I have been in my high school’s drumline for the past 3 years. Since the start of my junior year, I have also been one of the section leaders for the line. In my junior year, we also had a new drum captain, who never officially got put into the position but just took power and became a very abusive leader. He is stricter than our previous drum captains, which I don’t mind, but also degrades the interests of people in the line and threatens and harasses them if they mess up or say something he doesn’t agree with. With my senior year starting and this guy still in charge, I have been trying to change things but am looking at the possibility of quitting the line if things don’t get better. I also run a risk of getting kicked out since he has tried to kick me out in the past mainly because I don’t let him degrade the members of the subsection that I am in charge of. I have struggled with severe depression and anxiety in the past, and want to avoid a relapse the best I can. If things don’t get better, will dropping drumline in my last year of high school look bad in the eyes of colleges in any way?
This guy is a student, right? Who is the faculty advisor/coach for drumline or band? Go speak to that person about this guy.
Do you have any other activities that you’ll have been in for all four years? If so, then can you kick your participation up a notch in one of them for next year, to make up for dropping drumline if you need to? If so, then you can drop drumline and not worry about it. If not, then you can still drop drumline if being in it jeopardizes your health, but think about what you might be able to do to kind of make up for it in your college applications. For example, can you volunteer to help with the band/drumline at the local middle school, or at the Boys and Girls Club, or similar? Can you move up to being a manager for the band as a whole? Or… get a bit creative about this, and see what your options might be.
But if, in the end, what’s best for your health is to drop drumline, then you drop drumline.
No college in the world cares if you are in drumline for 3 years or 4 years. It won’t make a difference. Do something that makes you happy.
This. Line up a few friends that agree with you, go see the faculty advisor. Advisor is no help, you go see the principal and bring your parents along. One kid, its sore apples. 5 kids, it’s real. The drum captain is the one that should be worried about being kicked off.
Yes I agree with mikemac. If what you’re saying about this guy is legit, then I would assuming that most of the drumline would agree with you. Get those students and a few parents and talk to your school principal. Believe me, when PARENTS are involved, the school is very eager to act. If you do enjoy playing your instrument, then you should definitely not let this one person affect your future in your school’s drumline.
By being on the drumline for 4 years, you are showing consistency. If you quit your senior year, it will look like you just did drumline only for college apps, which may not be “bad”, but it won’t be good either. Thus, I suggest you look towards administrative action for this new leader person.
However, if you don’t enjoy playing the drums, then thats a completely different story. If you are only doing this for college apps and don’t even like doing it, then I suggest you quit and do something that you are actually passionate about.