MOUNT VERNON – The commons area of the Knox Learning Center is quiet now that school is out for the summer, but for the last month it echoed with the sounds of drum circles that were so much more than simply making noise.
The drum circles will return in August.
The morning sessions, which involved elementary, middle and high school students drumming on empty five-gallon plastic buckets, was implemented by Dr. Timm Mackley, superintendent of the Knox Educational Service Center (ESC).
The Learning Center, an alternative school for students who have difficulty succeeding in traditional school environments, is operated by the ESC in the former Mount Vernon West Elementary building.
Mackley was a band director in the earlier years of his career in education.
“Drum circle is good for developing a sense of rhythm, which is important in so many aspects of our lives,” Mackley said. “A sense of rhythm and pace gives a person a sense of control, physically and mentally. For example, military cadence unifies people.”
It’s also about cooperation, working together, he said.
Staff at the Learning Center have seen a positive response in students who participate in the early-morning sessions scheduled separately for elementary and older kids.
School nurse Jonathan Campbell, an accomplished musician who has served as musical director at several churches, has witnessed the positive impact.
“Kids who sometimes aren’t clearly focused in other parts of the building are super focused when they are in a drum circle,” Campbell said.
High school teacher Mathew Visconti agreed.
“Participation overall has been very good. It has exceeded what I thought it would be,” he said. “Since we started, students’ overall cheerfulness and moods are better. Students who resisted at first have changed their minds and are into the drum circle.”
Mackley said there is a therapy aspect to the drum circles.
“I tell the kids, ‘Your heartbeat is integrated into your brain.’ Rhythm mimics that,” he said. “Part of the drum circle, honestly, is therapy. Students get their energy out while working together.”
Visconti expressed the view that “students get a lot of value for the time we spend on it.”
“Music is part of the human experience,” he said. “Drumming provides an outlet for free expression.”
Mackley plans to continue the start-of-the-day drum circles, right after the morning music class that he directs, when school resumes in August.
“On a personal level, drum circles enable me to contribute to the students’ experience here. I want to add to the learning experience, like our music class,” he said.
Mackley was beaming after a recent high school drum session where he said students were contributing to the group sound, not just acting individually.
“We were making music without any direction at all,” he told the students while smiling broadly. “You sounded great.”
