Dear Mr. Farrell,

          We appreciate your concerns for our decision between attending the Lassiter Percussion Symposium and prom; however, we believe that it should be our decision of whether or not we participate. There are 18 out of the 20 students in the percussion studio who have chosen to attend the Lassiter Percussion Symposium over prom out of their own free will. The symposium is a great opportunity for our program and an even better opportunity for the students who attend; while being evaluated by the world renown judges, we get necessary, constructive criticism. With this being our only major opportunity to perform in front of an audience, we would really appreciate it if we were able to attend. Last year we were able to attend the symposium under the same circumstances, the students who attended the symposium were very pleased with their decision. We hope our efforts are noticed and we hope you will reconsider your decision on this matter.