If elected…
I know of few professions that benefit as much from their organizations as Texas choir directors benefit from TCDA. TCDA has provided me with great networking, resources for music, classroom support, and challenges for my professional growth. I am organized and informed and feel that I could continue making strides in our online and on-site registration. It is a new era for TCDA and I believe that I can bring wisdom and new ideas to the board and membership. I want to help serve Texas choir directors by giving back some of what I have gained over all these years.
Cynthia Douglas is the Choir Director at Cypress Ranch High School in Cypress Fairbanks ISD,
and currently serves as TMEA Region 27 Vocal Chair. She has directed choirs at A.P. Solis Middle School and Edinburg North High School in Region 15, and Spring Woods Middle School and Cy-Fair High School in Region 27, earning Sweepstakes honors and top festival awards at each school. Before coming to secondary and college level teaching, Cynthia spent several years as an elementary music specialist in Carthage TX, and in Eaton Rapids, MI. She was the first choral director in Spring Woods Middle School’s sixty-year history to take choirs to UIL, earning the school’s first Sweepstakes awards for Non-Varsity Treble, Varsity Treble, and Non-Varsity Tenor-Bass Choirs. She has conducted All-Region Choirs in Region 15, 23, 26, and 27, and is a sought after clinician and adjudicator. Cynthia earned a BME and an MM at Stephen F. Austin State University. She taught voice at the University of Wisconsin at Stevens Point and at Millikin University, where her students include competition winners and the star of an original Broadway cast. Cynthia has performed with regional opera companies and orchestras in Texas, Maine, New York, and throughout the Midwest. She performs regularly with the Texas Master Chorale, directed by Brad Bouley, and with the First United Methodist Church Sanctuary Choir in Downtown Houston, directed by Dr. Terry Morris.
If elected…
I will never forget my first TCDA Convention. Near the end of my senior year in high school, my director, Mrs. Glenda Casey, told me, “You need to come to TCDA this summer. They are going to have a Student’s Chorus, and there will be opportunities just for you!” I was honored to be a part of the first group of college students at TCDA, attending workshops led by Rene Clausen and performing his Magnificat. After several days of sessions and workshops, I was excited, inspired, and certain that this was right where I was meant to be. There were so many choir directors at convention, all still learning from each other and growing as educators. The first TCDA Convention I attended made a lasting impression on me, and I have been a member ever since. I am thrilled to have the opportunity to give back to an organization that has given so richly to me. If elected, I will gladly serve TCDA and its membership to the best of my ability.
Sandy Shelley has been teaching middle school choirs for over 20 years. Currently she is Choir Director at Sunnyvale Middle School in Sunnyvale, where she teaches 5th through 8th grades. Sandy has served Region 3 as Middle School Vocal Division secretary and chairman. She was chosen for Mesquite ISD’s Apple Corps for Outstanding Teachers. Her choirs have won many awards at UIL Contests, Hurricane Harbor Choral Competitions, and her groups have performed at TMEA conventions in 2002 and 2006. Sandy earned her BM degree at Southwest Texas State University in San Marcos and her MM at the University of North Texas in Denton. Sandy is active as a clinician and adjudicator, and serves as a member of TMEA, TCDA, and TMAA. In addition, Sandy is busy at her church where she accompanies the choir, directs the youth choir, plays handbells, and assists her husband, Don Shelley, the Director of Music. If elected…
I would be honored to have the opportunity to give back to TCDA and its members, because TCDA and its members have given so much to me. I have attended almost every summer convention since my college years (that’s a LOT of conventions!). I have presented at workshops, assisted with honor choirs, and directed a reading session. I am a better teacher given the knowledge that TCDA has shared with me, and the opportunities given to me by TCDA to learn new music and new techniques. Thank you TCDA! I would be honored to return the favor by being your Secretary/Treasurer. I believe my organizational skills and penny-pinching abilities would serve our members well. In these challenging economic times, I will do whatever I can to help TCDA and our membership use every dollar efficiently. I believe our organization is important to the quality of choral music in Texas, and that our conventions are worth the time and money so that we can lead our students to success. Thank you for your consideration and your vote. Spring 2013 · Texas Sings!
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