Oregon Music Educator, Fall 2024 by OregonMEA

MUSIC EDUCATOR

Fall 2024

BUILDING MUSIC EDUCATION COMMUNITY

Cole Haole-Valenzuela

REPERTOIRE SELECTION IN JAZZ ENSEMBLE

Jessika Smith

SOCIAL EMOTIONAL LEARNING

Myriam Gendron-Dupont

MY “PANDEMIC EPIPHANY”

Jason Rogers



Scholarships

Amanda

Jessika

OMEA Journal Editors

50 Little Pink Shoes: One Music Teacher’s Lesson

Melissa Jmaeff

51 Secondary General Music in Oregon

Mary Schay

52 Designing Lessons for Student Retention: How to Keep Students Invested in Music

Christopher Cavarretta

Myriam Gendron-Dupont

Sight and Sound: The Science of Reading and its Applications for Music Teaching

Dr. Grace Ho 61 Behind the band For 140 Years, OSU’s marching band has given Beaver spirit it’s steady drumbeat

Mike McInally

My “Pandemic Epiphany”: A Career Pivot in Music Education

Jason Rogers

Kendra Taylor

Talmadge Middle School

ADVERTISER INDEX

MUSIC MAKERS

EXECUTIVE BOARD

OMEA President

Erika Lockwood Rex Putnam High School lockwoode@nclack.k12or.us

OMEA President-Elect

Cole Haole-Valenzuela West Salem High School haole-valenzuela_cole@salkeiz. k12.or.us

OMEA 2nd Vice President

Kelly Moore

Ridgeview High School kelly.moore@redmondschools.org

OMEA Past-President

Ben Lawson Redmond High School ben.lawson@redmondschools.org

OMEA Conference Chair

Elizabeth Soper South Medford High School omeaconferencechair@gmail.com

OMEA All-State Chair

Kristi Stingle Lakeridge High School allstatechair@gmail.com

OMEA Public Policy Chair

Laura Arthur publicpolicy@oregonmea.org

OMEA Treasurer

Todd Zimbelman West Salem High School treasureromea@gmail.com

OMEA Executive Director

JJ Sutton executivedirector@oregonmea. org

AREA CHAIRS

Advocacy Chair

Laura Arthur advocacy@oregonmea.org

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Co-Chair

Cynthia Navarro Clear Creek Middle School navarro16@gresham.k12.or.us

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Co-Chair

Amanda Sarles

Siuslaw Elementary School asarles@siuslaw.k12.or.us

Band Chair

Jen Bell

Whiteaker Middle School BELL_JENNIFER@salkeiz.k12. or.us

Choir & Student

Composition Contest Chair

Kathy Briggs St. Mary’s High School kathy.briggs@smapdx.org

Orchestra Chair

Brigid Mayer West Salem High School mayer_brigid@salkeiz.k12.or.us

Elementary Music Chair

Val Locke

Gilbert Park Elementary School val_locke@ddsd40.org

General Music Chair

Kelsie Demianew

Cummings Elementary School Kelsie.demianew@gmail.com

Secondary General Music Chair

Mari Schay

Portland State University mschay@pdx.edu

Jazz Chair

Jessika Smith Parkrose Middle School jessika_smith@parkrose.k12. or.us

Small Schools Chair

Melissa Jmaeff Sutherlin School District melissa.jmaeff@sutherlin.k12. or.us

SMTE/CNAfME Advisor Chair

Mari Schay Portland State University mschay@pdx.edu

Membership Chair

Andrew Bergh

Tualatin High School abergh@ttsd.k12.or.us

Conference Exhibitor and Sustaining Membership Chair

Cameron Jerde Southridge High School exhibitorchair@oregonmea.org

Chamber Ensemble Contest Chair

Gary Riler Cleveland High School griler@pps.net

State Solo Contest Chair

Stewart Schlazer Forest Grove High School sschlazer@fgsd.k12.or.us

OSAA Band/Orchestra State Contest Chair

David Sime Retired dsime@bendcable.com

OSAA Choir State Contest Chair

John Baker Retired johnbakerchoir@gmail.com

OMEA State Jazz Contest Chair

Dan Davey Mt. Hood Community College daniel.davey@mhcc.edu

DISTRICT CHAIRS

District 1 Chair

Chris McCurdy Grant High School cmccurdy@pps.net

District 2 Chair

Molly Keller

Dexter McCarty Middle School mollykellermusic@gmail.com

District 3 Chair

Stewart Schlazer Forest Grove High School sschlazer@fgsd.k12.or.us

District 4 Chair

Cole Haole-Valenzuela West Salem High School haole-valenzuela_cole@salkeiz. k12.or.us

District 5 Chair

Keith Chaiet

Mountain View High School keith.chaiet@bend.k12.or.us

District 6 Chair

Alex Justice

La Grande High School alexander.justice@lagrandesd. org

District 7 Chair

Janet Lea

North Bay Elementary School jlea@nbend.k12.or.us

District 8 Chair

Trevor Lavery-Thompson Joseph Lane Middle School tlavery-thompson@roseburg. k12.or.us

District 9 Chair

Ryan Egan

Nyssa Middle and High School ryaneganmusic21@gmail.com

District 10 Chair

Melissa Jmaeff

Sutherlin Middle and High School

melissa.jmaeff@sutherlin.k12. or.us

District 11 Chair

David Blake Cheldelin Middle School david.blake@corvallis.k12.or.us

District 12 Co-Chair

Jon Bridges Springfield High School jonathan.bridges@springfield. k12.or.us

District 12 Co-Chair

Doug Doerfert Lane Community College doerfertd@lanecc.edu

District 13 Chair

Josh Weir

Gladstone High School weirj@gladstone.k12.or.us

District 14 Chair

Myriam Gendron-Dupont Rosemont Ridge Middle School gendronm@wlwv.k12.or.us

District 15 Chair

Jeremy Kane

Conestoga Middle School jeremy_kane@beaverton.k12. or.us

SPECIAL BOARD REPS/ LIAISONS

OSAA Band Liaison

Aliyah Jackson Aloha High School Aliyah.jackson@beaverton.k12. or.us

OSAA Choir Liaison

Anna Rikli

Southridge High School Anna.rikli@beaverton.k12.or.us

OMEA Recording Secretary

Danika Locey

Salem Keizer

danika.f.locey@gmail.com

Historian Ben Lawson

Redmond High School Ben.Lawson@redmondschools. org

NW NAfME Regional

President

Dusty Molyneaux

Great Falls Public Schools dusty_molyneaux@gfps.k12. mt.us

NW NAfME Regional

President-Elect

Joe Dyvig

Olympia High School Jdyvig@osd.wednet.edu

NW NAfME Regional Past

President Tom Muller Retired tmuller2555@gmail.com

PUBLISHING

Journal Design Aren Vandenburgh www.arenv.com

OMEA SUSTAINING MEMBERS

251 Realty 292 Oakmont Drive Grants Pass, Oregon 97526 www.wholeheartrealty.com

Bandworld 6736 Jacob Lane Springfield, Oregon 97478 www.bandworld.org

Beacock Music 1420 SE 163rd Avenue Vancouver, Washington 98683 www.beacockmusic.com

Cascade School of Music 510 NE 3rd Street Bend, Oregon 97701 www.cascadeschoolofmusic.org

Chamber Music Northwest 1201 SW 12th Avenue #420 Portland, Oregon 97205 www.cmnw.org

Columbians Drum & Bugle Corps P.O. Box 4190 West Richland, Washington 99353 https://www. columbiansdrumcorps.org/

Conn-Selmer

1000 Industrial Parkway Elkhart, Indiana 46516 https://connselmer.com

Educational Travel Services, Inc.

25 SE 82nd Drive, Suite 102 Gladstone, Oregon 97027 https://etsi.ws/

Eugene Symphony 115 West 8th Avenue, Suite 115 Eugene, Oregon 97401 www.eugenesymphony.org

JW Pepper & Son, Inc 191 Sheree Boulevard Exton, Pennsylvania 19341 https://www.jwpepper.com

Linfield University 900 SE Baker Street McMinnville, Oregon 97128 https://www.linfield.edu/music/

Metropolitan Youth Symphony

4800 South Macadam Avenue, Suite 105 Portland, Oregon 97239 www.playmys.org

Music Camps at Wallowa

Lake P.O. Box 636

La Grande, Oregon 97850 https://wlmusiccamps.org/ Music-ade, LLC

5603 SE Morrison Street Portland, Oregon 97215 https://music-ade.com

Northwest Band Camps 84270 Wright Road Florence, Oregon 97439 www.nwbandcamps.com

Nova Music International 170 West Ellendale, Suite 103 #401 Dallas, Oregon 97338 https://www.novami.org

Oregon Ambassadors of Music

2599 NW Orchard Heights Avenue Albany, Oregon 97321 www.oregonambassadors. com/home

Oregon Children’s Choir PO Box 11007 Eugene, Oregon 97440 www.oregonchildrenschoir.org

Oregon Coast Youth Symphony Festival PO Box 2405 Newport, Oregon 97365 www.youthsymphonyfestival.org

Oregon Symphony 851 SW 6th Avenue, Suite 385 Portland, Oregon 97204 www.orsymphony.org

Pacific Lutheran University 12180 Park Avenue, S. Tacoma, Washington 98447 www.plu.edu/music/

Peripole Music P.O. Box 12909 Salem, Oregon 97309 www.peripole.com

Quartet Violin Shop 9150 SW Pioneer Court Suite J Wilsonville, Oregon 97070 https://www.quartetviolins.com/ Southern Oregon University 1250 Siskiyou Boulevard Ashland, Oregon 97520 https://sou.edu/academics/ music/

University of Portland 5000 N. Willamette Boulevard Portland, Oregon 97203 www.up.edu

Willamette Valley Music Company 484 State Street Salem, Oregon 97301 https://www.wvmc.net

FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR...

JJ Sutton OMEA Executive Director

Welcome to the 2024 fall edition of the Oregon Music Educator I hope you enjoy the articles contributed by our colleagues; they serve to share a wealth of knowledge, expertise and inspiration. I also encourage you to patron our advertising partners. This publication would not be possible without the generous contributions of our advertisers and sustaining members. We are grateful for the businesses, universities, and organizations who support OMEA and our members.

As Erika Lockwood started her term as OMEA’s 45th President, your executive board worked throughout the summer in preparation for the year. Laura Arthur joins the executive board in the newly created Public Policy Chair. She will be taking OMEA’s mission and vision to policy makers and stakeholders throughout the state.

Preparations for OMEA’s annual All-State and Conference weekend in Eugene continue. Kelly Moore, Elizabeth Soper, and Kristi Stingle are hard at work to deliver a jam-packed event! Please remember to register for the conference by December 31st to take advantage of the Pre-Registration rate.

As your OMEA Board of Control continues to look ahead this school year with professional development events, festivals, and advocacy; it is just as important to look back. Since the spring journal was released at the end of April, several pillars in our music education community passed away.

The 2002 recipient of OMEA’s John C. McManus Distinguished Teacher Award, Jane Forvilly, passed away on May 17, 2024.

“Some specific events in her early years seemed to Jane to be key factors in the blessings of her life. Her family was part of the WWll migration from interior states to the Pacific Coast to work in wartime industries. Thus Jane’s 1st music activity was in schools able to provide broad opportunities and perspectives. Their post-war return to Conrad, MT and her entry into high school coincided with the arrival of a new music director who didn’t recognize any compromise with quality just because it was a small town. That philosophy and expectation of achieving high quality was one Jane hoped to impart to students throughout her 38-year teaching career. Her effort was to be ‘at task’ purposefully. Rarely, when the first period band was especially sluggish, she would lead the group in a quick run twice around the band building ... to the delight of some and dismay of others.”

Excerpt from the Eugene Register-Guard

She retired in 1990 after

teaching 37 years in the Fern Ridge School District. Staying active in retirement, she maintained membership in the Eugene Symphonic Band and organized and led the West Lane Community Choir.

A Past-President of the Oregon Band Directors Association, Mrs. Forvilly was the first woman of high school and college directors invited to membership in the Northwest Bandmasters Association.

Lynn Sjolund, twice elected OMEA President, passed away April 29, 2024. He was first elected as the 16th President from 1968 – 1969 and again from 1980 – 1982 as the 22nd President all while directing the choir program at Medford High School. He went on to found and direct the Rogue Valley Chorus for over 40 years.

Mr. Sjolund graduated from the University of Oregon in 1951 and was named its 2014 Distinguished Alumnus.

After retiring from the Medford School District he continued teaching at Lewis & Clark College, the University of Oregon, and Southern Oregon University.

“A beloved music educator in the Medford School District passed away last month at the age of 95. Lynn Sjolund left a lasting legacy in the hearts of his students, colleagues, and community. For almost 40 years, Sjolund taught at Medford High and North Medford High.

“His choirs consistently won state competitions, and he was awarded the National Music Educator of the Year,”

stated Andrea Brock, Mcloughlin counselor and former MSD choir teacher.

Brock said her connection with Sjolund began at the University of Oregon, where Sjolund was a professor. “He and his wife, Doris, became our family,” Brock recalled.

She emphasized Sjolund’s unique voice and the warmth it exudes. “You couldn’t help but listen to him,” Brock said. “His voice had such a warm resonance”

Despite not having children of their own, Lynn and Doris Sjolund made everyone feel like part of their family. She highlighted his ability to unite musicians and singers, often hosting gatherings filled with singing and laughter. “He made me feel like his kid,” Brock said. “His legacy is to keep people singing and involved with music.”

Shayne Flock, North Medford High School Choir Teacher, met

Jane Forvilly

Lynn Sjolund

At Northwest Nazarene University, over 20% of the student body is involved in a music ensemble, exploring opportunities in vocal, instrumental and commercial music. With a variety of degrees, ensembles and music scholarships available, NNU o ers a dynamic environment for musicians of all interests.

IDAHO'S PREMIER CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY

A NEW VISION FOR OMEA

Erika Lockwood OMEA President

Dear Oregon Music Educators,

It is my privilege to announce our new Mission and Vision statements for OMEA. These were crafted over the summer in several work sessions with board members, utilizing feedback from educators of all levels across our state.

VISION: OMEA will serve as the trusted source for music advocacy in Oregon and will strive to increase the quality and accessibility of music education in our state.

MISSION: OMEA supports music educators and advocates for equitable access to a high-quality and comprehensive music education for all students in Oregon.

These statements were designed to guide our work and conversation in board meetings, initiatives, professional development, and advocacy strategies toward a strategic plan. While the strategic plan itself is a living document and still being drafted, these guiding statements are now reflected in our Policies and Procedures, along with the core beliefs that define our mission statement.

OMEA BELIEVES IN…

1. Supporting Music Educators: conference, connection, communication, mentorship, recognizing excellence

2. Increasing Equitable Access: Educating stakeholders on allocating resources, removing systemic barriers for student participation, collaborating with state-level policy makers

3. High Quality Music Experiences: Student performance events, professional development, advocacy for district-level supports

4. Comprehensive Music Education: Standards-aligned PK-12 learning, variety of inclusive offerings and disciplines, connections to higher education, career pathways, and lifelong music learning

5. Prioritizing All Students: Across Oregon, across all music disciplines; every single student deserves music education

My hope is that these beliefs reflect the support you would like to see from your Music Education Association. We know we have work to do to engage with members in rural areas, small schools, and elementary educators in every district. We are working to engage with administrators, legislators, and stakeholders throughout the state to improve the day-to-day learning conditions for you and your students, not just to run successful conferences and festivals (which we will continue to do!).

To this end, we have hired Laura Arthur as our new Public Policy Chair who will be creating relationships with policy makers, educational leaders, and arts organizations to work toward these goals. See her article in this journal to learn more.

We know we are stronger together - will you join us? Your OMEA District Chairs are outstanding leaders who want your voice to be heard. Reach out to them, attend your district meetings, help host an elementary honor choir in your area, perform for your school board, district office, or city/county council to spotlight the wonderful work you do. This is advocacy, and when we work together, we can accomplish so much… and even have fun!

Please don’t hesitate to reach out if there is anything we can do to support you and your colleagues. Keep engaging with us, and I will see you at our State Conference in January!

Acknowledgments

Many thanks to those who completed the Strategic Planning survey last spring, as well as the Mission/Vision drafting committee: Laura Arthur, Cole Haole-Valenzuela, Kelly Moore, Ben Lawson, Cynthia Navarro, and Amanda Sarles.

(graphic text taken from this document: https://docs.google. com/document/d/1neJe6LCCfiAdpKf9tKOQRsQiSjyylvA0woXk W8PZF3k/edit?usp=sharing)

JOIN US FOR OREGON SYMPHONY YOUTH CONCERTS AND MORE!

IMMERSIVE MUSICAL EXPERIENCES FOR K–12 STUDENTS, INCLUDING:

• Kinderkonzerts (K-2nd grade)

• Young People’s Concerts (3rd-8th grade)

• Link Up (3rd-5th grade)

• Prelude Performances at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall

• Rehearsal Visits to the Oregon Symphony

• Coachings, Masterclasses, Guest Artist Visits VISIT WWW.ORSYMPHONY.ORG/EDU TO LEARN MORE OR CONTACT: EDUCATE @ORSYMPHONY.ORG | 503-416-6329

RESONANCE: Building Human Connections Through Music

Kelly Moore OMEA 2nd Vice President

After a full and challenging summer, I felt most like myself when I started making music with my students again. As the year begins and our music educator organization collaborations are ramping back up, I feel my most inspired. I am so excited to invite you to the 2025 all state conference in Eugene, OR. We have meaningful sessions for all, an inspired keynote speaker, and electrifying banquet performers.

Attendees of the conference can look forward to a keynote address as well as two conference sessions from Dr. Peter Boonshaft. Called one of the most exciting and exhilarating voices in music education today, Peter Loel Boonshaft has been invited to speak and conduct in every state in the nation and around the world. Honored by the National Association for Music Education and Music For All as the first recipient of the “George M. Parks Award for Leadership in Music Education,” Dr. Boonshaft is Director of Education for Jupiter Band Instruments. Dr. Boonshaft is the author of the critically acclaimed bestselling books Teaching Music with Passion, Teaching Music with Purpose, and Teaching Music with Promise. He is also coauthor of Alfred Music Publishing’s method book series Sound Innovations. Additionally, his weekly “Boonshaft’s Blog” for music educators continues to inspire teachers everywhere. He was on the faculty of Hofstra University in Hempstead, NY, where he is Professor Emeritus of Music.

Make sure to attend the Saturday evening banquet, and Sunday morning conference sessions because PROJECT Trio will blow you away! PROJECT Trio is a dynamic and innovative music group known for their genre-blending performances and captivating stage presence. The trio pushes the boundaries of

traditional chamber music with their unique fusion of classical, jazz, hip-hop, and world music influences. With virtuosic musicianship and contagious energy, PROJECT Trio has gained worldwide acclaim for their electrifying performances that defy categorization and captivate audiences of all ages. Their creative and adventurous approach to music-making has earned them a devoted following, making them a trailblazing force in the contemporary music landscape.

When the conference approaches, take a look at the schedule in its entirety; you never know what sessions might inspire you the most. Additionally, I am happy to share that lunch time “Dine Arounds” will continue at the conference this year. Members will host groups such as LBGTQIA+ Music Educators, BIPOC Music Educators, Small School Teachers, and more!

Have a wonderful fall season, and I will see you at the conference!

Securing District Support for OMEA Conference Attendance: EFFECTIVE STRATEGIES

Elizabeth Soper OMEA Conference Chair

Attending the OMEA conference offers invaluable professional development for music educators, but securing district support can be challenging. As we approach this year’s conference, here are key strategies to help you navigate the funding process successfully.

Identify and Access Funding Sources

Districts often allocate Professional Development (PD) funds to buildings, which can cover conference registration, professional membership fees, and other related costs. Some districts also use general funds or specific music funds to support their educators. If district funds are unavailable, explore using your Student Body Account (SBA), Boosters, or find a potential grant.

Know Who to Approach and When

Start early — ideally in the fall — to allow time for substitute assignments and discounted registration rates. The primary contact for funding requests is usually your school principal. Understanding the budget categories and processes is crucial. Ensure you know whom to ask, what funds are available, and the procedures for accessing them.

Present a Strong Case

When requesting funding, provide a detailed breakdown of expenses, including registration, lodging, mileage, per diem, and substitute costs if applicable. Highlight the conference’s benefits including professional development specific to music education, relevance to current educational trends, and alignment with Oregon’s educational priorities. Emphasize networking opportunities and the potential for earning Professional Development Units (PDUs) or college credit through Western Oregon University (WOU).

