Spring Fling Music Fest gives real experience to GHS management students

Thursday, April 26, 2018

In a textbook example of getting the curriculum out of the textbook, the Principals of Business Management class at Greencastle High School has become “Concert Planning 101” this year.

Or at least it goes something like that. Through a partnership between teacher Brittany Labhart and the Putnam County Coalition for Education and the Creative Arts (better known as The Castle), the students have been asked to take the principals they learn in class and apply it to a concert benefitting a local non-profit.

The fruit of these efforts is Spring Fling Music Fest benefiting the Putnam County Non-Food Pantry. The show is set for 3:30-8 p.m. this Sunday at the Putnam County Fairgrounds Community Building.

Seven artists will perform, including Him & Her, Parker Black and Ethan Tuggle, Legend Puncher, Chase Wright, Black Market Vinyl, Rebecca George and Kaylynn Gropp and Oversight Gallery.

Tickets are $8 each, or $5 for anyone who brings a donation to the Non-Food Pantry. Kids 10 and younger are free.

The idea was presented to the class when the students saw War Radio (featuring Joel and Tosh Everson, also of Him & Her) play at M2 in downtown Greencastle.

“There was a band playing and they were like, you guys can do this too,” GHS senior Lucas Gillen recalled.

Since then, Gillen and 17 classmates have been up to their elbows in the music business.

Of course, it hasn’t been without some help. First of all, The Castle applied for a grant with Arts Illiana to get the class the money it needed for a deposit at the Fairgrounds Community Building.

Secondly, the students have been working with Kenny Phelps of Indianapolis, who besides being a legendary drummer on the Indianapolis jazz scene, is also the owner of Owl Music Group and knows how to organize events like this.

“He’s done it before,” senior Abe Wade said.

“He brings the energy, definitely,” junior Madison Short added.

And in learning from Phelps, the students are getting to see a side of business they wouldn’t get from a book.

“It’s been a lot better than doing homework and worksheets all semester,” Wade said.

Instead, it’s the real world.

“It’s also been cool because we’ve been able to learn a real-life aspect of this, not just in a classroom,” Gillen said. “It’s real world experience.”

One fun aspect of this experience has been hearing pitches and making decisions.

This was, first of all, how the concert came to support the Non-Food Pantry, which serves the needy of the community in getting them essential items that don’t include food, such as toiletries and paper products.

The class was given a list of non-profit organizations in the county and from that list, chose three to have come make pitches.

The students were especially taken with the Non-Food Pantry.

“They said they run out of funds toward the end of April, which is when our concert is,” Short said.

“We also thought no one should go without basic necessities,” Gillen said. “They shouldn’t be withheld from them.”

It was simply a case of the cream rising to the top.

“We voted as a class and decided which one we thought was best,” Wade said.

While the pitches for bands weren’t quite the same, it was a similar process. Short made a flyer and Facebook page about seeking bands. The musicians, in turn, submitted their material.

The students listened to their choices and chose the seven they liked the best

Of course, while organizing a concert sounds like a lot of fun, Gillen, Short and Wade know that Sunday is going to be a lot of hard work, the same as this project has been so far.

These three and their classmates know they may not even be hearing a lot of music.

“I’m going to be going to all the stations — snow cones, bounce houses, pizza, popcorn — making sure everyone gets breaks,” Gillen said.

“I am working on ticket sales and the fundraising tally,” Wade said.

In a class full of management students, Short ended up with perhaps the most high-pressure job — managing the show itself.

“All the artists have to check in with me. I’m making sure they’re getting on at the right times, keeping up with other people and making sure they’re doing they’re jobs,” Short said. “Just make sure everyone is where they need to be when they need to be.”

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