Hailey Gowens Takes Student Performance To The Next Level
L.A. | The Atom
Lubbock-Cooper High School Assistant Choir Director Hailey Gowens is a Texas Tech graduate and Lubbock native who is getting her students ready for their upcoming spring concert while simultaneously preparing to take the next steps in her own education. She has been accepted to a Tech program that will allow her to continue teaching as she studies for her master’s degree in choral directing.
Gowens was a choir student, herself, from the time she was the sixth grade. By the time she attended Frenship High School, she was participating in every choir activity and competition. She was also a member of the ensemble for a high school production of “Fiddler on the Roof.”
“I loved to sing,” said Gowens. “I loved being in choir. I couldn’t imagine doing anything else.”
After graduating in 2018, she went on to earn her bachelor’s degree in music education at Tech. During her time there, she had the opportunity to play the role of La Ciesca in the opera “Gianni Schicchi.” Gowens taught private voice and piano instructor at Joyful Noise Music Studio before accepting her current teaching position with Lubbock-Cooper ISD.
Her students are rehearsing for their spring show, which will be free and open to the public at the Lubbock-Cooper High School performing arts center at 6 p.m. May 13. Pieces in this concert were selected from movies or musicals, including numbers from “The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes,” “Sweeny Todd,” “High School Musical 3” and “Shucked.”
Gowens said she often chooses songs for performances based on the lyrics.
“With students, my favorites tend to be more modern,” said Gowens. “Sometimes, it’s poetry that composers have arranged with music.”
Her students compete to reach the level of All-State Choir from the regional competition at the beginning of each school year. Those who advance perform in two more competition rounds in November and January before qualifying for All-State, which typically honors the top two percent in Texas every February. As a member of the Texas Music Educators Association, Gowens and fellow choir teachers across the state travel to San Antonio for an annual convention.
“This year, we had a student in All-State, so we took him to the convention,” said Gowens. “Tech also has a choir that will perform there next year.”
Starting this June, Gowens will be spending three summers working her way through an intensive graduate school experience. She is happy to once again be studying with Professor Alan Zabriskie.
“He’s a great professor,” said Gowens. “He knows how to break it down. I knew I wanted to go back for my masters. I teach a lot of freshman and beginners. At this age, students who have never been in choir may be in the same class with students who have done choir for years. I wanted more strategies to help different types of learners. I really like working with this age group and want to continue offering them ways to grow, no matter where they are.”
She said she hopes to see more families, schools and communities support students interested in fine arts.
“Encourage kids in the arts at school. These kids are some of the most dedicated and determined students we have. They learn important team and individual skills that can be used in any field,” said Gowens. “Sometimes choir or art may be the only class that a kid is looking forward to and it is what keeps them coming to school. Please support the fine arts any way you can. It’s worth it.”