Demonstrate Impact

Show how attending the conference will positively affect your teaching and benefit your students. Point out relevant sessions that address your needs—whether it’s new methods for incorporating music theory, culturally relevant repertoire, or effective teaching strategies. Clearly connect these benefits to improved student outcomes and enhanced teaching practices.

Prepare Effective Documentation

Create a clear, concise one-page document outlining the cost breakdown, a link to the conference schedule (available on our website), and a compelling argument for why the conference is a valuable investment. This document should provide all necessary information for administrators to make an informed decision.

Follow Up and Persist

Send a follow-up email to administrators and schedule a reminder date to revisit the topic. Include key details such

as deadlines for early registration and cost estimates. Don’t hesitate to be persistent — keeping the conversation active can help ensure your request is reviewed.

Address Denied Requests

If your funding request is denied, inquire about the reasons behind the decision. This can reveal alternative funding sources or provide insights into other ways to finance the conference. Engage your administration in brainstorming additional funding methods or resources. Remind your administrators that the OMEA conference is the best way for you to access music specific professional development.

By asking early, providing detailed information, and justifying the impact of the conference, you can increase your chances of securing the necessary support for attending the OMEA conference. We hope to see you there!

ALL-STATE CHAIR UPDATE

Kristi Stingle OMEA All-State Chair

I am honored to serve as the OMEA All-State Chair and am excited for this year’s experience in January! The Executive Board, All-State Managers, and Conference Planning Team members have been working hard to bring all the details together for this year’s experience.

The All-State managers have put together a terrific line up of conductors to create music with the 1,200+ students that will be participating in January. Each of the conductors will be presenting at the conference, and we’d love to see you attend their sessions throughout the conference. They are looking forward to connecting with you!

You are also invited to attend rehearsals! That was one of my favorite parts of serving as an All-State Manager - being able to watch the rehearsal process and see how the conductor connects with the students in such a short amount of time. These hours also count towards your Professional Development Units! Audience space may be limited in some venues (namely the U of O), but you are welcome to attend. The ensemble managers may have suggestions on where to sit. Locations and rehearsal times will be posted in Guidebook during the conference.

2025 OMEA All-State Ensembles

Elementary School

• Choir - Janel Huyett, Mesa Public Schools, Arizona

Middle School

• Band - Darcy Williams, Stiles Middle School, Texas

• Orchestra - Richard Meyer, Composer, California

• Tenor-Bass Choir - Brian Winnie, Western Illinois University, Illinois

• Treble Choir - Jeffery Redding, University of Central Florida, Florida

High School

• Jazz Band - Joseph Lee Jefferson, St. Olaf College, Minnesota

• Wind Ensemble - John Lynch, University of WisconsinStevens Point, Wisconsin

• Symphonic Band - T. Andre Feagin, Central Washington University, Washington

• Tenor-Bass Choir - David Morrow, Morehouse College, Georgia

• Treble Choir - Julie Yu-Oppenheim, Oklahoma City University, Oklahoma

• Orchestra - Christopher Fashun, Belmont University, Tennessee

Updates for 2025

Returning for a 2nd year: All-State Scholarship Lottery

The OMEA Executive Board is committed to finding new ways to reduce barriers for students and teachers across the state to participate in educational opportunities. To that end, for this year’s conference, we will hold a scholarship lottery. One deserving student from every OMEA District will be selected to receive a 50% scholarship toward their All-State registration fee.

Students must be accepted into an All-State ensemble, and will have opted-in to the lottery as part of the registration process. Recipients of the lottery will be notified via email and their tuition rate will be reduced in Opus prior to the registration being due.

The High School Choirs will return to the Valley River Inn, and their renovations look beautiful. We are confident the high school choir members will enjoy being housed at the VRI. The choirs will be rehearsing at local venues that they still can access in the event of weather. We hope one day to have the choirs both rehearse and be housed at the Valley River Inn for the entire experience, but unfortunately the ballrooms are not available to us in 2025.

The All-State Registration window timeline will be shorter this year, in order to get music into students’ hands earlier and give them more time to practice before arriving at All-State in January.

• If you have a student that has been accepted into an ensemble, please confirm with them their acceptance, and let them know that they should also be receiving notification from Opus.

• If an accepted student declines their spot, please notify OMEA as soon as possible to give another student an opportunity to perform.

• Registration information: Students and their parent/ guardian will, in most cases, be filling out the final registration information on Opus. In some cases a school will register students on their behalf. Either way, It is vital that the registration information be correct, namely contact names, phone numbers, and anything else that may be needed in the event of an emergency

October 21 - November 1

All-State registration open. Payment window closes at 11:59:59pm on November 1. If a student decides to decline their spot, please let us know as soon as possible.

November 2 - November 15

Add/drop/alternates notified and registration and payment completed by all participants.

November 20

Student music and information sent to schools/ teachers via email or mail. Please distribute to your All-State students as soon as possible.

January 16 - 19, 2025

All-State event is held in Eugene, Oregon.

All-State Reminders:

• Teachers who have students participating in All-State must register and attend the conference per OMEA policy. More details may be found on the OMEA website.

• Please emphasize with your students and families that there are no refunds for audition fees. Once students have registered for All-State, that money is immediately earmarked for group expenses that cannot be changed or refunded, with some exceptions. Please review the OMEA Refund Policies on the OMEA website under the “All-State Event Information” tab and click on 2025 OMEA Refund Policy.

• Participants in All-State may want to consider purchasing Travel Insurance to protect their investment. Companies such as Allianz, Faye, and Travelex all have reasonable rates based on the cost of the registration and any other expenses you may want to add into your quote.

If you have any questions or suggestions related to the student experience at All-State, please email Kristi at allstatechair@gmail.com.

We are looking forward to seeing you at the 2025 OMEA Conference!

SUMMERTIME—IS THE LIVING EASY?

Dusty Molyneaux NAfME Northwest Division President

“One of these mornings, you’re going to rise up singing….”

I don’t know. The classic Gershwin song from Porgy and Bess, “Summertime” is not really calling to me as I write this column at the end of July.

Summers are hard for me anymore. I think they are for most educators in America now. When I was a young teacher, the older teachers in my buildings told me the three best things about being a teacher were June, July and August. I do think that being a teacher back a few decades ago was a little more relaxing in the summer. There was very little professional development going on, there were no curriculum rewrites, and in many places teachers made enough money that they did not need to work full time in the summer just to pay the bills.

Much of that has changed. Young teachers have loads of student debt now, inflation can’t keep pace with the salary schedules we have. Many young teachers are working an additional job in the summer just to survive. There are lots more work responsibilities now in the summer than there used to be. Email, text messages, social media all keep us connected to our jobs and what is going on at school. Parents reach out all the time for questions, too. And there are a lot of opportunities for professional development; camps, reading sessions, workshops and seminars abound nowadays.

On top of all of this, we also have this underlying message that has been there since the pandemic of 2020 that we need to really focus on the important things, and that message came through loud and clear that work is a gray area there. I remember telling my staff to take care of themselves and their family a lot more during the pandemic, and that health and caring for loved ones was the most important thing above all.

Most of our communities told us that teachers were one of the most important things in society when we had to shut down schools in the spring of 2020. Remember that? It did not take long for many in our society to condemn education though after we all came back and opened up our doors for kids. Between mask wearing or not wearing, sanitizing, social distancing, streaming events, and other protocols we all struggled with how to get back into the swing of things. And then the test results started coming back for math, reading, and other subjects and none of it was good news.

In a clinical sense, I think all of us in education are dealing with depression right now in our field. Our entire profession is in a bit of a funk. We have no money to run schools with, the kids we are dealing with are different kids because of lots of circumstances that have happened over the last few years, many parents are disengaged from the educational process, and communities are struggling with identity and their schools. In our area of the country (the NW and Great Plains), the school was the focus of the entire community, no matter what political party you belonged to or what profession you

toiled at. I’m not so sure that is the case anymore.

It’s really tough to be an educator now. I don’t feel nearly as “rested” as I think I should be heading back into a school year. I realize most of you are reading this at the start of a new school term, when it is crazy busy and there are just so many things to get done to set the tone for the academic year.

There is help though. We are definitely not in this by ourselves. I have seen that in the states I have been able to travel to thus far in my tour of duty as your NW President, and I know I will see it again this year with the states I have on the upcoming calendar as well. You have so many colleagues and resources to lean into for the school year. You have FAMILY in our profession, never forget that. They may not be blood relatives, but they are family nonetheless. And when the pandemic taught us the importance of family, I think we sometimes forget that our colleagues are part of that too.

The conferences and other events that are managed by our MEAs are wonderful ways to get rejuvenated, recharged, and reconnected with our colleagues in the profession. Mentor programs, newsletters, online forums and listservs are all fantastic ways we help each other out and lift each other up. NAfME continues to offer amazing services with our Societies and Councils, as well as partnering with other Arts and Music organizations to work together to continue to influence state, regional, and national figures about the importance of a wellrounded education that includes Music and the Arts, with well trained teachers leading the charge.

And all that I see out there with help gives me hope. Pardon me for going a little biblical, but as Paul says in Hebrews 11:1, “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see”.

I have faith in our profession of music education. I know what we do is important, and I know that we make the world a better place through music. There are lots of problems with our profession—we lack funding for many schools and programs, we have bias and discrimination to deal with, and we don’t have enough students in the pipeline to fill the positions that need teachers currently. Not easy tasks to chew through. But I know we can do it, because the work we do really does matter. I can’t see what the end results will be, but I know that the people I want to figure out these problems with are the people that I get to work with every day. Music Educators are the best and most brilliant people out there.

I sincerely wish that you have a fantastic school year for 24-25. Enjoy your students, enjoy your craft, and enjoy your colleagues. We are called to do this sort of work, and even though it is tough and draining at times, it truly is a rewarding career that makes our communities better places to live and grow up in. Take time for yourself to keep your saw sharp so that you can be the best teacher you can be on a consistent basis.

In that spirit, I invite you to attend the NW Conference in Spokane February 13-16, 2025. It will be a great opportunity for you to sharpen that saw again and give you some much needed gas in your tank for the remainder of the school year. Our theme will be “All Together Now”, and it will be a fantastic opportunity for Rejuvenation, Recharging, building Relationships through fellowship, and relaxing with some fantastic performances from across our region. And you will hopefully get a little bit of “rest” as you get a few days away from the rigor of the daily classroom.

Bless you all for the fantastic work you do for your students every day, and I hope to see you in Spokane.

I guess the song was correct after all.

“One of these mornings, you’re going to rise up singing…. and you will spread your wings and you’ll take the sky”

See you up in the clouds!

Visit the WMEA website for more information on how to register and participate.

The 49th NAfME NW Division Biennial In-Service Conference

February 13-16, 2025

Spokane, Washington

Featuring the NAfME All-Northwest, WMEA All-State, & WMEA Junior All-State Honor Groups

FROM THE NORTHWEST DIVISION CONFERENCE MANAGER

Scott Ketron WMEA Executive Director

As we transition from waking up to the sun streaming into our windows in the early morning to it being dark when we first get up in the morning, we know that school is in session. Life has hints of being back to normal, as nature cycles through another trip around the sun.

Another natural cycle is on the horizon. The NAfME Northwest Division Conference and All Northwest Honor Groups in Spokane, February 13-16, 2024. At the time of this writing screening for the honor groups is under way to be completed before the ghosts and ghouls come to our doors demanding sweets. Notifications will be emailed to teachers on November 13, 2024.

Northwest President, Dusty Molyneaux and WMEA Associate Director, Beth Fortune have done a magnificent job of scheduling. Below is a list of nationally known presenters who will be appearing at the conference. We are especially grateful to GIA Publications for providing a roster of headliners.

Confirmed Conference Headliners

• Scott Lang – Keynote

• Alice Hammel – Differences and Disabilities

• Julie Yu - Choir

• Nicole Boutros Melrose – Orchestra

• Annie Ray – Orchestra

• John Feierabend – Elementary (GIA)

• Beth Ann Hepburn – Elementary

• Lorelei J. Batisla-ong – Elementary

• Christopher Russell – Elementary (Peripole)

• Scott Rush – Band (Gia)

• Margerite Wilder – Band (Gia)

reading sessions and of course the honor group concerts all conveniently located in the vicinity of the Spokane Convention Center.

We will post some hotels with special locations and pricing on the WMEA website registration page. Bu the time you read this is it should be there. Student entourage blocks are available as well but only participants will be emailed these hotel blocks so that we don’t run out of them. Don’t panic, they must hold them for us. Honor Group Concert Tickets will be available through the Spokane Convention Center’s Ticket Manager. WMEA will post that information on our website and social media as soon as all the arrangements are signed and sealed. Tickets are required for concert entry.

We look forward to seeing you in February. Don’t hesitate to email me at scott.ketron@wmea.org if you have questions or want to say hello.

The conference schedule and registration form can be found at https://wmea.org/conference-registration/. Keep in mind that this is still early so we have withheld room locations because there is still a little shuffling taking place in the schedule. The session times and days are accurate, however. Please don’t use this schedule as the final authority as we get close to February. We expect it to change a little over the coming weeks, Never-the-less it gives you a good overview of the conference.

As per members’ comments we have avoided scheduling related sessions during the concert hours. We are hoping that our performers will enjoy full houses. There are some familiar offerings that will be available as well including an Exhibit Hall, State Breakfasts, University Receptions,

FINDING BALANCE: A High School Band Director’s Journey After a Health Scare

Ben Lawson OMEA Past President

Picture this: you’re a high school music educator in Oregon, orchestrating a symphony of teenagers and instruments. Your days are filled with music, from the sweet strains of the clarinet to the triumphant blasts of the trumpet. And let’s not forget the drumline that seems to live on its own rhythmic planet. You’re the maestro, the cheerleader, and sometimes, the supportive counselor. Life is a grand concert, but then, out of nowhere, you hit a dissonant chord—a health scare. Suddenly, you’re not just conducting an ensemble; you’re navigating a whole new score: your health and well-being.

Let’s be honest: being a band director is like conducting a circus while riding a unicycle on a flaming tightrope. You’re managing students, scheduling rehearsals, and dealing with the occasional rogue percussionist. And while the applause and accolades are gratifying, the constant hustle can sometimes lead to burnout. When a health scare enters the mix, it’s like having the entire ensemble fall out of tune. But do not give up, re-evaluate what you are doing; it’s possible to find harmony again. Here’s a candid look at how to find balance after a health scare and keep the show going.

The Health Scare: A Symphony of Panic

When your health takes center stage, it can feel like the whole world is offbeat. Suddenly, the routines you’ve meticulously crafted are interrupted by a new, unwelcome rhythm of doctor’s appointments and health concerns. It’s a jarring change, like discovering your star trumpet player is getting braces the week before festival season.

At first, it’s overwhelming. You’re used to being the one in control, managing every detail with the precision of a metronome. But now, you’re the one who needs to hit pause, reassess, and maybe even admit that you’re not invincible. It’s a humbling realization. Just as you guide your students to find their groove, you now need to find your own, balancing your health with your demanding role.

Finding balance after a health scare is akin to learning a new instrument on the fly. It takes practice, patience, and a lot of trial and error. Here are some tips to help you navigate this new score and find your rhythm again.

Finding the Rhythm: Balancing Work and Well-being:

Start by Rediscovering Your Tempo

Just as you teach your students to find the right tempo for each piece, you need to set your own. This means reevaluating your schedule and establishing boundaries. It might seem impossible at first—like trying to squeeze a grand piano into a closet —but start small. Prioritize your rehearsals and meetings, and make sure to carve out time for yourself. After all, a rested conductor is a more effective conductor.

Pass the Baton

You don’t have to be a one-person band. Delegate tasks and lean on your support system. Whether it’s your assistant director, student leaders, or even that overly enthusiastic parent who’s always asking how they can help, let them take on some of the responsibilities. This not only eases your load but also empowers others to step up. Think of it as turning your ensemble into a well-oiled machine where everyone plays a part, and you’re not the only one holding the baton.

Rehearse Your Self-Care

Routine

Self-care is just like practicing a musical piece. You wouldn’t skip a rehearsal before a major performance, so don’t skip your selfcare. Make sure you’re getting enough sleep, eating well, and incorporating some form of physical activity into your routine. If you wouldn’t let your students come to a concert unprepared, don’t let yourself go unprepared for life. It might be as simple as scheduling a weekly yoga class or ensuring you have a few moments of quiet reflection each day.

Turn the Music Down

Sometimes, all the constant noise of rehearsals, concerts, and competitions can be overwhelming. It’s okay to dial it down a notch. Find moments of silence or engage in non-musical activities that help you decompress. This could be anything from gardening to reading a good book or even indulging in a new hobby like baking or rock-hounding. Just as music has its pauses, your life needs its moments of calm.

Reharmonize Your Life

A great performance isn’t just about the grand finale; it’s also a chance to hit pause and recalibrate. Use this break to reassess your life’s tempo and make some adjustments. Maybe it’s time to cut back on the endless rehearsals or finally take that vacation where your biggest decision is what wine to have with dinner. Think of this as your opportunity to change the tempo and find a new rhythm. Even the most dedicated musicians need a rest from the spotlight now and then!

Navigating the Pitfalls: What Not to Do

Finding balance as a band director is crucial, but it’s easy to hit some sour notes along the way. Here’s how to avoid the common pitfalls:

Don’t Overextend Yourself:

It’s tempting to take on every task and prove you’re still at the top of your game, but overcommitting can lead to burnout. Just as you wouldn’t expect your band to play a challenging piece without enough practice, don’t expect yourself to handle an overloaded schedule. Stick to a plan that works for you, and don’t be afraid to say NO when needed. Keeping a balanced workload helps you stay effective and well-rested.

Don’t Neglect Communication:

Keeping your students and staff in the loop is as important as making sure every section of the band is in sync. Being upfront about your situation helps everyone understand what’s going on and avoids confusion. This way, no one will think you’re just taking an extra-long lunch break instead of handling important matters. Clear communication ensures everyone stays on the same page and maintains a positive educational environment.

Don’t Ignore Warning Signs:

Just as you listen carefully for issues in your students’ performances—like a trumpet section that’s out of tune or a rhythm that’s off—pay attention to your own signs of stress or exhaustion. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, take a step back and address it before it gets worse. Just as you’d fix a problem in a piece of music, taking care of your own well-being helps keep everything running smoothly.

In Conclusion: Finding Harmony

As a high school music educator, you’re skilled at turning chaos into harmony. Now, apply that same skill to your own life. It’s all

about finding the right balance, understanding that it’s okay to take a break, and remembering that every great performance has its quiet moments.

So, here’s to you—the one holding everything together behind the scenes. Take a moment to step back and recalibrate. Even the most seasoned musicians hit a wrong note from time to time. The important thing is to keep moving forward, stay composed, and find the tempo that suits you.

If you ever feel like you’re out of tune, remember that every great performance has its highs and lows. The important thing is to keep your rhythm and stay grounded. Remind yourself of why you wanted to become a music teacher, keep doing what you love, find joy in the music, and work on keeping everything in balance. In the end, the best performances come from staying true to your own tempo and navigating through the highs and lows with confidence.

Building a Supportive Music Education Community: UPLIFT YOUR COLLEAGUES & INSPIRE YOUR STUDENTS

Cole Haole-Valenzuela OMEA President-Elect

In the world of music education, where collaboration and creativity are key, supporting our colleagues is not just a benefit, it is essential. As music educators, we thrive in environments where we feel appreciated and valued. When we actively support each other, both in and out of our colleague’s presence, we create a culture of genuine community that benefits yourself, your colleagues, and our students.

Supporting your colleagues openly—celebrating their achievements, offering constructive feedback, and simply being a cheerleader—builds a collaborative and positive environment.

When you acknowledge and appreciate the hard work of others, you foster an atmosphere where sharing ideas and working together becomes second nature. This is crucial in music education, where interdisciplinary projects and teamwork can lead to positive student experiences. Positive reinforcement helps colleagues feel confident and motivated. When educators know they are supported, they are more likely to take risks, innovate, and grow professionally. When we work well together, our collective efforts benefit our students and enhance our overall teaching environment.

Speaking positively about your colleagues, even when they’re not around, sets a standard of respect and professionalism. Positive comments about your colleagues reinforce a culture of mutual respect. It is a reminder that we value each other’s contributions and encourages others to expand on what they

contribute to our profession. When positive talk is the norm, it encourages more of the same.

