Manhattan High director of bands enjoys his last year before retirement | Features

As he retires after 36 years, Joel Gittle, the director of bands at Manhattan High School, says he reserved the stage for his students. Last May, Gittle announced his retirement. He is officially done in June 2026.

“I graduated with my undergraduate degree in 1987 and then I worked for a professional Drum and Bugle Corps for four years out of Casper, Wyoming,” Gittle said. “That’s actually what got me to Manhattan because I lived in New England at the time.”

Gittle came to Manhattan in 1989 when Stan Finck, the K-State director of bands at the time, offered him a position as a Graduate Teaching Assistant. Gittle was a GTA for two years while still touring with the Drum and Bugle Corps, a professional marching band, as a percussionist.

Afterwards, he took a job in a public school in Herington for a year before a job at Manhattan High School opened up.

Gittle says the highlight of being band director is getting to travel to new places with the band. Manhattan High School’s marching band has traveled to Chicago and Houston for the Thanksgiving Day parades there. The band has also marched down Main Street at Disney’s Magic Kingdom.

“If I would look at highlights, of things that stick out, those trips with the amount of planning that goes in and seeing our kids marching down the street in Chicago and marching down Main Street is quite a moment,” Gittle said. “Some of them had never even been out of Kansas before so it’s fun to see their faces.”

Because of the growing size of the band and the expenses for instruments, uniforms and traveling, money was always a challenge. Gittle said the marching band does much fundraising. Every year, he and the assistant directors have to pick and choose what is best for the bad on a budget.

“If we funded public schools appropriately, it would solve a lot of problems that we see today,” Gittle said. “Especially for performing arts, we need to fund-raise for a lot of what we do and in a large 6A school district, it’s tough to have the money to do everything you want to do.”

Gittle said Manhattan High does a good job at supporting young artists and the principals he has worked under over the years have been supportive of the marching band.

“Just convincing people that performing arts matter,” Gittle said. “This school does a really good job at equity from department to department. Everyone is important and I’ve always liked that here.”

Gittle said he wears “multiple hats,” teaching at Manhattan High, Anthony Middle School and Eisenhower Middle School as well as serving as the Performing Arts chair and the director of Secondary Music.

“My typical day is I get here an hour before school starts, I answer emails for about 45 minutes, work on our web material… then we teach our classes,” Gittle said. “Planning period is usually spent traveling or working on the aforementioned. After school, meet with students. We usually have an after school event, whether this is a middle school concert, a high school concert, football game or basketball game.”

Gittle said he has two jobs, one within school hours and another after school hours. The school’s performing arts and athletics also have a strong alliance. Gittle and Mike Marsh, Manhattan High’s athletic director, are good friends. Gittle said he will miss his colleagues and students the most when he retires.

“The kids, I come in every day anxious to see them,” Gittle said. “There are days when I might feel a little down and I’m not (down anymore) after the first hour of band. They’re some of the best people who walk the halls of Manhattan High School.”

Gittle also looks forward to having more time as he and his wife, Jari, both retire.

“I can’t wait to have some time to do some things,” Gittle said. “I’m going to work too, part time. We still want to work, make some income but have more time, work some jobs we don’t have to bring home every night. If you’re a teacher, you bring it home every night. I think we’re going to look forward to the time.”

Gittle’s retirement also coincides with the retirement of K-State’s director of bands, Frank Tracz, who is also finishing his career next June.

“I announced it first!” Gittle said. “Manhattan’s going to see different leadership in both levels.”

Gittle is confident that both schools will be fine as their band directors pass down the conducting batons. Though it’s a “year of lasts” for Gittle, he said he is enjoying each concert, game and event he does with the schools.

“As a public school music teacher, the world has never been my stage,” Gittle said. “That’s always been reserved for the students I teach.”