors open 6:00; dinner served 6:30; program to follow
Students/groups prepare a short video to honor a graduating senior of their choice (must be reviewed by teachers ahead of time!)
Senior Parents invited to attend
Volunteer slots & Drink/Dessert Donations Sign-Up HERE
Senior Student $1000 Scholarship Winner announced

4/29 (Wed) Spring Concert

Concert Band, Symphonic Band, String Orchestra
Concert Dress Required WITH BLACK shoes, soles and socks as needed

4/30 (Thu) Spring Concert

Honors Wind Ensemble, Honors Symphony Orchestra
Concert Dress Required WITH BLACK shoes, soles and socks as needed

5/1-2 (Fri-Sat) CMEA Competition at Amador HS

Concert Band, Symphonic Band, String Orchestra
Honors Wind Ensemble, Honors Symphony Orchestra
Concert Dress Required WITH BLACK shoes, soles and socks as needed

5/12 (Tue) All Parent Meeting/General Board for May in FHS Library 7:00-8:00pm

Google Meet linkHERE
New Board Members voted in & 26-27 Booster Budget vote

5/15 (Fri) Silent Auction & Spring Jazz Night

**Save the date for an evening of friends, music, drinks, appetizers and fun for ALL!. **

Held at the Veteran’s Hall
The final night of our Silent Auction! Come ready to bid on amazing items.
Honors Jazz & Jazz B perform; other small jazz, brass or string quartets/ensembles welcome to perform by advanced request to Mr. Nishimori

🎓 Senior Only Items

Senior Band, Strings, & Guard Scholarship Applications – Due by April 14

Each year the Boosters Award one $1000 scholarship to a Senior Musician or Colorguard applicant.Application HERE

Applications are due by 5pm, Tue., April 14 to president@foothillmusic.org.

Use subject line: Senior Scholarship

Our 2026 Scholarship Award Winner will be announced at the End of Year Banquet on Friday, April 24.

** **

Create Your Graduating Senior A Page For Our Yearbook – Due by April 1

Senior families, please put together a one page photo collage PDF featuring your student and any congratulatory message you would like to write for your child. Here are some example pages from a prior year in a PDF.2023 senior page examples HERE

You can use any desktop publishing tool as long as it can output a PDF file. The PDF needs to be standard letter size (8.5” x 11”) with at least 300 dpi resolution. Some free software packages you may choose to use include Canva (https://www.canva.com/ ), Figma (https://www.figma.com/ ) and Adobe Express (https://www.adobe.com/express/ ). The Google suite creates a fine PDF page as well.

Please email the PDF file to president@foothillmusic.org no later than April 1. Use the subject line: Senior YB Page- Student’s First Name Last Name; EXAMPLE: Senior YB Page- Sofia Liu

🥁 Winter Percussion

Winter Percussion Performances are NOW in season!

Rehearsals: Tue & Thu 5:30-9:00pm

Competition Dates are:

March 28th @ James Logan High School in Union City (ticket link below)
March 31st – Friends and Family Performance at Dublin HS from 6-9pm
April 11th @ Adventist Health Arena in Stockton

**Continue to watch for messages from Laura Bakar and Ryan Myers to stay current with all Winter Percussion news via the Band App. **

All families, please pay yourWinter Percussion donation HERE **. These requested funds are needed to pay the bills. **

2026 WinterPerc Carpool and Push On Sign Up

James Logan Competition on Sat., March 28, 2026

Ticket link:https://www.tickettailor.com/events/ncpa

📊 Student Donation Information

The Student Share donation is how your family supports your student’s music goals and ensures they get the best music program possible. Please strive to meet or exceed the requested amounts, but any amount helps.

There are four easy ways to make your Student Share donation:

Write a CHECK: Give it to your student to drop in the locked band box in the band room.

Pay with PAYPAL: https://paypal.com/ Use your PayPal account (or set one up if you don’t have one) to pay your Student Share in the app. Here is how it works: open the PayPal app, click the menu in the upper left corner, scroll down to Donate and tap, search for Foothill Band Boosters and select it, click the Donate button and select the Other category, input your student’s Student Share amount (see table below*), follow the payment instructions and you’re done!

Pay via CUTTIME: https://app.gocuttime.com/ CutTime is the Foothill Band Boosters management platform. Just login with your CutTime account, click below your students name, then click on the Payments link at the bottom of the list. Click on the green button that says “Make a Payment”, click the amount to pay, then fill in your debit or credit card information and submit the payment.

Pay via FUTURE FUND: https://foothill.futurefund.com/ FutureFund is the PUSD sponsored platform that you signed up for when you registered your student for the school year. Just login to the site, click the Store button at the top of the webpage, click on the Band Boosters oval button below the page title, then select the Donation square designated for your students ensemble. Select your donation amount, fill in your students name, click Add To Cart, then proceed with the checkout process.