As educators, our actions speak louder than words. To actively and thoughtfully model this positive talk about other colleagues and schools with your students helps them start practicing the same. If you interact with your colleagues in a way that demonstrates respect and appreciation, your students will notice and learn from how you handle relationships. Share stories about your music friends and how they have supported or inspired you.

In your own classroom, encourage students to work together in small or large group sessions. Encourage students to actively seek out how their peers contribute to their groups. Later, have an open discussion that includes shout outs of what others are doing well. As students continue to practice positive talk, you will find a culture where students feel comfortable helping and encouraging each other.

Supporting our colleagues and modeling positive behavior for students is not just about creating a pleasant music community; it’s about fostering a community where everyone thrives. When we lift each other up, we create a richer, more supportive environment for our students to grow and succeed. Let’s make it a priority to champion one another and, in doing so, inspire our students to do the same. At least once this school year, find an opportunity to talk behind someone’s back in a positive way and share with others the wonderful things we do in Oregon!

NEW DIRECTIONS FOR OMEA: PUBLIC POLICY FOCUS

Laura Arthur OMEA Public Policy Chair

The Oregon Music Education Association has proudly introduced a new Executive Board leadership position designed to elevate our advocacy efforts and expand our influence across the state: the Public Policy Chair. Having served on the OMEA board since 2011, I am humbled and honored to step into this role with a set of objectives aimed at promoting our new OMEA Vision: OMEA will serve as the trusted source for music advocacy in Oregon and will strive to increase the quality and accessibility of music education in our state.

PRIMARY GOALS

Establishing OMEA as the Premier Music Advocacy Resource

My biggest takeaway from attending the NAfME convening in Washington DC this past June was “If you’re not at the table, you’re on it.” For too long, music and arts education in Oregon has been dismissed, marginalized, and defunded at the systems level. This can be attributed to inadequate funding streams overall combined with decision makers not understanding the positive and transformative impacts of a comprehensive music education for students.

With that in mind, my foremost goal as Public Policy Chair is to position OMEA at the table as the go-to and trusted source for music and arts education advocacy within Oregon. This involves creating and maintaining authentic connections with decision makers at every level (building administrators, district curricular staff, school boards, state education agencies, and elected officials) to ensure that our organization is included in policy discussions affecting our field. This is no small feat and will take time and focused outreach, but getting OMEA in rooms where decisions are made that impact students and educators is the first and most crucial step toward attaining our Vision.

Creating the Oregon Arts Advocacy Coalition

Following the lead of NAfME, I aim to establish the Oregon Arts Education Coalition, a group uniting our state-wide arts education organizations. This coalition will include the Oregon Dance Educators Association (ODEA), the Educational Theatre Association (EdTA), the Oregon Art Education Association (OAEA), and Media Arts educators. By bringing these groups together, we can create a unified voice that amplifies our advocacy efforts and addresses the common challenges we face as highly specialized arts educators.

Structuring Collaboration with the Oregon Department of Education

To ensure a continuous dialogue with key educational stakeholders, I will establish a structured approach to communicating with the Oregon Department of Education

(ODE). These meetings will provide a platform for discussing policy updates, addressing concerns, and fostering collaboration on educational strategies that support music education, including discussions on music standards, best practices, professional development, resources for music education in special education settings, certification, and curriculum.

Reporting Learnings from National Advocacy

Participation in NAfME’s Advocacy Leadership Force (ALF) meetings will continue to be an integral part of my role. I will be responsible for reporting key learnings and insights from these meetings back to the OMEA board and membership. This will ensure that our organization remains informed about national trends and best practices in music education advocacy, and translate these updates into actionable advocacy steps.

PRIORITY ORGANIZATIONS

In order to meet these goals, OMEA will need to partner with an array of organizations. As part of my role, I will focus on strengthening relationships with:

• Oregon Legislature: Collaborating with legislative representatives to support policies that will improve overall education funding in Oregon. This includes registering as a Lobbyist!

• Oregon Education Association (OEA): Partnering with our state-wide labor union to build their knowledge and understanding around the specialized needs of music educators, including how union issues can directly impact the unique lived experience of educators in the music classroom.

• Coalition of Oregon School Administrators (COSA): Addressing administrative perspectives on music education.

• Oregon School Boards Association (OSBA): Raising awareness of our shared aims with school district funding allocators.

• Oregon Cultural Trust: Securing support for arts funding and initiatives.

• Teacher Preparation Programs: Building strong relationships between OMEA and college music programs will benefit the long-term health of OMEA by engaging with future educators around advocacy.

• Other Specialist Educator Organizations: In addition to our arts education colleagues, targeting our fellow specialist educators, including our Physical Education, Library, and Career & Technical Education (CTE) colleagues, will help to unify our advocacy efforts across the state.

ADVOCACY & OUTREACH

To further our advocacy efforts, I will work to ensure that federal, state, and local policy updates are shared at the Board of Control meetings, monthly updates, and during the annual OMEA Conference. This transparency will keep our members informed and engaged with current policy developments.

In preparation for future advocacy events, I will coordinate the establishment of a virtual Hill Day during the 2025 legislative session, with the goal of organizing an in-person event in 2026. This initiative aims to mobilize our members and stakeholders to engage directly with legislators and advocate for our strategic goals. .

Additionally, in collaboration with the Advocacy Chair, I will oversee the curation and distribution of Music In Our Schools Month® materials. These resources are crucial for raising awareness and promoting local advocacy efforts during this important annual event.

EXCITING TIMES!

The introduction of the Public Policy Chair role represents a significant advancement in OMEA’s advocacy strategy. I am

Dear Members,

THE TREASURER’S REPORT

Todd Zimbelman OMEA Treasurer

I am pleased to present our financial report for the 20232024 fiscal year. Overall, we are in a strong financial position, reflecting the diligent efforts of our team, successful events, and the support of our community.

Financial Highlights:

1. Revenue Growth: Our revenue has seen a modest increase compared to the previous year, driven by both active membership, fundraising activities, and new revenue. This growth is a positive indicator of our sustained engagement with our members and supporters.

2. Expense Management: We have maintained careful control over our expenses, ensuring that we are operating within our budget. This approach has allowed us to allocate resources toward key initiatives while avoiding unnecessary expenditures.

excited about the opportunities this role presents and look forward to working with OMEA members, partners, and policymakers to achieve our goals. While our Vision revolves around making the organization a leader in advocacy, the underlying goal is to create and promote systems that will make your teaching life just a little bit easier, whether through more funding for FTE, a more functional schedule, a bigger budget, or better teaching resources, so that you can best support your students.

My personal values prioritize transparency, authenticity, and service, so I am eager to maintain regular and straightforward communication with the Membership of OMEA, as I work for YOU. Please don’t hesitate to reach out for support, to give critical feedback, or to offer ideas for future priorities.

Stay tuned for updates, action items, and easy steps to take to support our shared goal of ensuring access to a comprehensive, high-quality, and equitable music education for all Oregon students.

For more information, please visit oregonmea.org/advocacy or contact Laura anytime at publicpolicy@oregonmea.org

3. Net Surplus: Our financial statements reflect a net surplus, but less than last fiscal year, providing us with flexibility for future projects and a cushion for any unforeseen challenges that may arise.

4. Cash Reserves: Our cash reserves remain strong, which positions us well to meet our short-term obligations and pursue opportunities that align with our mission.

Looking Ahead: While we are pleased with our current financial status, it is crucial that we remain vigilant and proactive. The economic landscape may present uncertainties, and we will continue to monitor our finances closely.

In conclusion, while our financial health is positive and shows promising indicators, we must remain focused on our goals and work collaboratively to ensure sustained success. Thank you for your continued support and dedication.

EVERYONE BELONGS IN ELEMENTARY MUSIC

Amanda Sarles OMEA Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Co-Chair

During the televised Grammy Awards, there is a moment in the broadcast, whether scripted or spontaneous, where you pretty regularly hear someone thank their music teacher in their acceptance speech. For that brief moment every year, music educators feel seen, heard, and a sense of belonging in the industry of music making. Oftentimes, I hear music students and future music educators talk about their choir, band, or orchestra director as the source of their love of music, and I can say the same. My middle and high school band director, Mr. Randy Rhody, made a lifelong commitment to my music making. Mr. Rhody made me feel heard as a musician and student leader. Likewise, Dr. Raphael Bundage, MTSU Director of Choir Activities, also made a significant impact on my music education. While I was never in a choir he directed, my mom sang in the Middle Tennessee Choral Society and Dr. Bundage allowed me to sit in the back of the choral rehearsal hall as a squirmy eight-year-old, and watch during the Choral Society’s rehearsals. I was enthralled watching him conduct the choir. Dr. Bundage may not have known my name, but he greeted me just like the adults as we entered the rehearsal hall in MTSU’s School of Music, and he made me feel seen.

Ms. Cindy Walker was my Elementary Music teacher at Walter Hill Elementary School in Murfreesboro, TN. As a current Elementary Music teacher I would love to be able to say that I am teaching songs my elementary music teacher taught me, but I really don’t remember the specific content of our music lessons. I do remember playing the recorder and singing, that the music room didn’t have chairs or desks and that there may have been xylophones. But what I remember most about Ms. Walker’s music class was that she made me feel a sense of belonging in the music classroom. I felt that she really saw the music I had in me. She saw that I wanted to sing and play instruments. She saw that I had music in my head that I wanted to share with the world. The same music in my head that I was too scared to share with anyone else, she gave me a sense that it would be ok for me to share aloud.

Ms. Walker encouraged me to perform in the school’s Talent Show my 4th grade year. I played Für Elise by Ludwig van Beethoven, and I played the entire composition of all four pages (Beethoven, 1880). In the days after the Talent Show my peers made fun of me. They would sing the most famous motive of the piece mockingly to me as I walked down the hall and in the cafeteria. I remember Ms. Walker having my back and telling me that my performance was excellent no matter what the other students said. In my moment of dismay, she taught me the life lesson that people make fun of things they are jealous of or don’t understand. Her validation of my artistry still carries me through the hard times today.

As elementary music educators our responsibility is to create a sense of belonging in music for all of our students. I firmly believe that every student in our schools should feel like they belong in music and learn that they can express themselves musically. I strive to create that learning environment of belonging in

the elementary music classroom through consistent, positive, predictable routines and diverse representation.

The Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) “is a framework for creating safe, positive, equitable schools, where every student can feel valued, connected to the school community and supported by caring adults” (Center on PBIS | Why Implement PBIS?, n.d.). PBIS states that “safe, predictable, consistent schools are good for everyone.” I have experienced how implementing a consistent, predictable routine in the music classroom has lessened interruptions, lowered apprehension to try something new, and increased participation and positive risk taking in music making. Most of all, these routines have created a school culture of belonging in music. It all begins in the hallway, before entering the music room.

1. Empowering students to be ready to learn.

When students arrive to music they first hear me say, “Please take care of your needs, so you are ready to learn.” Then the perfectly straight, still, silent line quietly erupts into a beautiful scene of students getting a sip of water, blowing their noses, getting hand sanitizer, Band-Aids, and a few students a day asking to use the bathroom. After their needs are taken care of, they re-enter the line in a randomly created line order, quiet their voices, and we begin the process of entering the music room.

In teaching this routine, students are taught what specific needs they can care for themselves. There is a cart set up in the hallway outside of the music room with tissues, hand sanitizer, and fun decor, and I tell students that I pride myself in having the “best nose blowing station in the whole school”. I remind students that being ready to learn in music class means being ready to sing, and we can’t sing if we have a stuffy nose. I will sometimes join along and blow my nose alongside students in the process of getting ready. When I normalize the basic need of blowing a nose, students will take care of that need as part of their routine.

I also establish that just as I can’t be my best teacher if I’m thinking of something else, the students won’t be their best learners if they are thinking about needing to use the restroom. I tell students that I go to the bathroom before they come to music class, so I can also be ready to teach, and I expect the same from them. Modeling what it means to be ready for class and encouraging students to go to the bathroom before coming to music has resulted in only a few students requesting to go to the bathroom during this section of the opening routine. While it could be predicted that too many students would want to take advantage of this time and mess around in the bathroom, this has not been my experience over years of this routine. While there is still the occasional moment where a student (most of the time in the primary grades) needs to go to the bathroom during the music lesson, this expectation has resulted in more time learning in music class and less instructional time lost managing bathroom needs.

2. Affirming students in who they are

Next I say to students “Please be ready to state your affirmation as you enter the music room so I can affirm you in who you are. Please remember to take a mindful pause at the music room door and choose the affirmation you want to remember today.” On the inside of the music room door are cards stating the music room affirmations, each with the precursor of “In music class, I am….” The idea for the affirmations came from a character banner purchased from Teachers Pay Teachers. Instead of the poster being just a classroom component, I utilize it as student affirmations and a part of our opening routines. Students stop at the door where I am standing, state their affirmation aloud, and I respond with “Yes you are, (enter student’s name).” Then they enter the music room.

The affirmations used fit my teaching style and learning goals for students. This is a part of the routine that teachers in any subject area could adopt with subject-specific language to encourage students. The affirmations remind students that in music class they are important, brave, and loved. It is always a fun moment when a student who is still learning to read the affirmations says, “In music class I am a lover” instead of “in music class I am loved.” These moments result in giggles and growth.

3. Reminding students how we learn together

Once everyone is in the music room on their dots (whether assigned or student choice), I thank students for stating their affirmations reminding them once again they are all of the affirmations every time they come to music. I say to students, “Now let’s remember how we agree to learn together in music.” Then we read, say aloud, and sign (with American Sign Language) our learner agreements. “We agree to…, We agree to…, We agree to…, etc.” Then we stand up to sing.

The learner agreements are my version of the “In this classroom…” posters that can be found in classroom management strategy suggestions. As elementary music teachers we teach across multiple grade levels and most importantly multiple developmental stages of learning. After years of trying to have multiple classroom expectation statements for different grades, I realized that I was making it more complicated than it needed to be. I found the learner agreements work for all grade levels and create a consistent expectation in music class. In keeping with the same expectations for all musicians in kindergarten through fifth grade, students return to music every year with prior knowledge of the expectations in music that is expanded on as students develop new depths of knowledge. This approach avoids creating the endless list of “in music we don’t…” and focuses on the positive expectations of “in music we agree to…” statements.

The consistent learner agreements across the whole school have also built in positive behavior language. Instead of falling into the “What are you doing?” trap of behavior corrections, the language is centered on the learner’s expectations. During the learning, I will say “How is this helping us (insert learner agreement)?” Or I’ll ask, “Are you meeting the learner agreements right now with what you are doing?” Students will respond honestly and correct their mistakes. Sometimes this encounter will result in a student saying that they don’t know what they are supposed to be doing, and then I get to show them. That moment gives me the opportunity to know who can

easily follow instructions verbally and visually and who needs further modeling to understand what to do. I don’t need to ask a student, “Why are you talking?” I need to quickly learn why the student is not meeting the expectation of learning and creating. The student’s talking is communicating that the student has an unmet need in the learning process: maybe misunderstanding the instructions or maybe the student needs more attention than they are receiving. Regardless of the need, the language around the agreements and meeting expectations avoids the verbal clash of students’ defense of misbehavior and allows the encounter to be a quick resolution of addressing a need and getting back on task.

4. Singing together

“Music is the one art we all have inside. We may not be able to play an instrument, but we can sing along or clap or tap our feet” (Rogers, 2003). At the beginning of the pandemic when preparing to teach online, I realized that children had been learning through a screen for decades and immediately turned to Fred Rogers’ example in Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood (Rogers, n.d.). I thought to myself that if Mister Rogers could sing with students through television, then I could sing with students through an online, live music class. I recognized that he began each episode with “Won’t You Be My Neighbor” that signaled the beginning of time together (Rogers, 1967).

Noticing that I would be teaching music through the screen in the homes of students, I wanted to create the same experience of when you hear this song, your music class is beginning. I sat down at the piano and composed, “Oh I wonder what we’re learning today. Oh I wonder what we’re learning with our friends today. Oh I wonder what we’re learning today, we’ll see, we’ll see, let’s see.” When we returned to in person learning I fully anticipated leaving the song in our online experience, but students returned to the music classroom ready to sing it together at the beginning of the lesson. To this day, it remains the final component of our opening routine. We stand and sing “Oh I Wonder” together, and then jump into learning. There have been many times that I have been so ready to start lessons that I have forgotten to sing “Oh I Wonder” yet, a student will raise a hand to remind me that we have to sing our song first.

This opening routine of taking care of needs, stating who we are and affirming ourselves, remembering how we learn together and singing together is followed at the beginning of every music lesson for every grade level. Following the routine has helped build a safe learning community and create a welcoming space for students to make and create music. Coming to music each week, students know what to expect in the hallway, at the music room door, once in the music room, and what will happen first in the lesson. This consistent routine has given students the opportunity to transition well from other areas of the school to the music lesson.

Now that the first five minutes of the music lesson is complete through the opening routines, students are ready to learn, ready to create, ready to sing, ready to play, and ready to belong. While the elementary music curriculum tends to be unique to each teacher, one element of belonging needs to be present in all elementary music lessons—representation.

2. Affirming students in who they are

3. Reminding students how we learn together

them. That moment gives me the opportunity to know who can easily follow instructions verbally and visually and who needs further modeling to understand what to do. I don’t need to ask a student, “Why are you talking?” I need to quickly learn why the student is not meeting the expectation of learning and creating. The student’s talking is communicating that the student has an unmet need in the learning process: maybe misunderstanding the instructions or maybe the student needs more attention than they are receiving. Regardless of the need, the language around the agreements and meeting expectations avoids the verbal clash of students’ defense of misbehavior and allows the encounter to be a quick resolution of addressing a need and getting back on task.

4. Singing together

5. Representing students in the curriculum

I started taking a critical look at what cultures and traditions were represented in the music curriculum and I felt overwhelmed. To find a sustainable pathway forward, I looked to the recognized heritage and history months for a guide to monthly celebrations (State Department Celebrates Heritage and History Months - United States Department of State, 2023) (American Library Association, n.d.). These guides offered a starting point that aligned with heritage months already being celebrated in other areas of the school. After spending time incorporating these heritage months in the music room, I then looked for gaps where any students in my school were still not being represented or celebrated. Those specific heritages were then included through published books that center on a story from the student’s heritage. While this approach could create unintentional exclusion, it has served as a positive step forward of inclusion in the music room.

When a student sees a person who looks like them playing an instrument, singing, conducting, composing, dancing, winning awards, leading a band, honoring a cultural tradition, then that student sees themselves as an instrumentalist, a singer, conductor, composer, dancer, award-winner, band leader, cultural bearer. Students must see examples of musicians who look and sound like them. The examples can be found when we take the time to search for them. We cannot depend on our music curriculum, however current or outdated, to provide the relevant examples of diversity that represent our students. We must prioritize finding the example to show in class that represents the cultures and traditions of music making around the world and around our communities. It is our responsibility to show that musicians are from every race, age, color, sex, national origin, physical or mental disability, or religion. With this representation grows the understanding that music is everywhere, for everyone and that everyone belongs in music.

This fifth element of creating a classroom of belonging is fueled from my own experience in music. When I was a drum major in the late 1990s in small town Tennessee, I realized that I was an outlier. The other field commanders stood on the field at the end of the marching band competition with the band directors. I noticed that I was one of only a few girls in the field commander position. I noticed that the majority of band directors were men and more specifically, white men. I noticed that it felt like I was an outsider on that field. This feeling was not coming from my band director, but rather a collective recognition. I wanted to look up and see someone that looked like me in this career so I would know that I belong in music at the collegiate and professional level. I wanted to be a band director and see another example of someone who looked like me who had succeeded in this field. I needed a model to follow and I didn’t find it, then. Luckily now, we have many more music educators who look like and sound like their students.

Building a learning environment of belonging happens when students are given the agency of choice and know that I trust them in their choices. I trust that if a student says that they are thirsty, then they are thirsty. I also have paid witness to other educators hear a student say they are thirsty and then tell the student that they shouldn’t be thirsty because they were just given a water break thirty minutes ago. I choose to create a routine where I facilitate students taking care of their needs and getting themselves ready to learn.

Before implementing this opening routine, I found the music lesson being directed by the emotional leftovers of the students’ previous experience. The students would want to continue a discussion from their classroom or air their grievances from recess. Students would want to talk about what they had for breakfast or what they were doing after school and I would want to listen, but I would feel the rush to start the lesson. Now, students still get the opportunity to share all of those life experiences with me at the music room door during their affirmation.

