HBCU most improved band of 2025 looking for new director

Virginia Union, an HBCU with a rising marching band profile, is searching for new leadership at the top of its band program.

The university has posted an opening for Director of Bands and Assistant Professor of Music. The position calls for the next hire to lead and manage the band program. That includes the marching band, concert band, pep band and other ensembles.

The posting comes after a season in which the VUU Ambassadors of Sound appeared to gain momentum under PJ Howard.

Howard took over the program after public concerns about the band surfaced in 2024. Since then, the program had drawn notice across the online HBCU band community. Clips of the band spread during football season. Supporters praised its sound, style and apparent growth.

HBCU Gameday saw that growth in person in November

After Virginia Union beat Virginia State in the Douglas Wilder Classic at Historic Hovey Field, the Ambassadors of Sound went head-to-head with the VSU Trojan Explosion. The two bands battled in the twilight after one of the biggest games on Virginia Union's football calendar.

VUU President Dr. Hakim Lucas spoke with HBCU Gameday that day about the band's role in the university's larger brand.

"The band is at the center of everything," Lucas told HBCU Gameday. "They are the one group that has no season that they are off. They encourage everybody. They march, they step, they blow - they're just an essential part."

Lucas also directly praised Howard's leadership and style.

"I'm only responsible for one thing - making sure that the right leader is selected," Lucas said. "We have a guy in PJ Howard that has brought a southern-western-funk-Louisiana style. He believes in big brass. We're marching 96 y'all - so don't let anybody think it's 150. But they got a 200 band sound. And we're walking and marching like we're in the SWAC."

Lucas ended that statement with a clear message.

"Y'all get ready, this is only the beginning," Lucas said. "Every president, every chancellor listening to me - you need to invest in your band. Because I'm all in."

More questions than answers at VUU

That was November. The next month, VUU was recognized by the Red Lobster Band of The Year as its most improved band in Division II.

Now, before Virginia Union takes the football field again, the band program is positioned to have new leadership.

HBCU Gameday has attempted to reach Lucas and Howard for comment. As of publication, there are still more questions than answers.

The biggest question is simple: what changed?

The university had a band that appeared to be improving. Its president publicly praised the program. Its director was credited with bringing a new sound and style. The program was being discussed by HBCU band fans in a way it had not been in recent years.

Yet the job is open again.

That development has sparked concern from some alumni and supporters. Kevin A. Starling, who has been publicly vocal about the program, wrote that the issue is bigger than one person leaving.

"The question is not who left," Starling wrote in a public Facebook post. "The question is why staying has become so difficult."

Starling argued that VUU's band should be viewed as more than an athletic accessory.

"The program is one of the university's most powerful recruitment tools, one of its strongest retention strategies, one of its most visible public relations assets, and one of the greatest builders of school pride and institutional identity," he wrote.

He also raised questions about resources, support and long-term planning.

"For many students, the band is not what they do after arriving at Virginia Union University," Starling wrote. "The band is why they came.”

What’s next for VUU

Virginia Union's band program has already faced public scrutiny in recent years.

In 2024, WTVR reported on concerns raised by students and alumni about the program. Howard's tenure followed that period. By the fall, the Ambassadors of Sound seemed to be gaining attention for different reasons.

That makes the current opening notable.

College bands are often among the most visible parts of HBCU culture. They help shape game day. They recruit students and energize alumni. Bands travel with the brand in ways few campus units can.

Lucas said as much in November. Now VUU must answer what comes next.

The next director will inherit a program with recent momentum, public expectations and alumni attention. That person will also inherit the questions that come with another leadership change.

HBCU Gameday will continue to follow this developing story.

The post HBCU most improved band of 2025 looking for new director appeared first on HBCU Gameday.

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This story was originally published June 3, 2026 at 11:40 AM.