OREGON ACDA WORKS TOWARD A STRONG RETURN TO THE STAGE

Erika Lockwood OMEA Choral Chair

As music teachers across the state and the nation round out a full year of the loss of traditional performance education, it is important to ask ourselves what kind of experiences and educational systems we want our students to come back to. Across the country, many have acknowledged a need to return to a society with more emphasis on mental health resources, social emotional literacy, and racial equity. Music teachers have a responsibility to incorporate these ideas and enhance these crucial systems of support and influence that we have in our students’ lives. This time of reflection should not only include a thorough inventory of our own music library, programming and calendar, but also the broader routines and policies that make up our state’s choral culture.

As the Choral Chair for OMEA, I have the privilege of serving on both the OMEA board as well as the board of the Oregon ACDA (American Choral Directors Association) chapter. ACDA and its local chapters serve as the leadership organization for choral music education at the state, regional and national level. If you ever wondered about the origin of the OSAA handbook, scoring rubrics, repertoire list, and the certified adjudicator list, it started with ACDA! Beginning with materials created by the Oregon Band Directors Association (OBDA), ACDA adapted and modified them to better suit the needs of choral ensembles. We are consistently listening to feedback from members and working to make these systems work best for students, directors, and all involved in our state’s high-quality system of choral education. When updates or amendments are necessary, our board engages in thorough discussion, considers the point-of-view of all stakeholders, and proposes any action items to the OMEA board before submitting changes to OSAA.

Throughout this year, the OR ACDA chapter has continued to meet regularly to plan annual workshops and discuss some of the updates that have been on our agenda for a few years but haven’t taken priority until now. Below are concrete actions we have completed or have begun to work on while most of our regular choral events are virtual or paused. As your choral leadership organization, we welcome your feedback, suggestions, and involvement as we move forward to a new, better “normal”.

OR ACDA Action items since Spring 2020:

• Held virtual Summer and Fall Choral Workshops in 2020 including headliner sessions, round table discussions and the sharing of best practices for distance learning. Summer 2021 planning is underway!

• Established a new OR ACDA board position: chair of Diversity, Equity and Inclusivity. Judy Rose is the first to hold this position, and our goal is to increase BIPOC representation on our board and in our field across the state.

• Made a statement as an organization condemning white supremacy in our field and stating a commitment to making decisions with an equity focus going forward.

• Updated the OMEA Ensemble Festival Rulebook requiring Small and Large Ensemble Adjudicators to be ACDA certified - exceptions may be requested for districts in rural parts of the state who are unable to secure a certified adjudicator.

• Updated the rubric and rules for the Sight Reading portion of the OSAA Choir Championship, increasing clarity for both adjudicators and directors.

• Began discussion with NATS teachers regarding best practices for solo festivals. Topics include: Repertoire recommendations, adjudicator training and rubric considerations (similar to what is used at WMEA festivals), discussion about original music requirement at the State Championship. Repertoire list and proposals expected before Fall 2021.

• Formed a committee to update the ACDA/OSAA required literature list for choral festivals. Considerations will include: importance of repertoire diversity across composer ethnicity and gender, cultural origin and time period, including alternative voicing considerations. List and recommendations to be finalized before Fall 2021.

Many thanks to our current President, Scott Tuomi, and our President-Elect, Karen Bohart, along with the rest of our board for continuing to serve our state’s choral directors during this challenging time!