Walking down the halls during the passing period, everyone hopes the song choice is one they like. However, for a while the main thing students would hear during the passing period was the soothing, dulcet sounds of a buzzing similar to that of a microwave drowning out the music.
“It muffled the music and would continue even after the music stopped,” senior Matt Koegel said. ¨It wasn’t horrible, but it was very noticeable.”
Noticeable and annoying. It became the talk around as to why it was happening and whether it ever stop. People were absolutely fed up with the incessant buzzing. Tom Kempf, associate principal of Huntley High School, was trying to fix it.
“It got to the point where teachers were sending me fake death threats,” Kempf said. “It was all falling on me. So every passing period I would be in there playing with wires.”
The reason Kempf had to play with wires was that the technical support company, Procom, couldn’t come to the school until Jan. 5. Procom does all the PA and security systems in the district, which just would not work for Kempf.
“It was super distracting,” freshman Mitch Davis said.
So, Kempf went to work.
Changing out wires and fiddling with the technology was a long process. The more time passed, the more annoyed people got. In the end, it was luck that the issue got fixed.
“I don’t know how I fixed it, unfortunately; I just started playing with things,” Kempf said. “I would unplug something and listen. Once the music was loud, the next it was completely gone. I had unplugged two or three things at once when the issue fixed.”
The behind-the-scenes of the school is more intricate than we think. The music system involves a computer, a mixer, and the PA system working in tandem. So when it, or other things around the school malfunction, have some patience.
It will pass and move on.