As students learn how the affirmation process works, students realize that the affirmation step is a vital part of their “being ready to learn”. They are reminded that if they have something on their mind, then I want them to share that with me at the door. Students are coached to know that tending to hurting feelings is necessary for their being able to learn. They are encouraged to share what they need to talk about so they can come into class feeling good about themselves and ready to create. And they do share! They know they will get my full attention and they can tell me anything they need to share at the door. It has become a flourishing practice that tends to the students’ needs through an approach that builds an authentic, trusting relationship.

Students know that if they have a need, then I will help them meet that need. Every so often in this moment of the routine I have heard a student say, “I am hungry.” I inquire about what they have or have not eaten and then give them the option to go to get a snack or breakfast. Our school setting has created appropriate rooms in the school where a snack or breakfast after the bell is offered. I thank students for telling me of their need and encourage them to go meet that need of hunger. So far, those students have returned to music class in a timely manner and ready to learn.

There have also been times where a student has said their affirmation and then told me something that was reportable. At that moment, I ask the student if they want to talk to a counselor or someone else before coming to music. This is one of those rare occasions where the priority of teaching the student music becomes secondary to meeting the child’s basic needs of safe shelter and connecting with a trusted adult. Students hear me say on the regular that I am here to help them, that I care for them, and I love them. Those words are put into action at the music room door, during our affirmation time.

The opening routines stay the same even in my absence with a substitute teacher. I prepare students to lead each of the elements of the opening routine. Students have jumped at the opportunity to lead the affirmations and say, “Yes you are” to their peers. Students frequently ask if they can “tell everyone to meet their needs”. Students also love leading the learning agreements and the opening song. While they aren’t offering to sing it by themselves, they are asking if they can stand in front of the class and lead the singing and signing of it. In my sub plans I will state two or three students’ names to lead each of the components of the opening routine. Students will often tell me that they were the substitute teacher when I return to school from my absence. When I ask questions to their statement, they will then tell me that the sub asked them to lead something. Knowing that their name was listed in the sub plans and that they report being utilized gives me the reassurance that the sub plans were followed and the routines were observed.

Facilitating dependable, affirming, and expected classroom routines has created a safe and welcoming learning environment in the music room. Meanwhile, I can only represent the skin that I am in; therefore, it is my responsibility to introduce students to musicians who look and sound like them. Students’ representation in the curriculum creates a pathway of belonging in music. Everyone, everywhere belongs in music. Our most important role as music educators is to create a consistent, positive, predictable, and diverse music learning environment where every elementary aged student feels that sense of belonging in their elementary music classroom.

References

American Library Association. (n.d.). School library promotional events https://www.ala.org/aasl/advocacy/promo Beethoven, L. V. (1880) Albumblatt, für Elise. New York: Schirmer, G. [Notated Music] Center on PBIS | Why Implement PBIS? (n.d.). https://www.pbis.org/pbis/whyimplement-pbis

Rogers, F. (n.d.). Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood [TV Series (19682001)].

Rogers, F. (2003). The world according to Mister Rogers: Important things to remember. Hachette Books. Rogers, F. (1967). Won’t you be my neighbor [Song]. State Department celebrates Heritage and History Months - United States Department of State. (2023, September 15). United States Department of State. https://www.state.gov/statedepartment-celebrates-heritage-and-history-months/

OREGON BAND NEWS

Jennifer Bell OMEA Band Chair

Dear Fellow Band Directors,

I hope your year is off to a fabulous start. I have had multiple conversations with other band directors this year and the Oregon band community is gaining strides and making its comeback. I know that in my program we are moving faster than ever and growing like crazy. Each day I remind myself to find balance as my program grows. This year as you are tackling the obstacles of our profession, remember that you are not alone. A fellow band director is just a phone call, email or text away. We are here to listen, offer advice, lend you what you may need or maybe just have the answer you are looking for. We are a healthy community of colleagues just waiting to help. We all became band directors because of the band family we once had, so don’t forget that feeling and reach out through your OMEA and OBDA regional reps.

The OBDA mentorship committee is hard at work trying to connect with directors from all over the state. We are looking for anyone wanting or needing guidance or support as you navigate this career. We have band directors wanting to help and willing to go the distance to support directors teaching beginning band through high school band. Whether you want to become a mentee or mentor, are new to the job or have been teaching for years we want you to be a part of the team. Please go to the OBDA website and fill out the mentorship application

For the high school directors out there, I want to remind you of a few important changes this year in the OSAA Handbook If your goals include performing at the State Contest you will want to consult your OSAA handbook for all rules and regulations pertaining to qualifying. The Oregon Band Directors Association has a healthy Facebook page and a website full of resources that include contacts, videos, and all the documents you need to prepare for your festival season. I recommend you become a member of the OBDA and join the Facebook page. If you have any questions about OSAA rules please contact Lauren Brownrigg at OSAA: laurenb@osaa.org

OSAA Sight Reading changes:

Please refer to the Oregon Band Directors Association website under the resources tab for the Sight Reading Rubric and Form

• The OSAA will be using the Sight-Reading pilot Evaluation Form and Rubric at the 2025 State Championships for both Band and Orchestra. All qualifying events that include sight-reading in their format are encouraged to use the pilot forms.

• At the request of OBDA, OSAA approved the following changes to the Band/Orchestra Handbook.

° OSAA Band/Orchestra Handbook Section 6.8.3. (Changes in red)

The adjudicator shall read or explain the

following statement to the group: “I will tell you when to open the envelope containing your music. Once each musician has music on their stand you will have seven minutes for your director to talk you through this selection. Your director may not sing, clap or communicate the rhythms in any way to you, however the director may request that you finger the notes and/ or sing them back and/or clap rhythms. Your director may snap, tap, clap or conduct tempo You may not play your instrument at any time during this seven-minute period; any student playing an instrument

° OSAA Band/Orchestra Handbook Section 6.8.4: (Changes in red)

The adjudicator shall ask if there are any questions. When questions have been answered, they shall instruct the group to remove the music from the envelopes. Once each musician has appropriate sheet music on their stand, the seven-minute period shall begin. During the seven minutes, the director will receive a two-minute warning and a thirty-seconds warning. At the end of the seven-minute period, the adjudicator shall explain the following information to the group:

“While the group is sight-reading the music, the director may call rehearsal marks, clap, tap, sing with the ensemble etc., but an ensemble doing so will not score as high in the related caption as one that can communicate through conducting gestures alone. An ensemble may stop and restart but will receive a lower caption score for doing so.”

It is important to note that should a director need to give verbal cues to their ensemble during the Sight-Reading performance it would be reflected in the Response to Conductor caption only. The emphasis should always be on the ensemble’s musical performance. Some ensembles may need that verbal quo to perform at their best. Remember that your decisions on the podium can affect the quality of your sight-reading performance. I recommend always sightreading with your ensembles the same way you will perform in a sight-reading room so both you and your students are more comfortable and confident.

The Sight-Reading changes reflect the proposals that were approved by OBDA membership in order to add clarity and consistency to the sight-reading adjudication process and to better support the use of the pilot rubric and evaluation form.

Required Literature:

The Oregon Band Director Association has extended “playing down a level” for required literature to qualify for the state contest. This also includes the Sight-Reading room.

• These following difficulty levels are one level lower than the normal requirements on the OBDA Required Literature List (2024-2025) Updated August 2024.

° 6A: Grade 4 (or higher), 5A: Grade 3.5 (or higher), 4A: Grade 3 (or higher), 3A: Grade 2.5 (or higher), 1A/2A: Grade 2 (or higher)

• If you find music that is not on the list that you are wanting to perform you must submit your request to the OBDA through the OBDA Pre-Approval Literature List Submissions Form found under the resources tab on the OBDA website. The request will be reviewed by the Literature Committee and you will be notified of your approval or denial.

Finally, I would like to welcome our fellow orchestra directors in the state to the OBDA. Last Spring our orchestra membership proposal passed with a 93.5% approval rating to change our constitution and bylaws to allow orchestra directors the ability to become active voting members and associate members within the organization. Please communicate this exciting change and opportunity to your colleagues. Encourage orchestra directors to join the OBDA so that all our voices can be heard at the OSAA as one united front. Mark your calendar and join me at our Winter OBDA meeting on Saturday, January 18th and the OMEA Conference. Good luck in your 2024-2025 school year.

DONATE TO OMEA ALL-STATE

Use the QR Code to donate to OMEA. These funds will be used to lower the cost of participation to future All State students. Thank you for supporting Oregon’s finest student performers and their families!

Oregon Music Education Association POLICIES & PROCEDURES

ARTICLE 1. NAME & PURPOSE

1.A NAME

The name of the organization shall be the Oregon Music Education Association.

1.B PURPOSE

The association shall function as a nonprofit educational association whose purpose is to provide professional inservice educational experiences through district and state conferences, clinics, and journals for music educators and music students in Oregon’s schools. The association will provide leadership for district and state educational activities in music to serve the students of Oregon.

1.C MISSION STATEMENT

OMEA supports music educators and advocates for equitable access to a high-quality and comprehensive music education for all students in Oregon.

1.D VISION STATEMENT

OMEA will serve as the trusted source for music advocacy in Oregon and will strive to increase the quality and accessibility of music education in our state.

1.E CORE BELIEFS

OMEA BELIEVES IN…

1. Supporting Music Educators: conference, connection, communication, mentorship, recognizing excellence

2. Increasing Equitable Access: Educating stakeholders on allocating resources, removing systemic barriers for student participation, collaborating with state-level policy makers

3. High Quality Music Experiences: Student performance events, professional development, advocacy for districtlevel supports

4. Comprehensive Music Education: Standards-aligned PK12 learning, variety of inclusive offerings and disciplines, connections to higher education, career pathways, and lifelong music learning

5. Prioritizing All Students: Across Oregon, across all music disciplines; every single student deserves music education

1.F AFFILIATION

The Oregon Music Education Association (OMEA) shall function as a state unit of the National Association for Music Education (NAfME).

1.G RELATIONSHIPS

The organization shall maintain a close relationship with the Oregon State Department of Education and the Oregon

School Activities Association. Through affiliation with the National Association for Music Education and its Northwest division, OMEA shall have an active relationship with other affiliated state music education associations as provided in the constitution and bylaws of NAfME.

1.H

COMMUNICATION

The official magazine shall be called The Oregon Music Educator. The official website shall be www.oregonmea.org

The official email shall be executivedirector@oregonmea.org

The official group email messages sent to members shall be the OMEA Update/E-Blast.

1.I

MUSIC STANDARDS

The official OMEA Music Standards are the current National Music Standards

ARTICLE 2. MEMBERSHIP

1.A

ACTIVE MEMBERSHIP

Any person engaged in music education may become an active member of this association upon payment of prescribed dues. Active members whose dues are currently paid shall have the privilege of voting.

1.B COLLEGIATE MEMBERSHIP

Any college or university student within the state of Oregon who is a collegiate member of NAfME shall automatically become a member of the state organization.

2.C RETIRED MEMBERSHIP

Retired membership shall be open to former professional music educators. Full membership shall be maintained including voting rights.

2.D SUSTAINING MEMBERSHIP

Sustaining membership is open to businesses, institutions, and individuals. Sustaining members will receive the Oregon Music Educator journal and the OMEA Update. They will be listed on all major publications. Sustaining members are welcome to attend all district and state functions upon paying proper fees. Sustaining members may not vote.

2.E

MEMBERSHIP BENEFITS

Active membership benefits shall include participation in conferences, advocacy, professional development, district and state honor groups, district and state solo festivals, large group festivals, grants, member directory online, collegiate OMEA, the Oregon Music Educator Journal, the OMEA Update/ E-Blast, and more.

ARTICLE 3. DUES

3.A ACTIVE MEMBERSHIP DUES

Dues for OMEA Active Members shall be the combined total of OMEA dues and the cost of membership in the National Association for Music Education as prescribed in the NAfME constitution.

3.B INTRODUCTORY DUES

Dues for first-year teachers shall be one-half (1/2) of the OMEA/NAfME active membership dues.

3.C DUES FOR COLLEGIATE MEMBERS

There shall be no dues for collegiate members other than those required by NAfME.

3.D DUES FOR RETIRED MEMBERS

Dues for retired members shall be one-third (1/3) of the OMEA active membership dues, plus the cost of membership in NAfME as prescribed in the NAfME Constitution.

3.E DUES FOR SUSTAINING MEMBERS

Dues for all sustaining memberships shall expire on July 31st for all members irrespective of the month in which they registered.

ARTICLE 4. BOARD OF CONTROL

4.A EXECUTIVE OFFICERS

The executive officers (Executive Board) shall consist of:

1. President, President-Elect, Second-vice President, PastPresident, Treasurer, All-State Chair, Conference Chair, Public Policy Chair, and the Executive Director. Not all members of the Executive Board are voting members; see Article 5 for descriptions.

2. The following Board of Control positions shall be filled by election by the members; President, President-Elect, Second Vice President and Past-President and have full voting privileges on the Board of Control. The Executive Director will have a vote in order to break a tie.

4.B AREA CHAIRS

Where appropriate, the board of an affiliate organization shall select or elect their representative on the OMEA Board of Control. The President of the Oregon Chapter of the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA) shall appoint one member of the Board of Control. The President of the Oregon Band Directors Association (OBDA) shall appoint one member of the Board of Control. All chairs must be members of OMEA and have full voting privileges on the Board of Control.

4.C OBDA OFFICERS OMEA RESPONSIBILITIES

1. The OBDA Past-President will serve as the OMEA Band Area Chair and will be the liaison between OMEA and OBDA. This will be a two-year position where they will make recommendations for band sessions with the conference managers.

2. The OBDA President will serve as the All-State Wind Ensemble Group Manager. They will be in charge of the screening process and will work with the OMEA Executive Director on the placement of wind players and percussionists in the honor groups.

3. The OBDA President-Elect will serve as the All-State Symphonic Band Group Manager. They will also work with the President on student placement in Honor Groups.

4.D AREA CHAIRS

The following music education area chairs shall be elected by the general membership:

1. Elementary, General Music, Jazz, Orchestra

4.E DISTRICT CHAIRS

District chairs shall be the elected chairs from OMEA districts, and all chairs shall have full voting privileges on the Board of Control. Rotation of district chair elections is the spring of the even/odd year for the corresponding even/odd district. New District Chairs assume their position in the fall of the same year.

4.F STANDING COMMITTEE CHAIRS

Standing committee chairs may be appointed and terminated by the President as needed. Standing committee chairs do not have voting privileges.

4.G SPECIAL LIAISON REPRESENTATIVES

Special liaison representatives may be invited to meetings of the Board of Control as deemed necessary. Special liaison representatives do not have voting privileges.

4.H RECORDING SECRETARY

1. The Recording Secretary shall be appointed by the President-Elect with approval from the Executive Board, for a two-year term beginning July 1st following the election.

2. The recording secretary shall be appointed to record the minutes and make corrections to the minutes at each Board of Control meeting and distribute them electronically to the Executive Director to be posted on the website.

3. The Recording Secretary does not have voting privileges.

4. The term is renewable at the discretion of the new President-Elect and the Executive Board.

ARTICLE 5. BOARD OF CONTROL DUTIES

5.A GENERAL GUIDELINES

1. Titles: The elected officers of this corporation shall be the President, President-Elect, 2nd Vice President, and Past-President.

2. Term: Each officer shall serve a term of two years. An officer may be re-elected or re-appointed without limitation to the number of terms they may serve. Presidents serve three, two-year terms; first term as

President-Elect, the second term as President, and the third term as Past-President.

3. Vacancy: A vacancy of any office shall be filled no later than the first regular meeting of the Board of Control following the vacancy. Vacancies in state offices may be temporarily filled by the Executive Board upon recommendation of the President. In the event of the vacancy of the office of the President, the Past-President will assume the office of President to complete the term.

4. Other Officers: The Board of Control may elect or appoint other officers, agents and employees as it shall deem necessary and desirable. They shall hold their offices for such terms and have such authority and perform such duties as shall be determined by the Board of Control.

5. Professional Standards: All members of the Board of Control must represent the best interests of the organization and follow professional standards as set by TSPC and NAfME.

6. Board Report: All members of the Board of Control must submit a written board report before the Board of Control meetings.

5.B PRESIDENT

1. Be the chief officer of the corporation and shall act as the chair of the Board of Control.

2. Preside at all meetings.

3. Work with the Treasurer and the President-Elect to prepare an annual budget.

4. Attend all Board of Control and Executive Board meetings. Attend and help with the state conference.

5. Be responsible for the general administration of duties of the association, and serve as liaison between the NAfME office, the Northwest Division of NAfME, and the state.

6. Be responsible for the appointment of such officers and committees as outlined in the By-Laws and Policies and Procedures, and as necessary to assure that the responsibilities assumed by OMEA are carried out.

7. Maintain a continuing file and records of association business. Files of historical importance shall be given to the historian and deposited in the OMEA Historical Archives. Permanent files will be given to the Executive Director.

8. Act as coordinator and advisor to District Chairs.

9. Act as advisor to state Conference Chairs.

10. Be responsible for a journal article in each issue of the Oregon Music Educator.

5.C PRESIDENT-ELECT

1. Assume the duties of the President in the absence of the President.

2. Hold overall responsibility for all record keeping and all corporate funds.

3. Attend all Board of Control and Executive Board meetings.

4. Either record the minutes of all proceedings of the Board of Control or arrange for the minutes to be taken.

5. Authenticate the records of the corporation (minutes, records and legal paperwork).

6. Serve as general chair of the even year state conference and All-State.

7. Develop a budget for the even year state conference and All-State in conjunction with the Executive Board and Treasurer.

8. Attend the All-State/Conference (Wednesday through Monday).

9. Work the registration table at the conference.

10. Assume the office of President upon the completion of their term. If the President-Elect is unable to do so, the Immediate Past-President will assume the office of the President to complete the term.

11. Be responsible for a journal article in each issue of the Oregon Music Educator.

5.D SECOND VICE PRESIDENT

1. Assume the duties of the President in the event of the incapacity of both the President and the President-Elect.

2. Attend all Board of Control and Executive Board meetings. Attend and help with the state conference.

3. Special Duties as Assigned: In conjunction with the Executive Board, take on duties as assigned by the president and find a “special project” that will assist in the growth of OMEA. i.e. finding additional sources of revenue, website curation, assist with responsibilities set forth by NAfME.

4. Develop a budget for the state conference and AllState for the Board of Control, in conjunction with the Executive Board and the Treasurer.

5. Be responsible for a journal article in each issue of the Oregon Music Educator.

6. Select the theme, logo, keynote, banquet entertainment, and coordinate the banquet. Work with the Conference Chair to manage the odd year state conference.

7. Attend the All-State/Conference (Wednesday through Monday).

8. Work the registration table at the conference.

5.E IMMEDIATE PAST-PRESIDENT

1. Serve as the advisory officer of the Board of Control.

2. Attend all Board of Control and Executive Board meetings. Attend and help with the state conference.

3. Serve as coordinator for the exhibits at the state conference or may designate a coordinator to assume this responsibility.

4. Act as advisor to the Conference Chair.

5. Be responsible for maintaining the process and schedule for the election of new officers.

6. Be responsible for collecting and maintaining the nominations of candidates for OMEA awards.

7. Be responsible for awards and the distribution of awards at the state conference.

8. In the event of the vacancy of the office of the President, the Past-President will assume the office of President to complete the term.

9. Be responsible for a journal article in each issue of the Oregon Music Educator.

10. The immediate Past-President shall be the Advocacy Chair and can appoint a Co-Chair as desired.

11. Attend the All-State/Conference (Wednesday through Monday).

12. Work the registration table at the conference.

5.F ADVOCACY CHAIR (PAST-PRESIDENT)

1. Recruit, convene, and chair the Advocacy Committee.

2. Assist the advocacy committee to develop and maintain advocacy plans and strategies such as educating stakeholders about the importance of sequential music education taught by qualified music educators, legislative/policy recommendations/actions, outreach events/projects, mentors/consultants for local advocates, celebrations for successful local advocacy projects, an advocacy contacts list, the Advocacy social media pages, and a database of music classes currently being offered in Oregon schools.

3. Maintain and be responsible for the activities of the Advocacy Committee.

4. Report actions and progress to the OMEA President regularly.

5. Prepare and distribute Advocacy Goals to the OMEA Board of Control at board meetings.

6. Work with the Executive Director to annually update the music advocacy section of the OMEA website.

7. Represent the OMEA as a member of the NAfME Advocacy Leadership Force, or, with the approval of the OMEA President, appoint a delegate.

