Gwinnett County Public Schools ensures that students have access to resources that help them fulfill their interests and career goals. While opportunities exist in classrooms across the district, there are unique occasions to build relationships and find community in the various after-school activities that schools offer to their students.

     Music is a universal uniting art form that students at Mountain View High School are learning to create in their “MV Production” club after school. As a Fine Arts curriculum-based student activity, music production uses technology, instruments, and creativity to produce beats or to mix vocals. The labs at Mountain View give students access to music production programs like Logic X Pro and GarageBand. Additionally, the production environment is equipped with microphones built by students, electric instruments, monitors, speakers, and more, all setting the stage for a collaborative and fun learning environment.

     Students' hunger to learn more and make music together is what inspired the club’s inception. The club’s advisor and Mountain View High AP Music Theory instructor William P. Owens says this club has managed to attract a range of students to the art of music technology and production due to the club’s flexible schedule.

     “I have had several students over the last few years who were not even enrolled in a Music Tech course to attend and get help with producing their music,” he says. “The fact that we have been able to expand our equipment to include several 'above amateur' items allows them to create better quality than they might be able to mix at home. Having been a high school band director for so many years before, I love being able to help students find different ways to bring their music to life.”

     Heading over to Dacula High School, the Tri-M Music Honor Society students are making music through projects that exercise their skills in critical thinking, compassion, creativity, and more. With over 40 participants, students gather to enjoy fun, concise, and informational sessions that include a music activity.

     Tri-M also gives students the opportunity to serve their community by volunteering at concerts, hosting clothing drives, and using their musical gifts to sing to those who are housed in Assisted Living facilities.

“I’m happy to give our music students a chance to interact with others from the department and give back to the school and community,” says club advisor Andrew Davidson. “I am especially proud of our Annual Winter Clothing Drive. Each year, we donate hundreds of clothing items to the Lawrenceville Clothing Ministry. These donations mainly happen at our Dacula Winter Concerts.”

     The opportunity to participate in Fine Arts starts at the elementary school level with increased outlets for involvement as students move through middle and high school. In 2023, high school students who completed the Fine Arts Pathway had a graduation rate of 98.1%. Similarly, Gwinnett County Public Schools has been recognized by the National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) as one of the Best Communities for Music Education for 17 years. Visit the district website’s Fine Arts page to learn more about Fine Arts opportunities in your learning community.