On Wednesday, March 26th, Eleanor Roosevelt High School’s principal, Mr. Reginald McNeill, was honored with the award for administrator of the year for Maryland Music Education from the Maryland Music Educators Association.
Mr. McNeill was nominated by ERHS’ music department staff. Mrs. Sally Wagner, who has been with ERHS for 33 years, is chairman of the music department, and a member of the MMEA, mentioned Mr. McNeill’s nomination at a music department meeting and all the music department agreed that Mr. McNeill’s work was “wonderful” and should be recognized.
According to Mrs. Wagner, as part of the nomination process, each staff member in the music department – which includes Mrs. Wagner, Ms. Michele Fowlin, Dr. David Yarbrough, and Mr. Kevin Hawk, all of whom are also members of the MMEA – “sent a letter of support, as did the officers of the PTSA” and several parents.
Although there were some delays in the application process, Mr. McNeill’s nomination was accepted, and he will be presented with the award at a luncheon on Friday, April 25. Teachers and administrators from other schools will also be honored at this event.
Many teachers and students of the music department praise Mr. McNeill for his dedication to music education at ERHS.
Alex Cook, a senior who has participated in band throughout his high school career, said that “music has been an important part of [his] life at Roosevelt”. He said that Mr. McNeill “has given a lot of support [to the music department] these past years” and this is a “well-deserved award”.
According to Mrs. Wagner, Mr. McNeill “always makes the effort to recognize” the music department and importance of music education. As a past band parent, Mr. McNeill said he “understands a little more than some about what goes on” in the music department.
One of the many anecdotes Mrs. Wagner recalls from Mr. McNeill’s time at ERHS is the story of the McNeill Shell. A few years ago, the acoustical shell used to project sound in many of the band and orchestra’s performances was in “awful shape”. When its decrepit nature had gotten to the point of being dangerous, Mrs. Wagner addressed the issue with Mr. McNeill, who replaced the shell. The music department now has a “wonderful shell that works much better than” the one they had before. This is just one display of Mr. McNeill’s ceaseless support for the music department at ERHS.
The last principal at ERHS to receive this award was Dr. Gerald L. Boarman, the namesake of the ERHS auditorium.