8. Work in conjunction with the Public Policy Chair around OMEA and Public Policy goals.

9. Collaborate with the Public Policy Chair to coordinate and spearhead Oregon’s Music In Our Schools Month® activities.

10. Be responsible for a journal article in each issue of the Oregon Music Educator.

5.G BAND, CHORAL, JAZZ, & ORCHESTRA AREA CHAIRS

1. Consult with the All-State group managers and the Conference Chair on hiring conductors for the All-State honor groups.

2. Be responsible for reviewing and recommending conference session and concert hour proposals in their designated areas and working with the Conference Chair.

3. Be responsible for a journal article in each issue of the Oregon Music Educator.

4. Attend all Board of Control meetings.

5.H CNAfME REPRESENTATIVE

1. Require a commitment for supervision by your university or college advisor.

2. Rotate every two years, if possible, between universities and colleges that have CNAfME chapters with an active, willing advisor.

3. Maintain a list of all collegiate CNAfME members and chapters in Oregon.

4. Organize and schedule CNAfME participation in the state conference.

5. Communicate with CNAfME collegiate chapters regularly.

6. Attend the CNAfME National Congress/National Assembly, report back to the Board of Control, and encourage CNAfME participation from other chapters.

7. Attend all Board of Control meetings.

8. Be responsible for a journal article in the fall issue of the Oregon Music Educator.

5.I DISTRICT CHAIRS

1. Attend or find a representative to attend all Board of Control meetings.

2. Represent their districts on the Board of Control.

3. Submit a written report for presentation at the Board of Control meetings.

4. Be responsible for coordinating all district events/ activities.

5. Consult and carry out specific duties as listed in the district chair’s handbook.

6. Compile a district roster and submit it to the Membership Chair by November 1st of each year.

7. Attend all Board of Control meetings or appoint a proxy to represent the district.

5.J ELEMENTARY CHAIR

1. Consult with the All-State group managers and the Conference Chair on hiring conductors for the All-State honor groups.

2. Be responsible for activities to assist teachers in elementary school music classes.

3. Be responsible for reviewing conference session proposals in their designated areas.

4. Be responsible for a journal article in each issue of the Oregon Music Educator.

5. Attend all Board of Control meetings.

5.K GENERAL MUSIC CHAIR

1. Consult with the All-State group managers and the conference chair on hiring conductors for the All-State honor groups.

2. Be responsible for activities to assist teachers in elementary school music classes.

3. Be responsible for reviewing conference session proposals in their designated areas.

4. Responsible for a journal article in each issue of the Oregon Music Educator.

5. Attend all Board of Control meetings.

5.L SECONDARY GENERAL MUSIC CHAIR

1. Catalog alternate courses that are being taught around the state including music production, rock band, modern band, class guitar or ukulele, mariachi, drumming, music appreciation, and others.

2. Determine how OMEA can support these teachers.

3. Seek clinicians, panelists, and performances for the annual conference.

4. Connect with other MEAs and NAfME to see how they are supporting these areas.

5. Be responsible for reviewing conference session proposals in their designated areas.

6. Be responsible for a journal article in each issue of the Oregon Music Educator.

7. Attend all Board of Control meetings.

5.M MEMBERSHIP CHAIR

1. Annually collect a list of all the music teachers teaching in each district from the District Chair by November 1.

2. Provides a non-member database to the Executive Director, which includes the First Name, Last Name, School Address and the Email Address of the prospective new members.

3. Annually requests that the OMEA board approve a new-member incentive and a membership recruitment budget.

4. Write a letter to non-members about the benefits of being an OMEA member with an invitation to attend the Annual OMEA conference in January.

5. Send the Invitational word document to the Executive Director to be mailed to the prospective new member by November 15.

6. Coordinate and implement a membership benefits session and disseminate member information at the annual OMEA Conference.

7. Work with the Board of Control in the mentoring of new members and, as appropriate, pair new members with experienced OMEA members.

8. Prepare and distribute a membership activity report and a roster of members with contact information for the Board of Control at the spring board meeting.

9. Attend all Board of Control meetings.

5.N SMALL SCHOOLS CHAIR

1. Serve as a representative and advocate for Oregon small schools.

2. Be responsible for activities and outreach for Oregon small schools.

3. Responsible for a journal article for each issue of the Oregon Music Educator.

4. Consult with the general membership and present their concerns or ideas to the Board of Control.

5. Attend all Board of Control meetings.

5.O SOCIETY OF MUSIC TEACHER EDUCATION (SMTE) CHAIR

1. Represent higher education on the Board of Control.

2. Be responsible for activities involving music teacher education representing community colleges, colleges and universities.

3. Keep the Board of Control informed of developments in the teacher preparation programs in the state.

4. Keep members informed of new developments in music and music education research.

5. Be responsible for the reviews of proposals for conference sessions in their designated areas.

6. Responsible for a journal article in each issue of the Oregon Music Educator.

7. Attend all Board of Control meetings.

5.P DIVERSITY, EQUITY, & INCLUSION (DEI) CHAIR

1. Assist the OMEA Board to develop and maintain plans and strategies around prioritizing DEI in both OMEA as an organization and in the Oregon music education community as a whole.

2. Maintain and be responsible for the activities of the DEI Committee.

3. Recruit, convene, and chair the OMEA DEI Committee.

4. Assist OMEA to create and publish a Mission, Vision, and Values Statements document through a lens of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.

5. Create annual goals for the OMEA DEI Committee and monitor and evaluate progress.

6. Coordinate with OMEA members to recruit and convene OMEA Affinity Spaces for educators from underrepresented communities, cultures, and backgrounds.

7. Advise and assist Area Chairs with diversifying required/ recommended literature lists.

8. Advise and assist All-State and Conference Chair with promoting equity best practices with student and teacher focused events, including providing DEI-focused sessions at the OMEA conference each year.

9. Work with SMTE Chair to create an action plan for recruiting, retaining, and supporting future music educators, with a focus on removing barriers for candidates from underrepresented communities, cultures, and backgrounds.

10. Regularly communicate with NAfME around opportunities and action plans around keeping Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at the center of all decisions.

11. Report actions and progress to the OMEA President and Executive Board regularly.

12. Prepare and present Board Reports at Board of Control Meetings.

13. Work with the Executive Director to maintain the DEI section of the OMEA Website.

NON-VOTING BOARD POSITIONS

5.Q HISTORIAN

Maintain archives documenting all OMEA activities and publications, and present at Board of Control meetings. Must say once per meeting “Back in my day”

5.R RETIRED MUSIC EDUCATOR REPRESENTATIVE

1. Maintain a list of all retired music educators

2. Establish and maintain a program for regular annual communication with music education retirees.

5.S SPECIAL BOARD REPRESENTATIVES AND LIAISONS

With the approval of the Board of Control, the officers and chairs of the association may delegate any of the below responsibilities to another member of the association.

• OSAA State Solo Contest Chair

• OMEA State Chamber Ensemble Championship Chair

• OSAA State Choir Championship Director

• OSAA State Band & Orchestra Championship Director

• Conference Exhibit and Sustaining Membership Chair

5.T TREASURER

1. Have overall responsibility for all organizational funds, maintaining and preparing conference and fiscal year budgets.

2. Maintain accurate accounts of all financial records of the organization, using accounting software and reconciling all accounts each month.

3. Complete deposits each month, working with the Executive Director and reconciling electronic payments.

4. Pay bills according to deadlines, in addition to paying stipends and reimbursements, after budget approval by the Executive Director and Board.

5. Present a report at every Board of Control meeting as to the financial condition of the organization.

6. Attend all Board of Control and Executive Board meetings.

7. Attend and help with state conferences, reviewing all contracts for facilities and personnel.

8. Be responsible for and work with the Executive Director in the organization and operation of conference registration.

9. Be responsible for the acquisition and updating of the Liability “Full Range Coverage” Policy for the organization. This policy will be designed to include coverage for activities of the OMEA board and its fifteen districts, including liability for conventions, meetings, music festivals and contests, honor groups, and surety bonds.

10. Maintain a close working relationship with the corporation’s certified public accountant (CPA), who will examine all financial transactions of the corporation. At the end of the fiscal year, ending June 30th, review

the finances with the CPA and present a comprehensive report to the Board of Control fall meeting.

11. Oversee and review all tax statements and all tax liabilities with the corporation’s CPA and file and pay all tax liabilities.

12. Advise OMEA district chairs and Treasurers on tax liabilities and monitor their districts’ financial activities and reports.

5.U ALL-STATE CHAIR

1. Be responsible for coordinating managers for All-State ensembles, transportation, housing, etc.

2. Oversee the All-State managers’ timeline and ensure that deadlines are met.

3. Work with the Conference Chair and Executive Director throughout the year to plan the All-State event, including rehearsal and performing venues, meals, and housing.

4. Attend all Board of Control and Executive Board meetings as a non-voting member.

5. Attend and help with the state conference.

6. Be responsible for a journal article in each issue of the Oregon Music Educator.

7. Attend the All-State/Conference (Wednesday through Monday).

8. Work the registration table.

9. Maintain close communication with the Executive Director regarding Opus as it relates to All-State.

10. Maintain efficient and effective communication with Board of Control members.

5.V CONFERENCE CHAIR

1. Serve as general chair for the state conference, addressing problems as they arise before, during, and after, in conjunction with the Executive Board.

2. Attend the conference, Wednesday through Monday.

3. Co-produce a budget for All-State and the state conference for approval by the Board of Control, in conjunction with the President and the Treasurer.

4. Be responsible for a journal article in each issue of the Oregon Music Educator.

5. Create application forms for conference sessions and concert hours.

6. Sort and send applications to area chairs for recommended session and concert hour selections.

7. Coordinate with session clinicians and concert hour conductors regarding equipment, A/V, and timeline needs and facilitate with appropriate vendors and individuals.

8. Run the registration table, help with conference checkin, and hand out presenter certificates.

9. Gather and manage post-conference feedback to improve future events.

10. Maintain communication with the Executive Director regarding Opus as it relates to Conference registration.

11. Maintain efficient and effective communication with Board of Control and Executive Board members.

12. Attend all Board of Control and Executive Board meetings.

5.W PUBLIC POLICY CHAIR

1. Develop OMEA’s public policy agenda and communicate goals to members, stakeholders, and supporters of music education in alignment with OMEA’s Mission, Vision, and Strategic Goals.

2. Coordinate OMEA advocacy and public policy work by regularly collaborating with legislative and regulatory policy makers at the federal, state, and local levels to advance the goals of OMEA and OMEA members

3. Collaborate with the OMEA Advocacy Chair to establish and maintain the Oregon Music Advocacy Coalition

4. Track education legislation and provide timely updates to membership; Request member actions on specific legislations, including letters to policy makers, coalition sign-on letters, public comment and testimony

5. Serve as a representative to arts education coalitions at the federal, state, and local levels; Spearhead coalition work between OMEA and the Oregon Art Education Association (OAEA), Oregon Dance Education Association (ODEA), and Oregon Educational Theatre Association (EdTA) in alignment with NAfME Priorities

6. Attend relevant legislative and agency briefings, coalition meetings, hearings and mark-ups, press conferences and other policy-related meetings (in-person or virtually) to gather and present information

7. Collaborate with both arts and cultural organizations and the music products industry at the federal, state, and local level to curate relationships and communicate OMEA priorities in service of music education

8. Develop strategic advocacy campaigns and communications that result in grassroots activation of OMEA state and local membership in support of the association’s public policy agenda or in reaction to current policy issues

9. Collaborate with the OMEA Advocacy Chair to coordinate and spearhead Oregon’s Music In Our Schools Month® activities

10. Develop tools and materials to help members support music-supportive local implementation of music and arts education issues and policies, including the Every Student Succeeds Act

11. Communicate OMEA’s public policy agenda, as well as policies around advancing music education in general, on behalf of the association and members to relevant audiences through Draft legislation and report language for legislative offices and committees to advance OMEA’s policy agenda and arts education in general

12. Lead training for OMEA leaders and members on advocacy and public policy topics (in-person at conferences and OMEA district level events, as well as virtually); Offer training to school administrators on the value of arts education programs in their districts

13. Coordinate and execute OMEA’s in-person advocacy events in Salem; serve as the association’s registered lobbyist

14. Work with the OMEA Executive Board, Area Chairs, and Board of Control at Large around advocacy and public policy-related projects

15. Attend all Board of Control and Executive Board meetings. Attend and help with the state conference.

16. Be responsible for a journal article in each issue of the Oregon Music Educator.

ARTICLE 6. ELECTIONS & APPOINTMENTS

6.A TERMS OF OFFICE

1. Each elected and appointed officer on the Board of Control shall serve a two-year term.

2. Newly-elected officers will assume non-voting positions on the Board of Control until July 1st, when their counterparts leave the board, and they become voting members.

3. The Treasurer, All-State Chair, Conference Chair, and Public Policy chair serve as Independent Contractors to the Oregon Music Education Association and shall be appointed by the President. The terms of the contract are one year from the agreed upon starting date. This contract is renewable based on job performance and the contractual agreement can be ended by either party at any time by giving 60 days written notice.

6.B NOMINATING COMMITTEE

1. The nominating committee for Executive Board members shall be composed of Past-Presidents and chaired by the Immediate Past-President with the approval of the Board of Control.

2. The President shall not serve on the nominating committee.

3. The nominating committee shall present a slate of a minimum of two (2) candidates for the Executive Board by December 1. The nominating committee shall prepare ballots according to established deadlines.

4. At least thirty (30) days prior to the election, the candidates’ backgrounds, including their contributions to the Oregon Music Education Association, shall be made available on the website.

5. All other open board position nominees are to be procured by the President in collaboration with current board members and within the following time frame explained in 6.E

6. Reference the job responsibilities for specific election timelines.

1 June 1 Online nomination form posted for Executive Officer (President-Elect/2nd Vice President) candidates

2 Sept. 1

3 Nov. 1

4 Dec. 1

Past-President announces call for candidates for executive committee at Fall Board meeting, works with Past-Presidents to procure candidates. Board members are encouraged to discuss possible candidates from their area or district for nomination. Members interested in running for Executive Office or nominating a member are encouraged to complete the online form and/or contact the Past-President.

Deadline for Executive Office nominations to be submitted. Past-President and committee of former Past-Presidents work to confirm nominations and create a ballot of 2-3 qualified nominees.

Deadline for Executive Officer candidates to submit headshot, and professional biography to Executive Director to post online. This includes any candidates running unopposed.

5 Dec. 15 Voting Opens. Executive Director publicizes the election on a website, via e-blast, and on social media.

6 Mid-Jan. (conference)

a. President announces board positions due for re-appointment and re-election at the state conference during the banquet; works with executive director to publicize board openings at the registration table (signage), on website, via e-blast, and social media. Board openings are also announced at the winter board meeting. Timeline for election process is shared with membership. Members are to be encouraged to contact the President if interested in being appointed to a position or running for or nominating a colleague for an elected board position.

b. Voting for Executive Office closes Saturday at midnight. Executive Officer Election results announced Sunday morning at the Winter Board Meeting and within a week on the website and on social media.

7 Feb. 1 President and current board members up for re-appointment or re-election work together to find candidates for election.

8 Mar. 1 Deadline for board candidates to submit headshot, bio to executive director to post online. This includes incumbents and candidates running unopposed.

9 Mar. 15 Voting Opens. Executive Director publicizes the election on a website, via e-blast, and on social media.

10 Apr. 15 Voting Ends at midnight. Election results announced within one week online (website, social media) and at the Spring board meeting. Newly appointed/elected board members have the option to sit in on the Spring Board of Control meeting.

6.D VOTING BY ELECTRONIC BALLOT

Any action that may be taken at a meeting of the members may be taken without a meeting if the organization delivers a written electronic ballot to every member entitled to vote on the matter by email. The written electronic ballet shall set forth the proposed actions and provide an opportunity to vote for or against each proposed action. All solicitations for votes by written electronic ballet shall indicate that the number of ballots received will satisfy the quorum requirement and specify a reasonable time by which the ballot must be received by the corporation in order to be counted.

6.E DUTIES OF NEWLY-ELECTED OFFICERS

Newly-elected officers will immediately begin to attend meetings of the Board of Control as non-voting members until their terms begin on July 1st. Their duties include becoming familiar with the functioning of the board and with their respective job descriptions as outlined in the Policies and Procedures.

6.F VACANCIES IN OMEA POSITIONS

Vacancies in any OMEA position may be temporarily filled by the Board of Control upon the recommendation of the President.

ARTICLE 7. GOVERNMENT

7.A GOVERNANCE

The members of the Board of Control, listed in Article 4, Section 4, A-H, shall function as general administrators for the affairs of the association. Each Board of Control position listed as a voting member may vote.

7.B QUORUM

A quorum of the Board of Control shall consist of a simple majority of the voting members of the Board of Control.

7.C EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

The Executive Director may be appointed to a part-time position by the Executive Board with the approval of the Board of Control. The Executive Director will not present motions or vote; they will serve as ex-officio members. In the case of a vote by the Executive Committee, if there is a tie the Executive Director is the tie-breaker. This is the only instance in which the Executive Director has a voting right.

7.D RULES OF ORDER

Meetings shall be conducted according to Robert’s Rules of Order.

7.E BOARD OF CONTROL MEETINGS

The members of the Board of Control shall hold three regular meetings per year — fall, winter, and spring — with dates to be selected by the President. The President may call additional meetings if the affairs of the association warrant doing so.

7.F EXECUTIVE BOARD MEETINGS

The Executive Board shall hold a meeting prior to the fall Board of Control meeting. The President may call additional meetings when necessary.

7.G EMERGENCY MEETINGS

Special meetings of the members shall be held at the call of the Board of Control, or by the call of the holders of at least five percent of the voting power of the corporation by a demand signed, dated, and delivered to the corporation’s Recording Secretary. Such demand by the members shall describe the purpose for the meeting.

ARTICLE 8. ADMINISTRATION

8.A EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

The Executive Director shall abide by the Job Description and the Contract for Employment as developed by the Executive Board.

8.B FINANCES

The Treasurer and Executive Director shall be authorized to do business with the bank on behalf of OMEA.

8.C BUDGETING PROCESS

1. The Treasurer, first vice President, second vice President, and President shall meet in April to craft the conference budget for the conference occurring the following fiscal year.

2. The conference budget will be presented to the full Board of Control at their spring meeting.

3. The Executive Board meets between the spring board meeting and end of the fiscal year to create an operating budget for the following fiscal year. The Treasurer will present the operating budget to the full board for approval at the fall meeting.

4. The annual review of the Executive Director will also be held at the Executive Board meeting prior to the end of the fiscal year. This will enable the budget to accurately reflect their salary for the coming year.

5. Budgets will be kept on the website. Past budgets will remain on the website for historical purposes.

6. An accounting firm will create a “level of surety” report annually.

8.D ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES

The income from membership fees shall be applied only toward the administrative expenses of the state organization. Expenses for administration of state-level contests (solo and large groups) shall be provided by the Oregon School Activities Association. Expenses incurred by any other special activities, such as contests, clinics, All-State groups, and conferences, shall be covered by registration or enrollment fees paid by the participants unless specifically approved by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the Board of Control.

8.E TRAVEL POLICY

1. The following events are covered by the OMEA Travel reimbursement policy:

a. Fall Board Meeting

b. Conference Planning Meeting

c. Spring Board Meeting

d. Executive Retreat

e. All-State Guest (for non-OMEA Board Members)

f. National Assembly

2. OMEA will reimburse mileage at the current IRS rate. OMEA reimburses for total miles traveled (to and from) the meeting or event site.

3. OMEA will reimburse for meals that are NOT provided at the event or meeting attended.

4. OMEA will reimburse for lodging, contingent on traveling more than 3 hours away and prior to 6AM, or past 11PM

5. Reimbursements will be distributed after filling out the Travel Reimbursement Form: OMEA Mileage Reimbursement Form

8.F STRATEGIC PLAN

1. The Executive Board will revisit and/or update the OMEA Strategic Plan every two (2) years.

2. The OMEA Strategic plan should align with NAfME Strategic Plans and/or current initiatives.

3. The Strategic Plan will include:

a. Vison

b. Mission

c. Values/Beliefs

d. Strategic Goals

e. Implementation Plan & Action Items

f. Evaluation Criteria

8.G REFUND POLICIES

Visit By-Laws, Policies & Procedures page on the Website

ARTICLE 9. DISTRICTS

9.A DISTRICTS

The state shall be divided into districts by the Board of Control, with appropriate notification given to the Oregon School Activities Association.