Student Share donation amounts for each ensemble to insert in the “Other” field if using PAYPAL:

Fall Marching Band & Color Guard Students: $900
Wind Ensemble Students: $225
Concert & Symphonic Band Students: $150
Orchestra Students: $100
Jazz Ensemble A and B Students: $200
Winter Percussion Students: $900

Student Share!

Corporate matching is so helpful!

Our Parent Boosters- you- make things happen

**Thanks very much for your time, talents, financial support, and friendship! **

Go get ‘em Foothill!

Thank you for everything you do to make the Foothill Instrumental Music Program amazing! 🙂

Please reach out to Monica Fey, our Treasurer of Student Accounts, at treasurer.student@foothillmusic.org with any questions, contacts, or ideas!

📸 Photography & Media (aka the Band Click!)

Would you like to join our media team and to have your name highlighted as well? Please contact: photography@foothillmusic.org or join ourgroup chat via the Band app **! No prior experience is needed, just a love for watching your teen perform with friends. **

Again, you don’t need a fancy camera to take great photos or videos. The best ones are taken close up with a mobile phone!

You’ll find new videos here:

2026-02-14 Winter Perc @ Dublin HS

2026-02-14 All Campana Jazz Concert @Amador:

Jazz (B) – Newport Breeze
Jazz (B) – Torque
Jazz (B) – Blue Note Blues
**Honors Jazz (A) – Union **
**Honors Jazz (A) – Cassandra **

Flickr Albums:

Winter Perc at Fremont High School (Sunnyvale) 2026-02-070

Winter Perc at TriCity percussion preview show 2026-02-01 (more pix to be added soon!):https://www.flickr.com/gp/68564339@N07/mH6K777DNa

Photographs of all Band events can be found onFlickr

Videos will be uploaded to ourYouTube Playlist for each performance. (Please note that most videos will be marked private, and are unsearchable on the platform until the band season is over.)

🙌 Parent & Guardian Volunteers Needed

📣 We are looking for a volunteer to step into the role of Merchandising Lead—a position that’s not only incredibly fun but also a fantastic way to get involved with the band program and support our amazing students. If you’re interested or want more information, please reach out to Richa Malik (merchandise@foothillmusic.org) or call/text: 484-686-6369!

📣Other Band Booster Immediate Volunteer Needs:

**Communication Lead – OPEN **
- contact Mauli Desai: communications@foothillmusic.org
Merchandise Sales – NEW
- contact Richa Malik: merchandise@foothillmusic.org
Truckers – We need helpers to transport & move equipment at competitions and away performances.
- contact Peter Goebel at logistics@foothillmusic.org

Executive Board Positions needed (or to shadow) for the 2026-2027 school year:

Student Treasurer – SHADOW
Communications Lead – NEEDED NOW/OPEN
Secretary – NEW
Fundraising – NEW
Vice President – SHADOW
President – SHADOW
BAND REVIEW CHAIR or Co-Chairs Recommended

Other important extended board positions that are open for Fall are:

Lead chaperone
**Travel coordinator **
Strings program parent liaison

📣 Stay Informed

Read these weekly newsletters, install the Band app, and visit ourFoothill Music Program website ! Please install the Band app (iPhone orAndroid ). This is the best way to get fast and live communications from the Foothill Band Boosters community!

📣 Checkout theKick Off Meeting Slide Show This is updated regularly and has many important links and specifics for band students and families.

👔 Band & Orchestra Concert Attire

Students in String Orchestra, Honors Symphony Orchestra, Concert, Symphonic & Honors Wind Ensemble need concert attire for performances throughout year.

Tuxedo: Black Tuxedo, Black Bowtie and cummerbund (or vest), White shirt (wing collar is a good choice), Long black socks, Black dress shoes (pants will need to be hemmed)Tuxedo Link OR ANY tuxedo works fine – MUST BE ALL BLACK with a WHITE SHIRT

Concert Dress: Long black dress, Black dress shoes (dress will need to be hemmed)Dress Link

Students may choose EITHER option
Plan ahead for ordering, delivery, and alterations!

**Concert Attire is required for all performances. **

Jazz Attire is per the director’s request (varies from the above concert attire):

Dark Colors; Long ties only; Coats for everyone wearing a collared shirt and tie; Dark Color Shoes/Black (NO WHITE SOLES); tall Black socks; Shirt should be either white, or dark.

**That’s it for The Falcon Beat this week. **

**Thank you for your time, energy, and support in making the Foothill Music Program thrive. **

Go Falcons! 🦅

To change or add contact information to our distribution list please email:

president@foothillmusic.org

The Falcon Beat 🎼 – Volume 1, Issue 25, Mar 17, 2026