Music signals the start of the morning announcements, with a different song playing each day before important information is shared.
While the songs may appear random, the music played during morning announcements is often selected to build school spirit and connect to current events or themes within the school.
Morning announcements have been a daily musical tradition shaped by rotating COSA members. With different songs everyday to represent special months or just for fun it adds personality to the announcements, but it also sparks mixed reactions. While some students appreciate the diversity in music, others find the constant change distracting.
How is it selected?
Ms. Inderjeit, who has been part of COSA for nearly two years, plays a key role in organizing the music for the morning announcements.
“Everything has to be school appropriate,” she explained. When it comes to choosing songs, timing matters. “It depends; the songs are chosen about a month in advance for months like Black History Month, Hispanic Heritage Month, and Women’s History Month,” she said. Other months too “March is Women’s History Month, and there will be music chosen to promote and celebrate Women’s History Month.”
Further than cultural months she believes, “I think the morning announcement song sets the tone for the day, or sometimes the third-period song is chosen to help students focus on certain themes or remember historical figures. Other times, it’s just a fun song to start the day.”
Outside of heritage months, the process is more flexible. “Students don’t usually come to me with requests, but I use suggestions, and afterward songs are chosen,” she said. “Or I look at top trending songs and choose from there.”
Impact on the School
Music in the morning announcements affects everyone differently. For some, it may help them cheer up and set a positive tone for the day, while others may feel it is distracting and time consuming.
Aiden Dhamraj, a junior at Thomas Edison, had a positive view of the music. He believes that the music is “pretty good” and that “on good music days, it definitely cheers me up,” he said. He thinks that music is an important part of school spirit but songs in different languages are less engaging.
Mr. Roginski, an art teacher at Thomas Edison, was more concerned about the preparation and timings of the morning announcements. “Don’t wait for the morning of the announcements,” he said, explaining that poor planning causes inconsistency in the announcements which makes it less effective. He also believed that the music should be clean and shouldn’t refer to bad influences in order for it to have a positive impact on the students.
Other student opinions differed. Rafidul Haque, another student, said that “I don’t pay attention to it so it doesn’t impact me.” Despite that, he believes that even though it isn’t important, “I can see people enjoying it so it’s worth it,” suggesting that it boosts school spirit.
Overall, the music in the morning announcements adds personality and boosts school spirit, even if not all students connect with it in the same way. With better planning and thoughtful music choices, it can continue to be a positive aspect of the morning announcements.