9.B GOVERNANCE

Each district shall elect a Chair who shall be administrative head of the district’s activities. Other district offices will be filled according to district policy—either by election of the voting members of OMEA, or when necessary, by appointment. The chair shall be elected for a two-year term and take office at a spring business meeting of the district. Odd-numbered districts shall renew their slate of officers on odd-numbered years, and even-numbered districts shall renew theirs on even-numbered years.

9.C COMMITTEES

The District Chairs may, at their discretion, appoint special committees to serve within the district.

9.D RULES AND REGULATIONS

In all matters pertaining to the functions of the district business, the District Chair shall be governed by the general rules and regulations of the Board of Control.

9.E QUORUM

A quorum of the district unit shall consist of those present at a business meeting who are members of that district, provided all members have been given a two-week notice by mail prior to the said meeting.

9.F DISTRICT MEETINGS/CONFERENCES

Annual meetings or conferences of the districts shall be held each fall prior to December. Districts may join together to sponsor a fall conference if they choose. Members of the districts shall be notified by the district chair by email at least two weeks prior to the meetings.

9.G REPORTING ACTIVITIES

Activities within the district should be reported by the district chair at the Board of Control meetings and to the Executive Board when requested.

ARTICLE 10. COPYRIGHT

10.A COPYRIGHT LAW SHALL BE OBSERVED

The board established as policy of NAfME (OMEA) that copyright laws shall be observed, and that improper and unauthorized use of music and other printed materials protected under that law shall be prohibited in all conference activities.

10.B MECHANICAL LICENSE SECURED

It is the policy of NAfME (OMEA) that no commercial recording

of music at NAfME (OMEA) conventions will be permitted unless a mechanical license has been or will be secured. It is further policy that NAfME (OMEA) may offer its members recordings of sessions at NAfME (OMEA) conventions by contracting with a competent recording firm who shall act as NAfME’s (OMEA’s) agent in all transactions at conventions and for subsequent orders.

ARTICLE 11. STATE CONFERENCE

11.A STATE CONFERENCE

These conferences may be held in any community in the state upon acceptance by the Board of Control of an invitation from the community.

11.B ANNUAL STATE CONFERENCE

OMEA will sponsor an annual convention. An exception may occur in years when the NW NAfME convention is hosted in Oregon. The state conference will preferably occur on Martin Luther King holiday weekend.

11.C NAfME/OMEA TEACHER MEMBERSHIP REQUIRED

NAfME/OMEA membership is required for school music teachers to attend OMEA conferences.

11.D COLLEGIATE STUDENTS

1. Collegiate students must be members of CNAfME to attend the state conference.

2. CNAfME students must register for the state conference online prior to the conference.

11.E CONFERENCE HONORS CONCERTS

Admission will not be charged to community members or parents who attend concerts by invited performing groups serving as conference performances (rather than All-State performances). Admission will be charged for all All-State Honor Ensemble concerts.

11.F CONFERENCE MANAGEMENT COMPENSATION

See Conference Compensation Document.

ARTICLE 12. ALL-STATE

12.A TEACHER MEMBERSHIP AND CONFERENCE REGISTRATION REQUIRED

Teachers of students of all ages in OMEA honor groups shall be required to register for the full conference, pay in full, and be current NAfME/OMEA members. If found to be in violation, that school’s specific discipline (i.e., band, orchestra, choir) will be sanctioned from participating in honor groups until the bill is paid in full. In extenuating circumstances where a registered teacher is unable to attend, they may designate a fully registered proxy OMEA member teacher who is able to support students in case of emergency or disciplinary action.

12.B ELEMENTARY, MIDDLE SCHOOL, & JUNIOR

1. Elementary Honor Choir: students at the state and the district level must be selected by director recommendation, not by taped or live audition. Events not following these guidelines will not be OMEAsanctioned and may not use OMEA state or district funds. (1/12/02)

2. Middle and Junior High School Honor Ensembles:

a. Middle and Junior High School Honor Band and Orchestra: Students who wish to audition for middle and Junior High school All-State band and/ or orchestra are required to record and submit three tracks online, in order for students to demonstrate the skill sets required for All State (refer to official audition materials posted on the OMEA website for specific requirements):

i. Band: Chromatic Scale, one lyrical etude, one technical etude

ii. Orchestra: Instrument-specific scale, one lyrical etude, one technical etude

b. Middle and Junior High School All-State Honor Choir: Students who wish to audition for Middle and Junior High School All-State Choir are required to record and submit two (2) tracks online, in order for students to demonstrate the skill sets required for All-State (refer to official audition materials posted on the OMEA website for specific requirements)

i. Treble Choir: Voice-specific 8-note scale, one etude

ii. Tenor/Baritone/Bass Choir: Voice-specific 5-note scale, one etude

3. At least one student from each school will be selected into All-State provided they are ranked by screeners in the top 50% of the auditions submitted for their instrument category.

a. If submissions from an individual school are only in these instrument categories, regardless of ? ranking, there is no guarantee of school representation: oboe, bassoon, bass clarinet, tenor saxophone, baritone saxophone, and percussion.

b. Participants from a single school may be limited to eight (8) students in each ensemble, regardless of audition ranking.

4. By participating in the nomination and/or audition process, teachers agree to adhere to all deadlines set by OMEA and understand that all deadlines are final.

12.C ALL-STATE STUDENTS

1. To be eligible for an All-State honor group, the music student shall be enrolled in the class for the appropriate performing ensemble for the instrument/ voice on which they are auditioning.

2. Where there is no corresponding musical group offered at school, a student must be an active participant in another school music program at their school and have the approval of the teacher of that music class.

3. We welcome home school students as long as they are regularly participating in a school music class, offered for credit, and taught by a current OMEA member.

4. If there is an appropriate performing ensemble available at the school and the student does not participate in the school program, the student may not participate in All-State.

5. The OMEA member teacher submitting the student audition must attend the conference and accept all the responsibilities of a teacher with an All-State student, if the student is selected.

6. If there are no music classes offered in the school the student attends, students may be recommended by an OMEA member who teaches/taught the student. The OMEA member must attend the conference and accept all the responsibilities of a teacher with an All-State student.

7. Students must be regularly participating in a school music program from the time of application through the time of the event.

8. It is recommended that students meet OSAA’s academic requirements and personal conduct rules to participate in All-State. We advise checking the OSAA website to see if there are changes to the following guidelines.

9. Students are required to stay in the hotel that their performing group is assigned with other All-State students. Students with extenuating circumstances may stay in the All-State hotel with their parents upon the approval of the Executive Board. The decision of the Executive Board is final. Emails concerning special needs requests must be sent no later than 2 months prior to the event. Email requests to the Executive Director.

10. All-State participants must be registered (with all forms completed and signed by all appropriate parties) and paid prior to the posted deadline.

11. Students will not be admitted unless forms are complete and payment made.

12. Unless otherwise stated, All-State participants shall wear performance attire appropriate to their individual school music program policies.

13. No refunds shall be made except for medical or family emergencies within 10 days of the event. A letter from a physician for medical excuses, or parent/guardian for family emergencies, must accompany the request for refund. Each case will be determined on a case-by-case basis by the Executive Board. In either case, 50% of the fee will be retained.

12.D AUDITIONS

1. Teachers and students may not electronically or otherwise enhance any recordings. By submitting the audition materials online, the director attests that these conditions were met. (5/30/2015)

2. If the screening committee agrees that a recording has likely been electronically altered or enhanced, that recording will be disqualified. The decision of the screening committee will be final.

3. By submitting the audition materials online, the director agrees to adhere to all deadlines set by OMEA and understands that all deadlines are final.

4. Audition screening fees are non-refundable.

ARTICLE 13. SOLO CONTEST

12.A STATE SOLO CHAIR

The state solo contest chair shall be a President appointed position with no specified term limit. This is an OSAA sanctioned event that OMEA supports. The chair is responsible for organizing the State Solo Contest. The chair works hand-in-hand with OSAA personnel and supports OSAA rules.

12.B SUBSIDIZE ADJUDICATORS LODGING

OMEA shall subsidize housing costs for State Solo Contest adjudicators to allow each adjudicator a single room.

13.C DISTRICT SOLO CONTEST CHAIRS RESPONSIBILITIES

1. Organize the district solo contest and follow the instructions provided by the State Solo Chair.

2. Duties include communicating with district music teachers, setting the date, obtaining the venue, hiring qualified judges, creating a performance schedule, publicizing the contest, and requesting proof of insurance from the OMEA office if the venue requires it.

3. Check eligibility, as music teachers must be current OMEA members and schools must be current OSAA members.

4. Provide the dates of your contests to, OSAA, OMEA Board, and State Solo Chair.

5. Complete all of the tasks prior to the deadlines, including reporting qualifying scores and participants to OSAA.

13.D. TEACHER ELIGIBILITY & RESPONSIBILITIES

1. A teacher must be a current member of OMEA to recommend students to participate in District and State Solo contests.

2. Obtain three legal copies of the score, one for each judge. Accompanists and performers may read from work copies, but the judges scores must be legal copies (a normal, printed score, an e-print document with proof of purchase attached, a photocopy of an out of print edition with publishers’ permission to duplicate attached, or a photocopy of an unavailable or backordered part with the vendor’s receipt attached stating that the part has been purchased but was unavailable).

3. For the state contest, label scores with contestant numbers, not names.

4. Register your students for the solo contests by the posted deadlines.

13.E STUDENT ELIGIBILITY

1. OMEA will follow eligibility guidelines established by OSAA. Check the OSAA website to see if there are changes to the handbooks and guidelines.

2. Students must meet OSAA’s academic requirements and personal conduct rules to participate in the state solo contest.

3. Students must participate in an OMEA district solo contest and achieve the highest scores at the district contest to participate in the State Solo contest.

4. District Solo Contest shall be limited to students in grades 9, 10, 11, and 12. Ninth-grade students must be listed with the high school they will attend.

5. Solo contest accompanists may be adults.

6. Participants must be registered (with all forms completed and signed by all appropriate parties) and paid prior to posted deadlines.

ARTICLE 14. CHAMBER ENSEMBLE CONTEST

14.A

CHAMBER ENSEMBLE CHAIR

The state chamber ensemble contest chair shall be a President appointed position with no specified term limit. The chair is responsible for the State Chamber Ensemble Contest. This event is sponsored by OMEA and the chair is responsible to the OMEA board of directors.

14.B

SUBSIDIZE ADJUDICATORS LODGING

OMEA shall subsidize housing costs for State Chamber Ensemble Contest adjudicators to allow each adjudicator a single room.

14.C. DISTRICT CHAMBER ENSEMBLE CONTEST CHAIR RESPONSIBILITIES

1. Organize the district Chamber Ensemble contest and follow the instructions provided by the State Chamber Ensemble chair.

2. Duties include: communicating with district music teachers, setting the date, obtaining the venue, hiring qualified judges, creating a performance schedule, publicizing the contest, and requesting proof of insurance from the OMEA office if the venue requires it.

3. Check eligibility: music teachers must be current OMEA members and schools must be current OSAA members.

4. Provide the dates of your contests to the OSAA and the OMEA offices.

5. Complete all of the tasks prior to the deadlines.

14.D TEACHER ELIGIBILITY & RESPONSIBILITIES

1. A teacher must be a current member of OMEA to recommend students to participate in district and state chamber ensemble contests.

2. Obtain three legal copies of the score, one for each

judge. Accompanists and performers may read from work copies, but the judges scores must be legal copies (a normal, printed score, an e-print document with proof of purchase attached, a photocopy of an out of print edition with publishers’ permission to duplicate attached, or a photocopy of an unavailable or backordered part with the vendor’s receipt attached stating that the part has been purchased but was unavailable).

3. For the state contest, label scores with contestant numbers, not names.

4. Register your students for the solo contests by the posted deadlines.

14.D TEACHER ELIGIBILITY & RESPONSIBILITIES

1. Students must apply/register through an OMEA member music teacher.

2. Students must be enrolled in and participate in the class/corresponding school music ensemble for the instrument/voice on which they are performing.

a. If there is no corresponding music ensemble available at the school for the student’s instrument, the student may participate through an OMEA member teacher at their school, at the OMEA member teacher’s discretion.

b. If there IS a corresponding music ensemble available at the school and the student does not participate in the school program, the student may not participate.

c. If there are no music classes offered or a music teacher at the school the student attends, students may apply/register through an OMEA member outside of their school who knows or teaches the student, at the OMEA member teacher’s discretion.

3. Home school students are eligible as long as they are regularly participating in a school music class, offered for credit, and taught by a current OMEA member.

4. Students must be enrolled in their school music ensemble (or eligible through criteria listed above) from the time of application through the time of the event.

5. Students must be regularly participating in a school music program from the time of application through the time of the event.

6. Students must meet OSAA’s academic requirements and personal conduct rules to participate in the state chamber ensemble contest.

7. Students must participate in an OMEA district chamber ensemble contest and achieve the highest scores at the district contest to participate in the state chamber ensemble contest.

8. District chamber ensemble contest shall be limited to students in grades 9, 10, 11, and 12. Ninth-grade students must be listed with the high school they will attend.

9. Chamber ensemble contest accompanists may be adults.

10. Participants must be registered (with all forms completed and signed by all appropriate parties) and paid prior to the posted deadline.

ARTICLE 15. STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS

OMEA will follow eligibility guidelines established by OSAA. Please reference the OSAA Handbooks

ARTICLE 16. AWARDS

16.A PROCEDURE

1. The Past-President will update nomination forms and instructions and give them to the Executive Director to post on the OMEA website by October 1st.

2. Members, students, administrators, and parents may nominate teachers for awards.

3. A nominating committee will review and select the award recipients in December.

4. Every award does not have to be given every year.

5. More than one person may receive the same award in any given year.

6. The physical awards and presentation of the awards are the responsibility of the Immediate Past-President.

7. The awards are to be given at the state conference in January.

16.B

CURRENT AWARDS

1. Service to the Profession

2. Excellence in Elementary Music Education

3. Outstanding Administrator

4. Outstanding Music Educator

5. John McManus Service Award: The Oregon Distinguished Service Award shall be renamed the John McManus Service Award.

6. Outstanding Early Career Music Educator

7. Outstanding Middle School Music Educator

ARTICLE 17. AMENDMENTS

17.A AMENDING POLICIES AND PROCEDURES

Policies and Procedures may be amended by a majority of the voting members at a Board of Control meeting, or by a majority of voting members balloting online, provided a notice of ten days is given.

17.B PROCEDURE

Amendments may be initiated by the Board of Control, the general membership, or the Executive Director. Proposed amendments must be presented in writing.

Adopted: 5/18/13

Adopted: 9/11/14, 9/5/15, 2/4/16, 8/16/18, 1/19/2020, 9/19/2020, 4/27/2021, 7/29/24, 8/15/24

Campfire Stories: MENTORSHIP & COMMUNITY

Brigid Mayer OMEA Orchestra Area Chair

As an experienced orchestra educator in my twenty-third year of teaching, I have entered my “veteran” era. Teaching today is so much harder than it was when I joined our profession in 2002. Burnout is at an all-time high. I am certainly not immune, and have looked for ways to keep my own love of teaching alive in recent years. I continue to believe strongly in the power of a great public education, and in the importance of a high quality music education for every child. I know, without a doubt, that the most important factor in any child’s educational experience is the teacher at the front of the room.

How can we continue providing our best in today’s environment? How do we keep ourselves going, remain motivated, and stay hungry for professional growth? I have found my own answer in my relationships with my younger and less experienced colleagues.

IN STRING EDUCATION

Throughout my career, I have been fortunate to come home to another orchestra educator. My husband, Mac, and I have spent countless hours collaborating, supporting, and problem solving. Having a spouse who truly understands and is able to visualize any teaching situation I find myself in has helped me thoughtfully plan and execute quality learning and performance experiences for my students. Repertoire selection, pedagogy, sequencing, classroom management, and program administration strategies are conceptualized and refined at home, before being implemented in one or both of our programs. It is through this collaborative professional relationship that both of us have continued to grow and improve as teachers.

While I’ve always taken professional collaboration for granted in my unique home situation, most orchestra teachers are

extremely isolated. They are the only string specialist in their school, feeder pattern, or district. They may lead the only orchestra program in their region. Many of our colleagues entered the profession wishing their college or university had better prepared them to be in the classroom. To begin and sustain a career on an island is exhausting. We all need someone who knows what our lives at school are like to celebrate, commiserate, and strategize at our side.

In the past several years, Mac and I have made extra effort to support our younger colleagues. While this has looked like structured professional development at times, most of our interactions have been casual and in social environments, either at a local watering hole or in our own home. As you may guess, our campfire conversations eventually work themselves toward programming ideas, sharing school stories, celebrating classroom triumphs (small or large), or talking through problems we’re trying to solve. We have a small group of regular attendees who have also bonded through this time together. We see each other at our friends’ concerts, show up when someone has a rough day, and seek each other out to decompress at the end of a long week.

Obviously, there are many benefits in this arrangement for the less experienced members of the group. They have access to programming and lesson planning advice, materials and templates, and supportive listeners. Mac and I have much larger and more varied teacher “toolboxes” and we are able to use our experience to help our younger friends avoid difficulties we had early in our careers. They know we are there to help and encourage. They also know they can ask for an honest evaluation of their work. We have created between us a trusting and personal connection that allows us to speak with truth. My colleagues are able to text or call anyone in our group for feedback on an idea, to share their successes during the day, or for a safe ride home. They may not live with another orchestra teacher like I do, but they are now in a family of them.

What may not be as clear from the outside is what mentoring my friends has done for me. The same joy I’ve always received from seeing a young student pick up a new skill on a violin is magnified one hundred times when I get an unsolicited message of gratitude from a colleague who had success with my idea in their classroom. After so many years of predictable

and consistent results, I don’t always see what I’m doing as special or particularly skilled. When another educator uses an idea that I take for granted, and finds life changing results, I am able to take pride in my own accomplishments while celebrating their growth. When I evaluate my own daily work, I often see it through their eyes. When I do something effectively, I make a note to share. I also check to ensure I am still doing all of the things I tell them they should be doing. Our relationship has increased my own personal accountability, which is a benefit to me and my students.

As I watch these early career educators grow and improve, I take pride in the role Mac and I have had. Rather than hiding what they don’t know, they fearlessly ask for help. Rather than seeing each other as competition, they build each other up. They know that their community is richer when all of their programs thrive. Personally, I hope they have fewer days crying in their car after they leave school, and that they know they won’t go hungry before their first paycheck each year. They know our door is always open. I suppose we are helping to build the community we all should have had when we started, one which will help us stay and continue to find joy in our careers.

This small group of orchestra teachers is very diverse. On the outside, we do not have a lot in common. It is our desire to make a difference for each other and our students that unites us. It is the friendship, food, and drink shared between friends. It is empathy as only fellow string educators can provide. It is knowing we have each others’ backs that gets us through particularly difficult times of year, high pressure events, and an otherwise overwhelming and lonely day of teaching.

As you read this, I hope that you see, within yourself, a way to serve your colleagues. Perhaps you are an experienced educator; the routines, strategies, programming ideas you have would make a huge difference if shared with someone less experienced. Maybe you are a teacher feeling isolated by your physical area or a lack of collaboration in your position. You are not alone. Let’s all take the first step by reaching out to another teacher, near or far. Make yourself available. Plan a coffee or happy hour gathering. Show up for each other. If you have nobody close to you, please reach out to me so I may include you in our little group. There is always room for another around the fire.

LIGHT THE WAY

Mary Schay OMEA Secondary General Music Chair

As I start my fourth year as the program coordinator for music education at Portland State, I can promise you that the future of music education in Oregon is in great hands. I have been fortunate to work with not only our PSU students and faculty, but my colleagues at other colleges and universities and their students. Our future music teachers are curious, open-minded, and forward-looking. They embody the diversity and equity goals of our K-12 schools as they seek strategies to ensure that every child is involved in music in ways that have personal meaning and connection for them. As a music education community, we have a lot to learn from our future colleagues.

While the music education program at each of the colleges and universities in the state varies, they have one thing in common: they are preparing your future colleagues and you can help.

Remember Your Reason

Remember when you were in the pre-service phase of your teaching career? Most of us went into teaching because someone in our K-12 education inspired us. A director, conductor, or teacher showed us the power of being part of something bigger than ourselves. They pushed us to practice and perform at a level higher than we knew we could. Today’s pre-service teachers have the same experience and they want to carry it forward.

Now that you are in the field, you may have lost some of your optimism as you deal with the day-to-day minutiae of lesson planning, behavior management, score study, football games, state contests, and such, but when you talk to your future colleagues, put all of that aside. Let their enthusiasm rub off on you and share the true joys of the profession with them. This does not mean you should not share the real struggles, but focus on the elements of the job that have purpose and meaning. Don’t scare them off!

