ALEX HILLIARD

KHS band director wins ‘La. Music Educator of the Year’

  This year, Kaplan High Band Director Alex Hilliard has been selected as an honored recipient of the Outstanding Young Music Educator’s Award.
A resident of Lafayette, Hilliard graduated from Lafayette High before earning a bachelor’s in music from Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee where he was active in band and baseball. After, he attended the University of Louisiana at Lafayette where he received his Master’s in Conducting.
In February of 2012, Alex landed his first teaching position as band director for Kaplan High School. Just a few short weeks later, he led the KHS Pirate Regiment to District Festival where they scored superior ratings from every judge. This was a huge improvement over the previous year. A month later, at the State Festival in Lake Charles, the band repeated their impressive performance and also received superior scores – a feat that had not been accomplished since 2002.
According to the band director, “That gave the students a hunger for more.”
During the 2012-2013 school year, the Pirate Regiment again achieved sweepstakes in both the District and State Band Festivals. This year, they’re looking to continue their accomplishments. The band continues to grow and is up to approximately 70 members. This year’s incoming freshman class is the largest in a decade.
Recently, Hilliard was notified that he was one of five teachers chosen to receive the second annual Outstanding Young Music Educator’s Award, presented by the Louisiana Music Educators’ Association (LMEA). This achievement is only eligible to band directors who are in the first five years of their career.
“I felt overjoyed, mostly for the students honestly. I was excited to tell them, because if they weren’t working as hard as they were and making huge strides for the town of Kaplan, then I wouldn’t have been noticed as a teacher. It’s a reward for all of us, not just me.”
The band’s success is dependent not just upon the diligent guidance of Hilliard, but also thanks in part to the community’s efforts. Alex comments, “I want to say thanks first of all to the administration. Mrs. LeBeouf has been awesome to me since I’ve been here. She has supported me and helped me with anything I need. She has worked with my schedule and worked with the students so they can do more than just band, which is huge to me that they are able to participate in more than just band.
“The faculty, staff, and teachers are great as well. There are so many times that the teachers make concessions so the band students can be prepared for certain events. Janitors Lennis, Lenora, and Ms. Diane have helped me tremendously by putting up chairs and making the place presentable for people to come and enjoy a concert.
“ I want to thank the Band Boosters, especially President Randy Dartez. They bust their butt every Friday night at football games in the concession stands to make money for the band. That concession stand takes sixteen parents to work because it is so active, and they do it without hesitation. They raise money in addition to concession sales.  They pull trailers to games, mend uniforms, and fix equipment.
“Most of all, I want to thank my students. I know I have high expectations, and sometimes it can get to be a bit much, but I appreciate everything they do.”
=On December 12, at Holy Rosary Catholic Church, the KHS band will perform a 6:30 p.m. Christmas concert. Next year, on March 8, the Pirate Regiment will host their second annual mattress fundraiser. The KHS gym will be remade into a mattress gallery showroom, and the public is invited to stop by and shop at discounted prices. In addition, the band will also host a raffle where the grand prize will be a “supermarket sweep” at an area grocery store.
Overall, the band director is pleased with the performance of his students.
“The students work extremely hard,” Hilliard explains, “and because of that we’re able to reach new heights as an organization. The students are extremely dedicated, have a great attitude and work ethic. They come with energy and excitement everyday and look forward to being around music. It is exciting to me and makes me want to come and teach. Our goal is to move the program forward. We want to be able to say that we’ve done everything we can to make it the best organization it can be and leave it in such a position that it is better off than how we found it. Make progress, build, and looking back you should be proud of what you’ve done.”
The band director resides in Lafayette. In his spare time, he enjoys cooking and baseball. He is also a member of LMEA, the Southwest Louisiana Band Directors’ Association, and the National Association for Music Education.
In addition, Alex writes, arranges, and edits music and is a published composer of four works. 

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