Mathew Gray never dreamed that a year after graduating from Tonkawa High School he would be back at band camp, but he had the unique opportunity of interning with the THS band director, Mr. Chris Reeder.
Mathew chose to major in music at NOC because he enjoyed band when he was in school and he likes helping students learn music. After spending three weeks with Mr. Reeder he is sure he chose the correct career. The internship ran from July 18 to August 5 and included practice in the band room as well as marching on a field.
Gray had a different band director when he was in high school so working with Mr. Reeder was a new experience. Another new experience was practicing marching for a show. “When I was in high school, we never marched,” said Mathew.
Mathew described Mr. Reeder as “very helpful and patient when working through things with students. I would have liked having him as a director.”
Dr. Rae Ann Kruse, Dean of Academic Services at NOC, works with interns and community partners. She said “Internships provide an effective learning experience for the student and an opportunity for our community partners to share their knowledge. Internships create a link between classroom academics and hands-on experiences for our students.”
When reflecting on the experience, Mathew said, “There are still a lot of things I need to learn and improve on, but helping with this camp has been a great experience.”