Offer Opportunities and Experience

Experience is the mother of all learning. If you want to see future colleagues who are prepared for the task ahead, offer them opportunities to gain experience. Invite them into your school to help with sectionals, give extra attention to struggling students, perform for your classes, guide special projects, lead warm ups or activities, or even take the podium. Ask them to offer feedback before concerts and contests. Nothing we do in a college classroom can teach our future colleagues as much as working with real students and real teachers.

Share Your Wisdom

Reach out to your alma mater or the local music education program to offer your time and wisdom. Perhaps you can come speak at a CNAfME meeting or visit with students after

school one day. As they shift their mindset from student to teacher, our future colleagues have lots of questions. While the collegiate faculty has lots of cumulative experience, the longer we work with future teachers, the less connected we are to the day-to-day workings of the schools. Things change fast in education and you are the best person to keep things real. If you have former students who are in music education programs, check in on them to see how it is going and answer their questions. You still matter to them and even a quick check-in text or email will make a big difference.

Connect at Conferences and Professional Development Sessions

When your future colleagues attend OMEA, WIBC, ACDA, or weekend workshops, their sense of imposter syndrome is very real. They need their future colleagues to make them feel welcome in the room and to contextualize the professional development experience for them. Invite them to sit with you and your colleagues. Ask them to join you for coffee or lunch. Let them ask you questions about the session or just about their career choice. Inspire them to continue to develop their skills and feed their curiosity.

Inspire Your Current Students to Consider Joining Us

As you work with your current elementary, middle, or high school students, make sure they see teaching music as a viable career. Use phrases like, “when you have your own choir one day” or “when you are teaching this concept.” When they express curiosity, give them leadership opportunities. Let students lead warm-ups, run sectionals, or even arrange pieces for the ensemble. Ask faculty from your local music education program to come speak to your students about majoring in music education. If there are specific students you think would be great music teachers, ask us to connect with them.

Special Request of Elementary Music Teachers

Our future colleagues often do not consider elementary music teaching as a viable career option, mostly because they don’t remember the feeling of being in elementary music classes as viscerally as they do middle and high school ensembles. Make sure you reach out to music education students and programs to keep that memory alive. Help our future colleagues see the value of elementary music and the essential role that elementary music teachers play in the lives of their students. We know that a great elementary teacher inspires their students to continue in music. Help future colleagues make that connection.

The future is definitely bright, but we need your help to light their path.

REPERTOIRE SELECTION IN JAZZ ENSEMBLE:

Thoughts From the Classroom and the Judge’s Table

Jessika Smith OMEA Jazz Chair

I will humbly admit that repertoire selection is my biggest weakness in the classroom. With so much on my plate at any given time, I fall victim to choosing songs quickly from my library that I think will maybe work without spending too much time on it. Sometimes we need to take the easy road, but this year I’m really striving to mirror the excellent practices of the music educators I admire the most, and the school bands I’ve heard that sound the best

I’ve been working alongside Keija Lee at Parkrose High School (I’m primarily at the middle school) since 2019 and she is truly a magician when it comes to repertoire selection. She prioritizes and spends some serious time sifting through hundreds of songs to find educationally sound, difficulty-appropriate, culturally inclusive, meaningful and purposeful music for her bands. She makes magic happen with thoughtful and intentional repertoire selection, no matter the level of the students (most of our students do not take private lessons!). It pays off with the community she has created in her band room—the kids supporting and cheering each other on, taking themselves and each other seriously, and working their absolute hardest to be the best band they can—and pays off even more with back-toback placements at the state band contest. The icing on the cake is that she’s finding music that reflects the backgrounds and cultures of our students in Parkrose. They are bought in, and proud of what they’re doing.

Just last Spring I was at a judge’s table listening to mostly middle school jazz bands, and I heard some of the best student jazz I’ve ever heard back-to-back with some very difficult-to-listento performances. The best band I heard that day had two fairly simple songs to start (a rock tune and an easy swing tune), but they had a TON of kids improvising and welcomed a TON of kids on stage (hello, jazz tuba!), then just when I was thinking that their repertoire was too easy, they busted out an arrangement of “Cruisin’ for a Bluesin’” that was seriously awesome. The kids were proud. They demolished that set, and they knew it.

Shortly after that, another band came to play, and they did all the “right” things. They played some simplified versions of jazz standards arranged well by some of the best easy-tune arrangers, they had some kids brave enough to improvise— they played. But the heart and soul was missing. They were missing knowledge that they needed to be confident, and they had no connection to the songs they were playing. I’m not saying it’s easy to get kids invested in a song originally composed in the 1930s, but I think those easy jazz standard arrangements could have gone better with more intentional teaching and planning. Perhaps a different easy arrangement would have been a better choice for that particular band. Just because other bands can pull off a song doesn’t mean that’s the right choice for everyone’s band across the board.

From the judge’s table at jazz festivals, intentional repertoire selection can make or break a band. It doesn’t matter how good your drummer is if the band is playing something too technically

difficult for them. It doesn’t matter how good your soloist is if the piano and guitar can’t find the right voicings for the chords. In my opinion, it doesn’t matter how tight your band plays together if all you’re bringing to festival is loud, straight eighth rock/funk tunes. And I’m so, so, SO OVER seeing a set list of composers who are all white, cis-gender men. This does not reflect the history and culture of the music we’re trying to perform, and it (for the most part) does not reflect the backgrounds and cultures of the students who go to our schools.

It is incredibly hard to be the “unicorn” of a teacher who is able to find just the right repertoire for their band—to balance their strengths and weaknesses within that ensemble—to program diverse styles—to teach improvisation and history through their selections—to edit parts to fit your band. Below I’m sharing some ideas that I’m going to try this school year to up my game as an educator in the classroom, and maybe share something that will help you as well as you prepare for jazz festivals and competition this school year.

1. Understand and Implement Culturally Responsive Pedagogy

Yes, sometimes students will blindly follow the preferences of their teachers, but real investment and hard work happens when people feel seen and heard and reflected in the conversations, the stories, and the art around them. If your band is only playing jazz standards from 1930-1940, composed by people who do not look like them, and when they don’t know the story behind the song, where is the student investment? I’m not saying that kids won’t be invested when a song sounds jazzy or cool, but actually spending the time to talk about the music you’re playing and giving the kids space to be seen and heard will make the teaching part easier.

2. Diversify the Repertoire

With the above being said, please make sure you are choosing diverse repertoire. I heard a fantastic jazz educator once advise to program something culturally and historically significant (Basie, Ellington, Mary Lou Williams, Charles Mingus, etc.), alongside something new by an under-represented composer (check out Brava Jazz Publications if you haven’t yet), alongside something the kids helped arrange or compose (see my article from Fall 2023 on arranging/composing in the classroom). Again, this is NOT the end-all, perfect answer. Do what is best for your band, and please try to branch out if you’re not doing so already.

3. Use Repertoire as a Window into Jazz History, and History in General

It’s hard to find someone who isn’t compelled by a good story. Knowing the history and stories behind the music is an easy way to get kids invested in what you’ve put on their music stand, and oftentimes that history touches on topics that they’re already learning about in other classes. We have

a responsibility to teach and share the history of this Black American music as we present it to our students. Oh, and please, please, please listen as a class to as many recordings of the piece you’re playing as possible.

4. Give Students Creative Outlets and Input

As a composer-type myself, I’m really trying to give my students skills and confidence to do some arranging of their own. If you’re playing an easy jazz standard arrangement and you have some students who are superstars in the band—challenge them to add a shout chorus. Have less-confident improvisers compose a written solo. Let your pianist play an introduction to the piece. When students feel like they played a significant role in the piece, their buy-in will raise the level of the band and hopefully those hard-work vibes will spread to other kids.

5. Flex with the Strengths and Weaknesses in your Ensemble

If you found the perfect piece for your band but the piano part has chord changes instead of written voicings and your pianist can’t make their own yet, please spend the time to write out (or get someone else to do it for you!) a written piano part. If the solo part is written in trumpet but you have an alto sax who needs a challenge and a trumpet who doesn’t want to solo, go ahead and put that solo in the part it needs to be in.

If you really love the groove on “Red Clay” but you don’t have a bass player who can play it…please pick something else, or give that bass line to the piano player on keyboard bass or something. I’d rather hear a band play something that is a little chopped up and put back together that fits the strengths of the band better than hear yet another band play “All of Me” with no heart and soul, and with no chords in the piano and guitar because there’s a skill missing and a director who didn’t spend the time to fix it. Giving the kids the freedom to make something they like actually work for their band is liberating and is a pretty deep life lesson when you think about it.

I sometimes get caught up in the day-to-day woes of being a teacher—the meetings, phone calls, behavior management, events—all the stuff that isn’t really music, and isn’t really teaching. Sometimes I feel like I’m missing out on the MUSIC part, but really the power is in my hands to really invest in the MUSIC I’m picking and giving to my students. I really believe that with this intentional planning and teaching of repertoire this year I will have a lot more fun, and my students will learn TONS more while also having a blast and being proud of their practice and performances. The best bands to listen to are the ones who are having a great time, who feel seen and heard in their ensemble, who have a connection to the music they’re performing, and who feel a great deal of ownership in the process and evolution of the pieces they’re playing.

LITTLE PINK SHOES: ONE MUSIC TEACHER’S LESSON

Melissa Jmaeff OMEA Small Schools Chair

As I was preparing to join the workforce back in 2006 with my newly minted teaching license in hand, I couldn’t wait to get in front of a large ensemble. I had spent years training to be a band director and had done all of my student teaching in the instrumental department of the largest high school in the area. I was a flutist and performed in various orchestras and wind ensembles in the region. I loved all of it and was excited to take my turn on the podium.

I was entering the workforce in a highly competitive job market. I knew that this meant that I would have to take the familiar “stepping stone” path; I would need to get my foot in the door somewhere, wait it out while gaining some experience, and then apply for my dream job in a couple of years. What I didn’t bargain for was just how much I would learn by teaching at my “stepping stone” job, a Kindergarten through 12th grade gig in rural Oregon. As luck would have it, my “stepping stone” turned into a full-blown career and 18 years later I am still teaching music in a rural school district in Douglas County, Oregon. Over the years, I have made a complete transition from highly specialized instrumentalist/band director to generalist. I can wipe a nose, tie a shoe, sing a tenor part, and play the tuba in the same hour without batting an eye or having to run away with the circus. This is my job. And if you teach in a small school, I bet that this is your job too. We do it all. And then some.

All too often, college for music education majors is about specializing. According to music education researcher and professor Tim Groulx in his 2016 article, “Perceptions of Course Value and Issues of Specialization in Undergraduate Music Teacher Education Curricula”, while there is a desire by preservice music educators to specialize, there is a great need for effective music educators who are generalists. According to Groulx, nearly 83% of educators polled taught classes outside of their specialization at some point in their careers. Yes, there are some classes outside of one’s area of expertise that one is required to take as an undergraduate student, but let’s be honest, most of us wanted to specialize in our area of expertise and undergraduate programs are built in such a way that it is easy for us to do this. The results are often that new music teachers are partially (or wholly) under-prepared for that job in a small school that requires them to be a generalist.

That’s the bad news. The good news is that the end of one’s college experience is the beginning of one’s working education. For me, learning how to be an effective choir teacher has absolutely made me a better band director. Likewise, learning how to comfort a 5-year old has absolutely made me have greater empathy for my wiggly middle schoolers. Learning how to teach beginning band has absolutely made me a more engaging high school band director. As musicians, we know that isolating and practicing one thing is important. But it’s when this practice begins to bleed into other aspects of our musicianship that we know that those lessons have been internalized. So too when context informs that which has been isolated. This is when the real magic happens, the synergy. This is when the music begins.

I can still remember one of the first pairs of children’s shoes that I tied at work. They were dusty little pink sneakers with suspiciously damp laces attached to a tiny kindergarten student. As I bent down to tie the laces, I felt a little hand on my back as the child steadied themselves against me. I remember thinking: They certainly didn’t teach me about this in college. They also didn’t prepare me to teach hot cross buns on the recorder. They didn’t teach me to sit criss-cross applesauce on the floor with a guitar in my lap and 25 kids swarming because, turns out, 3rd graders love a singalong and singalongs are a great way to celebrate a day of great classroom behavior. They didn’t teach me to do choral warm ups and then to write journal entries about our feelings because being centered and mindful is crucial to singing. And they definitely didn’t teach me that the roots of my program would be wearing little pink sneakers, leaning against me while I tied her shoelaces. But there we were, learning how to learn: Her in little pink sneakers, me in my humble best. She was learning music and I was learning how to teach music to her.

Generalists in small schools know how to do it all and, if they know how to do it all well, they understand how each hand works independently and they understand how both hands work together. Small school music teachers are renaissance people and their depth of knowledge is vast. These generalists ARE specialists; they specialize in the art of seeing the big picture while attending to the most divergent of details–demonstrating clarinet embouchures, playing piano for their choirs, inventorying instruments, and yes, tying the laces on a pair of little pink shoes, too.

SECONDARY GENERAL MUSIC IN OREGON

Mary Schay OMEA Secondary General Music Chair

I am excited to take on this new board position to support middle and high school teachers who are bringing innovative courses and opportunities to their students, schools, and communities. This looks different at every school and this is as it should be. After all, each community has different needs. What is true at every school in every community is that the traditional band-orchestra-choir options do not serve the music education needs of every student. They never have. I believe we can – and must – change that.

Every child deserves the opportunity to connect with music in a way that has personal meaning to them whether that is through popular music performance classes such as guitar, ukulele, and rock band; composition classes such as film scoring, songwriting, or music production; culturally-specific ensembles such as mariachi, Ghanaian drumming, or steel drums; or academic options such as music history or AP music theory.

Based on a survey through OMEA last spring, I believe there are only two full-time secondary music teachers in Oregon whose load is entirely outside of band-orchestra-choir – one teaching rock band and one teaching digital audio production – but many of you have some responsibility for a wide variety of innovative classes including:

• Digital Music Technology / Music Production

• Drumming

• Film Scoring / Composition

• Guitar and/or Ukulele

• General Music / Music Exploration

• Mariachi

• Music History

• Music Theory / AP Music History

• Rock Band / Modern Band

• Songwriting

• World Music

My goals in this role are:

1. Build Connections: How can those who are teaching similar courses work together to build curriculum and share best practices? Who is able to support emerging programs?

2. Provide Professional Development: What can we add to our conference to celebrate the work already being done and support teachers interested in starting new courses? How can we partner with NAfME to build on the work they are doing in this area?

3. Create a Toolkit: What do districts, schools, administrators, and teachers need to know to build new programs?

The good news is that both OMEA and NAfME support these goals. The evidence from OMEA is clear. Not only did the Board create this new position but we will have sessions and concerts at the 2025 OMEA conference that are aimed at our community of mariachi teachers and popular music teachers as well as those who are curious about ways to broaden their reach.

Whether or not you are already doing this work, whether it is a passion project or a top-down demand, I hope you will reach out to me at mschay@pdx.edu to build our network, share strategies and ideas, and move the needle for Oregon students.

DESIGNING LESSONS FOR STUDENT RETENTION: How to Keep Students Invested in Music

Christopher Cavarretta Music Teacher, PS/IS 121

Design your general music curriculum to give students units to look forward to in later grades.

I am the only music teacher working with students from kindergarten through eighth grade at my current school. I design the curriculum for nine different grades, and I may work with students for almost a decade straight. In a K-8 school, students can switch to a separate middle school at the end of fifth grade. As a music teacher, having a lot of time to work and build relationships with students allows me to cover a great deal of curriculum.

Some challenges of this environment are student retention and engagement. When students attend the same setting for years, they may lose interest in something they have done their entire lives. By designing instruction to provide interest, engagement, and excitement, students will be more inclined to continue studying music for years to come. You must find ways to get your students excited about their next adventure in music, and design lessons that captivate their interests. To do this, I offer exclusive instruction for specific instruments at the middle school level and build connections with other content areas throughout their education.

The more valuable your work becomes, the more likely you will encourage students to stay in your program. You must communicate your goals for the students and the school, even if those goals change over time. This self-advocacy might involve a “Meet the Music Teacher” event where you can explain the curriculum to parents or have meetings with other teachers and administrators in your building so they can see what your classroom will look like.

Making yourself visible is essential to building solid working relationships. In doing so, you are creating a demand for music education in your school that will be hard to deny or remove in years to come. As students continue through your program, they will begin to see the scope of what they can accomplish as they continue their music education. Ultimately, this sequence creates an environment that fosters student growth, engagement, and success.

Selective Experiences for Each Grade

Reserving specific material for each grade is vital for a long-lasting program because students feel fulfilled at each step. My second-grade students, for example, are incredibly excited about bucket drumming in third grade, my fourth graders are eager to play the ukulele in fifth grade, and my middle schoolers are excited to see who will be in the rock band for the year. They become increasingly invested in the program as they realize they can achieve more each year. You can see more in-depth information about this curriculum format in my blog post titled “Curriculum Design for the K-8 Modern Band Instructor” on the NAfME Blog (nafme. org/blog/curriculum-design-for-the-k-8-modern-bandinstructor/ )

Rock Band and Orchestra Experiences in the Classroom

I offer a rock band and a beginner string orchestra program, which students can join before or after school based on dedication, interest, and involvement. These programs are exclusively for middle school students and are made up of students who demonstrate the drive and initiative to work to become high-level musicians.

I also incorporate these subjects as units for fourth and fifth grade where we learn about the instruments available in each ensemble. All students in the class get a chance to try out each of these instruments and learn how each works, proper positioning, and sometimes even a first note, chord, or beat. These experiences help students understand better what is available to them if they stay at our school for the next three years, allowing them to see what they can accomplish and to get excited about what comes next.

Additional Programs for Students

In addition to the orchestra and rock band programs, I have implemented a lunch band for elementary students that consists of short 20-minute lessons on trumpet and trombone at a beginner level. The students enjoy getting out of the loud cafeteria during the winter and engaging with music instead.

Also during lunch, I invite students to come to my classroom to practice their classroom instruments (guitar, ukulele, recorder) or try out a new instrument for a specific school program. This is an open-door policy where students can skip or attend as they please, demonstrating trust and respect for the studentteacher relationship. Of course, every school is different, so you must discuss school policy and expectations with your administration in terms of how you use preps, professional periods, lunch, or any other scheduled time throughout your day. I have been fortunate that my administration supported this additional opportunity for students when I was available.

Science Is Sound

Students often lose interest in music because they need a comprehensive understanding of why they are doing something or why something works. Teaching a lesson about the structure and science behind the music can go a long way for students in learning why specific instruments make certain sounds.

I have taught the science behind music by having students create mini instruments. Students make tiny drums using red solo cups, balloons, and rubber bands. We make maracas out of beans, paper plates, and tape. We make stringed instruments from tissue boxes, rubber bands, and paper towel rolls. One of the most exciting projects was creating a bass drum using plastic wrap, two chairs, and a soft mallet. Students became very invested in making their instruments and using them to play together as an ensemble. I have used this unit with students as young as kindergarten and as old as second grade as a great introduction to the recorder in third grade. If I have a sixth-grade class composed of mainly new students to our school, I may even take the time to teach this unit to them to help build that foundation of how instruments make a sound.

Cross-Curricular Experiences

Some students come from environments where they may need help understanding why music is considered part of the core curriculum or an essential subject to their education. Finding ways to get these students invested in music can be challenging. To help them connect with other content areas, I use graphic scores in which students draw pictures to represent music they hear. I have them perform at graduation, PTA events, or parent nights to demonstrate their growth and receive positive feedback.

I also work with students’ primary classrooms to create songs through literature they are reading, review songs from periods of history they are learning about in social studies, or even

connect tempo or meter to fractions from their math lessons. These activities are ways to grow a strong connection between their core subjects and the music classroom.

Cultural Lessons That Relate Directly to Students

Some students assume that music education focuses solely on composers who have been gone for hundreds of years. To teach musical concepts, I make sure to use familiar artists and pop and rock songs from top-chart bands that students recognize to get students excited about performing.

I also create lessons that relate directly to my students’ cultures by using music they recognize from home. Involving my students’ cultures helps them feel included in the classroom. Having a welcoming and safe space goes a long way to improving student retention.

One example of a cultural lesson includes teaching “Palo Bonito,” a song from the Dominican Republic that has roots in the Congo region of central Africa. While learning this song, we learn the classic “Palo” dance and play traditional instruments, such as a güiro and claves. I also teach a Chinese New Year song titled “Xīnnián hăo,” which celebrates the coming of the new year. The song uses eighth-note and quarter-note rhythm patterns, which I pair with my common-time unit. In doing so, students begin to count measures as their introduction to more complex syncopated rhythms.

