Featured Teacher: Mrs. Martian from Bowman

BOWMAN, N.D. (KFYR) - The power of music can inspire young students, bring a community together, and even give an entire school a shared identity. That’s the case in Bowman County, where we find out next Featured Teacher, Charmaine Martian.

With Mrs. Martian leading the way for music at Bowman County High School, students learn every instrument and every note counts. They’re much greater than the sum of their parts.

“We get a lot of compliments for pep band,” Naomi Massey, a junior, said.

For the last 18 years, Mrs. Martian has taught students concert, jazz and marching band. But their personalities shine brightest on the court or field.

“My kids here in Bowman, their passion is the pep band at the basketball and football games,” Mrs. Martian said.

The reputation they have built is thanks in large part to Mrs. Martian’s dedication.

“She’s very energetic and very fun. But she can come down serious if we need to get stuff done,” Havyn Quintanilla, a freshman, said about her teacher.

Mrs. Martian says she gets the unique experience of meeting students when they first pick up an instrument in 5th grade and staying with them until they graduate.

“She is a person I look up to and will always look up to. Her teaching style just makes me want to come here every day,” Havyn said.

For Mrs. Martian, there’s great pride in carrying on the music. When she started teaching at the school, she says she may have only had 14 members in the band. Now, she has built the program to as many as 50 students some years. But, like the music they make every day, she knows it was more than just her own doing.

“I thank the community for that,” she said. “When I got here, I found out how important music was to them.”

Music was meant to be in Bowman County, and so it seems Mrs. Martian was meant to be there too.

She remembers when she started teaching, some community members who had long since graduated high school would fill in by playing instruments she couldn’t yet fill with students in the school band. Now, they have one of the best pep bands in the region.

To nominate a teacher for our next Featured Teacher segment, email hope.sisk@kfyrtv.com.

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