Walking through door 10 of East Main Campus for the first time was an experience like no other. Mason Snyder was amazed at what he saw from high school students rehearsing for their fall concert.
“It honestly felt like getting whiplash,” Snyder told Spark. “The amount of professionalism and musical excellence in all of the choirs is unlike anything I have seen from students of this age.”
At age 23, Snyder is currently a student teacher at Lakota East, engaging in the Singing Thunderhawk choir program, a national and state award-winning choral group who practices during the school day. From Wilmington, Ohio, Snyder attends college at Miami University, where he works towards his degree in Music Education.
When working with Eastside Company singers, his shining personality encourages and teaches students to feel the music they are singing.
“It’s always interesting to see the new energy and the new breath he brings into classes,” said East music educator Rebecca Huddleston. In her 39 years of teaching, Huddleston has had six student teachers shadow her, but none like Snyder.
“I haven’t given him anything that he’s afraid to try,” said Huddleston.
Having profound maturity and the willingness to take accountability is crucial to being a student teacher, and Snyder does just that.
“He messes up and he takes responsibility for it, which is big for student teachers, that’s huge because a lot of them won’t even try,” said Huddleston.
While Snyder has been inspired by watching and being involved with high schoollevel classes, he is also interested in instructing elementary music education.
“I am open to teaching all ages. However, in recent years, I have gravitated towards teaching General Music K-6,” said Snyder. “There is something special about taking simple songs and concepts, breaking them apart, and teaching them to kids for the first time.”
He believes teaching students the fundamentals from such a young age gives them the skills to not only be musicians, but function as human beings.
Both the head and co-choir directors, Huddleston and Fernandez, feel rest assured Synder will find the right place for him. “Whatever level he decides to teach, he’s got to feel that that’s his place,” said Huddleston. “Challenge yourself,” Fernandez advises him.
While Snyder is the only choir student teacher, he is one of three student teachers from Miami University instructing at East.
“It is an extremely unique situation to be in with 3 other male [fine arts] teachers all from Miami University student teaching at Lakota East,” said Snyder. “I think it speaks to the excellence of the art departments at East and the education it can provide to its students and community.”
