Madelyne Prazak
Staff Writer
On a typical school day, Sarah Rothermel’s alarm rings at 5:00 a.m. so she is at the gym by 6:00 a.m., after which she promptly gets ready and heads to the Winter Visual and Performing Arts Center for her 8:00 a.m. piano class. She then stays in that building for twelve hours.
Millersville University’s music department is unique, vigorous, and produces successful outcomes. However, not all that glitters is gold. Students are speaking up about excessive work both in and out of class, reporting concerns about mental health, sleep habits, and work-life balance.
The Tell School of Music provides dynamic and high-caliber curricula via its three degree programs: Music Education, Music Industry, and Music Performance. Additionally, from its bountiful connections in the city of Lancaster to its achievements, such as its wind ensemble winning third place for a 2024 American Prize in Music, it is evident that the Tell School of Music is on the up and up.
Madison Drexler-Sweeney is a sophomore majoring in Music Industry with a concentration in Music Management. She shared that the program makes her feel well-rounded and that her professors are highly knowledgeable.
“They are also so well connected to other people because they came from lives where they were doing this for years and then became a teacher,” Drexler-Sweeney says.
However, as opposed to other fields of study, Millersville’s music department requires all of its students to take courses with standard three credit workloads for two credits, one credit, and even no credit whatsoever. Additionally, some students claim that they spend an unreasonable amount of time in and outside of class completing their assignments.
“For the classes we have, there is definitely a higher workload,” Freshman Christian Rodriguez says. “For solfège, the workload is enough for, like, three classes. It’s a 100-level class, but it’s treated like it’s a 300-level class.”
Several others relate to Rodriguez’s sentiments, and have even said that their social lives and personal health have taken a toll as a result. Michael Orth is a sophomore who is dual majoring in Music Education and Vocal Performance with certificates in Kodaly, Music Technology, and Modern Band. He is currently taking two classes for zero credit, and says that he was not given a “proper heads up” about the demands of this program.
“I got, like, a little tidbit saying ‘you’re going to be really busy,’” he says. “But, ‘really busy’ to me is like still being able to sleep, you know? And that is not the case.”
Music Education major Rothermel agrees that her aforementioned schedule can be overwhelming. She acknowledges that there are demanding requirements that may not be expected of students who are pursuing different professions.
“There are long hours, and it can get to be a lot if you don’t know how to manage it,” she says. “I definitely know that I don’t have as much free time as some other majors and wouldn’t want to do it long term.”
Nevertheless, she maintains that the music program is also preparing her for the future. Despite being a freshman, Rothermel already works in the music industry. Over the summer, she does gigs that are so demanding she sleeps in her car. She believes that the Tell School of Music is equipping her and her classmates to handle that environment before they actually enter it post-graduation.
“I think it teaches you how to hustle. And I think if you want a career in music, you have to know how to hustle,” Rothermel says.
Despite each student’s individual opinion on the matter, there is a strong culture of camaraderie in the Winter Visual and Performing Arts Center. Students say they have developed deep bonds through this experience. Members of the Tell School of Music are, according to Rodriguez, “a really big dysfunctional family”.
“Everyone’s kind of in the same situations together, so it’s almost like a little bit of a bond where you understand why everyone’s, like, annoyed or in pain over a certain class because other people are going through it with you,” Drexler-Sweeney says.
