Hilltop Heritage Middle School music teacher Josie Dietrich is on her way to the Super Bowl! As the bass drum lead in Blue Thunder, the Seahawks drum line, she’s representing HHMS and Tacoma, in Super Bowl LX.

Dietrich, an HHMS teacher for seven years, said playing in Blue Thunder and being selected to play at the Super Bowl is one way she shows her students how playing music can translate to adulthood.

Before she left, Ms. Dietrich’s drum line students stormed her classroom to wish her well.

In the fall, Dietrich was awarded $6,000 to pay for new pieces of music, new drumline stands, and custom storage solutions for those stands. She said the funds will make a significant impact on the students in her beginning and advanced drumline classes.

She was one of six Tacoma Public Schools music teachers awarded money by the Music Aid Northwest grants to support their school’s music program. More than 10% of the funds awarded to Washington teachers by this organization in 2025 came to our schools.