Social-Emotional Learning

To improve the social-emotional learning of my students in the music classroom, I use lessons like the following, which my students enjoy:

• Drum circles: My drum circles are appropriate for a wide range of ages, depending on how they are designed and used.

• Rhythm callbacks: Students work in small groups to decipher rhythm patterns on index cards, playing for and correcting each other when necessary.

• Drum chants: One familiar chant I use is “Funga Alafia.” After I teach my students the chant, they take turns leading the group in change of tempo and dynamics.

• Escape rooms: These lessons combine locks and codes using rhythms, musical language, or chord/note names, depending on the grade. The students are divided into groups to solve each puzzle and rely on each other to assemble the information to escape the room. This activity is an excellent opportunity to review and assess prior knowledge, while students develop rapport with their classmates.

Building a program designed to engage and retain students over several years is critical to creating a thriving music program. These lessons and activities provide a strong foundation to build on for years to come, creating an environment where your students will be excited, eager, and invested in their music education.

This article was originally published in the August 2024 issue of Teaching Music and is reprinted here with the permission of the National Association for Music Education (www.nafme.org ).

SOCIAL EMOTIONAL LEARNING IN THE SECONDARY MUSIC CLASSROOM

Myriam Gendron-Dupont Orchestra Director, Rosemont Ridge Middle School

Students enter our spaces every day with various thoughts and emotions running through their heads. If we have strong routines in place, that can help regulate them and prepare their brains for music while putting everything else aside. However, we’ve all seen what happens when their thoughts and emotions become too intense to ignore. Students can become withdrawn, disruptive, or they can draw too much attention to themselves in some way.

Students need safe spaces where they can be themselves, without judgment or expectations. In today’s time, we have the added layers of post-pandemic effects, equity & inclusion, and each child’s experiences in the online world. All of these recent challenges have caused students to need more support now than ever before, and educators looking for answers have found SEL (Social Emotional Learning).

Students need time and parameters to think, reflect, process, evaluate, and make goals. Activities that guide these types of actions exist in many different forms. There are online resources such as lesson plans, books, courses for teachers, even entire programs that can be purchased. The Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning (CASEL) defines SEL as an integral part of education and human development: “SEL is the process through which all young people and adults acquire and apply the knowledge, skills, and attitudes to develop healthy identities, manage emotions and achieve personal and collective goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain supportive relationships, and make responsible and caring decisions.”

CASEL SEL Framework

There are five pillars of SEL: Self-Awareness, Self-Management, Social Awareness, Relationship Skills, and Responsible Decision-Making. The framework (fig.1) shows outer circles that show places where students experience the world: classrooms, schools, families, and communities. Music is a subject that can also transcend these places; for example, concerts bring in families, communities and sometimes a whole school or more than one school together.

All of these pillars can be developed in a music class. Ensemble music just by itself brings in some of these skills, since students have to listen to each other (social awareness) and themselves (self-awareness) as well as respond to a director (self-management). Music also teaches responsibility, accountability, and the process of making, breaking down and achieving goals (responsible decision-making). Therefore, music teachers have a perfect setting to incorporate social emotional learning practices in their classes. Students already form bonds by rehearsing, performing and traveling together (relationship skills). They usually make friends in the class and become more social as the year goes on. Teachers can expand and build on this setting to help them become

more aware of themselves, their goals, accomplishments, and their interactions with others. We can help them transfer what they learn from their music experiences to their lives, now and later, if we take the time to guide and support the development of their emotions and behavior. Their time with us is just a small part of what they go through in a day or a week, but with a bit of intentionality and originality, we can still make a difference.

The way I think of it, there are two main categories of activities that promote SEL: Identity and Community. With identity, students learn to recognize their own traits, roots, and background; they develop a deeper sense of self in who they are as a person, what their values are, and they learn to understand that each person is different and unique in those aspects. It’s important to establish, but even more important is the development of a supportive community, and I spend much more class time working on community through a larger span of time.

Identity

The beginning of the year is crucial for getting to know the students, and for them to get to know each other! Memorizing faces and names is a first important step when meeting students for the first time. Playing name games will help this process for teachers, and will ensure that students also know their classmates’ names. There are tons of name games to choose from online. After they know each other’s names, they

should also know each other as people! I like to use a mix of fun, mixer type games and deeper activities where students share about themselves.

In a typical school year, during the first week, each of my classes plays a name game. They also play games that incorporate mixing themselves up into different groupings and finding out more about each other. Some of my favorites are the Atom Game and Fruit Salad. I prefer games that involve everyone, that get them moving around, and that maybe have an element of challenge or competition. Going into the second week, I introduce a calmer and deeper activity, either individually or with a partner, and then their result is shared with the class. For example, each student creates a slideshow about themselves, or interviews another student.

While all this is unfolding the first couple weeks of school, and students are interacting with each other in these low-stakes identity activities, I get a glimpse of what they will need in order to learn, and I get a chance to review any plans that they have or protocols we need to know about. I also get to learn their personalities, tendencies, triggers, and quirks. This helps to set up future groupings, teacher and student interactions, and seating charts.

Community

The key from there on out is to occasionally provide opportunities for them to: talk, interact, write, think, reflect, appreciate, celebrate, have fun, laugh, play…. Sprinkle it in, and mix it up. What each teacher does will vary, but here are some ideas.

• Circles. Discussion topics will be determined by need or teacher discretion. Circles can be run in different ways, formats, they can be for fun, or they can help address an issue in class. Debriefing a big event or concert is a perfect topic for a circle. Make sure to set up the norms for an effective circle, and keep them quick and light-hearted at first. Having a talking piece and/or centerpiece can help set the tone. I like to do some pass-around questions where everyone gets the talking piece and a chance to share. (It’s always OK to pass). This works best with short answers, and can be a good way to open a circle. I also do some toss-around questions, where they raise their hand to receive the talking piece if they want to share. Circle closers can be used to conclude the circle.

• Games. There are many games to choose from that do not require supplies or prep. Online games, whole group games, team games, circle games, word games, drama games… There is a plethora to choose from depending on the teacher’s needs, time, space, number of students, and desired outcomes. There are also music games that can incorporate instruments, rhythm, movement, and/or singing, that could be a very fun bonding opportunity for students in a music class.

• Appreciations. Students take time to share what they appreciate about one or more of their classmates. These can be written or spoken (good circle topic). Written appreciations can be posted in the room or delivered to the recipient.

• Reflection. Give students a chance to reflect on their progress through listening to each other, recording their rehearsals, written prompts, and class discussions. Have

them make goals (individual and group), write them down and make sure to revisit them. This could be online, or on post-it notes that are up on a poster or board. Some teachers create a paper chain of their goals or accomplishments to hang in the classroom.

• Sharing. Once a month we have “Friday Sharing” where students can perform or show something to the class. Over the years, I’ve had students not only play their string instrument, but also play piano, sing, tell jokes, show a figure skating video, bring in art or homemade objects, share slideshow games they created, and more. Once, there was even an interpretative dance to Paganini’s Caprice no.24. These have been some of the best moments for them to just be themselves. It also sets the stage for an audience setting since they get to practice their roles as performers and audience members.

• Celebrations. Take time to notice and celebrate their success! This could be in the form of class parties, outdoor games, karaoke, movie days, game days. I’ve brought in treats for them, held Valentine’s exchanges, organized crafts, group challenges and more.

• Door decoration. Choose a theme to decorate your door. Cover it with butcher paper (makes removal easier later on). Have students each create a paper piece, write on it and tape it up. I’ve done fall leaves on a paper tree trunk, or flower petals and green leaves on three green stems. On the paper, they write a quick reflection (example prompts: What do you like about music? How have you grown in music this term?)

These suggestions don’t have to take a lot of time. They can be sprinkled in one at a time, or many of them can be combined into one class period. For example, the day after a concert could look like this: 1) Students sit in a circle and share their overall thoughts, comments, and opinions about the concert. 2) They watch the concert recording and reflect on their performance (written, aloud or both). They note their accomplishments and performance/technique goals. 3) They share (or write) appreciations for each other. 4) They celebrate by playing a game, having treats, or another fun activity listed above.

Classroom management can be incorporated into this process quite well. Towards the beginning of the year, have students create a list of common agreements. They can brainstorm in small groups and then create a large group list. Revisit these throughout the year and revise if needed. Some teachers create something that they all sign. It can be a powerful circle topic for students to discuss their own behavior (but be careful not to overuse it).

Dignity

How we treat each individual student will reflect in how they treat us, each other, and how the whole group functions. While making efforts to strengthen their social and emotional learning, it’s also important to maintain good relationships with each student. Even just one negative interaction can affect how a student feels about us and our class, and can trigger past trauma. This is why I want to include a section about how research says that we should treat our students. First and foremost, get to know your students. Remember

things about them, their families, and their interests. Talk casually and ask about things they mentioned in passing. Show (or pretend) that you care. This helps not only their social and emotional growth, but it keeps them more motivated in class throughout the school year. A study from 2020 found a correlation: The more the students reported increased student-teacher relationships, the better were their motivation, perceptions of the school environment, and GPA at the end of the year. (Scales et al, 2020). It’s worth noting the four ways that students-teacher relationships were measured in this study: express care, provide support, share power, and challenge growth.

Having a positive relationship with students gives us something to lean on when things happen. It allows us to have background knowledge about them so that we can handle situations with informed intent. Above all, we must aim to keep ALL interactions with students positive, or at least calm and neutral. Maintain good rapport with students at all costs. Don’t lose your cool, raise your voice, nag or shame students. The instant we turn on that tone, they tune out and begin resenting us. Instead, take a deep breath, and here are some steps to try.

1. Be Nice. No need to yell, make a scene or exhaust your own energy. Patrick Swayze said it best in the movie Roadhouse. If a student acts out, ask them to quiet down and be still, but be nice. If they won’t, ask them to step out in the hall, but be nice. If they won’t go, call for help, wait patiently, and be nice. (Herrington, 1989, 00:25:09).

2. Stay Neutral. Don’t engage in power struggles, arguments, or negotiations with students. De-escalate situations. Don’t make assumptions. Avoid falling into verbal traps. Walk away. If they continue, ask them to step out or call for help.

3. Ask Questions. Dig deeper. Stay calm and ask them to explain the situation. State what you are noticing and ask them to help you understand what is happening and why. I can’t count how many times I learned something important by asking questions, which changed my original reaction of annoyance to one that was more compassionate, which allowed me to problem solve with the student.

4. Give Choices. Think of two options you are OK with and offer to the student who is struggling. “You can take out your materials or take a break in the office.” Then, walk away and give them time to process and act on their preferred option. I’ve seen this work; frazzled students were able to regulate themselves and rejoin the group.

5. Follow Up. Document incidents, communicate with parents, loop in the student’s other teachers. Don’t let the same happen day after day. Escalate up the levels of behavior consequences and interventions at your school if necessary.

This process works for big situations, but also for small things that we still want to address. This type of classroom management is similar to methods such as Love & Logic and Restorative Justice. Both methods emphasize keeping calm, asking questions, and giving choices. Whether they’re chronically forgetting to bring an instrument/music/computer to class, or they keep blurting out, or they are infringing a rule about phone/food/gum, it can all be handled by following these steps and thereby avoiding negative feelings. There are many resources (websites, articles, books) out there about how to maintain positive student teacher relationships and why it’s important. To start, check out the Education section of the American Psychological Association website.

Students watch for our reactions to unexpected situations and unruly behavior. Showing this type of self control can set a powerful example for them. We don’t have to react with outbursts or overly stated emotions. In fact, it’s always the calm but firm teachers who are seen as the ones with the most control. The ones who lose their temper often quickly lose the respect of their students. It takes a tremendous amount of self-discipline. In my opinion, the first step to having discipline over the students is to have it with yourself. In a world full of unexpected events, where they experience joy, pain, and trauma, we can be a constant example in their lives.

References

Back to School: SEL School Environment. Counseling in Schools Partners in Healing. https://partnersinhealing. counselinginschools.org/activities/tips-for-sel-schoolenvironment

Costello, Wachtel and Wachtel. 2009. The Restorative Practices Handbook. Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, USA: International Institute for Restorative Practices.

FuelEd’s Guide to Social Emotional Learning (SEL). 2024. FuedEd. https://fueledschools.org/blog/fueleds-guide-to-socialemotional-learning-sel

Davenport, M. (2018). Using Circle Practice in the Classroom Edutopia. https://www.edutopia.org/article/using-circlepractice-classroom/ Fundamentals of SEL. 2024. CASEL. https://casel.org/ fundamentals-of-sel/ Herrington, R. (1989). Road House. Silver Pictures. Rimm-Kaufman, S. (2015, March 9). Improving students’ relationships with teachers. American Psychological Association. https://www.apa.org/education-career/k12/ relationships

Scales, P., Van Boekel, M., Pekel, K., Syvertsen, A, & Roehkepartain, E. (2020). Effects of developmental relationships with teachers on middle-school students’ motivation and performance. Psychology in the Schools. Apr 2020, Vol. 57 (Issue 4), p646-677.

SIGHT AND SOUND: The Science of Reading and its Applications for Music Teaching

Dr. Grace Ho Instructor of Secondary Piano and Piano Pedagogy, University of Oregon

Test scores indicate a declining reading level in American public schools (Seidenberg, 2017). There is much debate over the best way to teach children how to read. Cognitive scientists advocate for the phonics approach, which focuses on sounding out words (Figure 1.1). However, the cueing (or “whole language”) approach—which trains students to decode and learn new vocabulary through a combination of semantic, syntactic, and graphophonic clues—is currently the main method utilized by public schools (Figure 1.2). Scholarship in education and science have conflicting views, leading to a “profound disconnection between the science of reading and educational practice” (Seidenberg, 2017, p. 9).

Arguments can be made for the pros and cons of phonics and cueing approaches. Phonics is a systematized way of helping young students connect sight and sound, which builds reading skills. However, the reading exercises are often decontextualized and can hinder students from finding meaning in what they read. The cueing approach can inspire a love of reading, but it relies too much on guessing words based on context.

What are the implications for music teachers? Reading music is foundational for classical training. Some music reading methods—such as the intervallic approach—help students connect sound to spatial motion, similar to how the phonics approach connects sight and sound (Figure 2.1). Other methods—such as the pattern approach—train students to recognize patterns and predict what will come next in the music, which is analogous to the cueing approach (Figure 2.2).

In music education, there has been some inquiry into this topic, but “teaching often relies on convention rather than research,” leading to an “absence of research-based pedagogy into the acquisition of the skill of reading music” (Arthurs and Petrini, 2024, p. 2). One study looked into the simultaneous teaching of word reading and music reading in a Kodaly school, hypothesizing that the auditory perception that develops in music learning would help young children to connect speech to words (Janurik et al, 2022). Another study contrasted the experience of musicians who possess reading skills with musicians who play by ear (Arthurs and Petrini, 2024).

The most important correlation between word reading and music reading is the connection of sight and sound. According to scientists, the acquisition of word reading for children is in three stages (Dehaene, 2009). The first is the pictorial stage, in which children memorize the images that they see. Scientists call these images graphemes. Next, comes the phonological stage when they are able to interpret graphemes into phonetic

Blend Chart

Figure 1.1

MEANING

Graphophonic Cues

Syntactic Cues Semantic Cues

Figure 1.2

Figure 2.1

Figure 2.2

sounds called phonemes. Finally, they reach the third stage where they recognize words quickly and automatically. This last stage is the orthographic stage. In essence, children learn to read by converting images to sound and then converting sound to meaning. These three stages summarize the phonics approach to teaching reading.

There are obvious parallels with music reading. According to the study conducted by Arthurs and Petrini (2024), “reading music activates areas of the brain that typically process sound, suggesting multisensory links between seeing and hearing” (p. 11). They also observed that the multisensory act of reading involves kinesthetic movement in addition to visual and auditory actions. For the purpose of this article, I will focus on the aspects of sight and sound.

Let’s begin with how the eyes move while reading. Contrary to our instinct that the eyes move from left to right in a straight line, they jump rapidly between brief pauses on the page. Scientists call these jumps saccades (Seidenberg, 2017). Essentially, the fovea of the eye—which lies in the center of the retina—can only focus on one or two words at a time. The visual action of reading is “nothing but the word-by-word mental restitution of a text through a series of snapshots” (Dehaene, 2009, p. 17).

This science debunks the idea of “speed-reading,” which coaches students to train their eyes to move rapidly across the page to read words quickly. As a piano teacher, I would often use a pointer to help guide the student to read music across the page, thinking that the lateral note-by-note movement would be the best way to teach music reading. However, according to the science, it may be better to instruct students to train their eyes to gather as many details as possible in non-linear glances (Dehaene, 2009). Saccade movement supports the pedagogical instruction to look ahead to interpret and process the notes and music symbols in quick glances. This aligns with the concept of the pattern approach (Figure 2.2). On the other hand, drilling students in recognizing the note-by-note movement of up and down on the staff, which I had earlier connected with the phonics approach (Figure 2.1), is still essential for students in the beginning stages of learning to read music on the staff.

Scientists connect a child’s familiarity and fluency with sound to their success in reading. Children hear and process words before they read them. Even dialect has an effect on a child’s ability to connect sight and sound. According to Mark Seidenberg, “children who speak a minority dialect such as AAE (African American English) in the home are at risk for performing more poorly when compared to children who speak the mainstream dialect” (Seidenberg, 2017, p. 241). When children are exposed to more vocabulary at home, they are more likely to recognize those words naturally when they see them in print.

How does this compare with music reading? For one thing, fluency with pitch can help connect what a student hears with what they see on the score. This supports the Suzuki method, which focuses on rote teaching of familiar tunes before instruction of reading. Often, there is a fear that students will rely on playing by ear if they hear the piece before they learn it through reading. However, the science of reading supports connecting sight with sound. Familiarity with the sound of the music only facilitates stronger connections with what they

see, bolstering confidence and reinforcing reading success.

Some other factors to consider are memory, vocabulary, and technical ability. With word reading, children gain comprehension through making connections with what they already know (Willingham, 2017). Memory capacity is crucial for building fluency with word reading, and it is also helpful for music reading. Pamela Pike asserts that “memory is the critical link that connects the visual and kinesthetic demands of sight-reading” (Pike, 2012, p. 25). When students recall patterns that they have seen before, they are able to “chunk” the material into a stored vocabulary. Depth and breadth of vocabulary is important for building reading fluency in both word reading and music reading. Interpreting the meaning of the material relies on the vocabulary that is stored in the memory. For music reading, technical ability is an additional factor. A musician is only able to read as quickly as they can technically produce the sound.

Understanding the science of reading can help teachers guide students to connect sight and sound, whether in word reading or music reading. Both scientists and music educators agree on the solution for improving reading fluency: read often and read new material. Jeanine M. Jacobson maintains that the “primary role of beginning reading is to build a memory bank of patterns and symbols that will be recognized in new surroundings” (Jacobson, 2015, p. 129). The level of the new material should be equal to or just below the student’s current level. Too often, the only reading that happens during lessons is when the student is learning a new piece that is one level above. Finally, both the quantity and the quality of reading exercises matter. Not only is it necessary to match reading level with the student’s vocabulary skill and technical skill; it is important to make reading fun by assigning books and music that are pleasurable.

References

Arthurs, Y., & Petrini, K. (2024). Musicians’ views on the role of reading music in learning, performance, and understanding. Musicae Scientiae, 28(1), 3–17.

Dehaene, S. (2009). Reading in the brain : the science and evolution of a human invention. Viking.

Jacobson, J. M. (2015). Professional piano teaching : a comprehensive piano pedagogy textbook. Volume 1, Elementary levels (E. L. Lancaster & A. Mendoza, Eds.; Second edition.). Alfred Music.

Janurik, M., Surján, N., & Józsa, K. (2022). The Relationship between Early Word Reading, Phonological Awareness, Early Music Reading and Musical Aptitude. Journal of Intelligence, 10(3), 50-. Pike, P. D. (2012). Sight-Reading Strategies for the Beginning and Intermediate Piano Student: A Fresh Look at a Familiar Topic. The American Music Teacher, 61(4), 23–28. Seidenberg, M. S. (2017). Language at the speed of sight : how we read, why so many can’t, and what can be done about it. Basic Books, an imprint of Perseus Books, a division of PBG Publishing, LLC, a subsidiary of Hachette Book Group, Inc.

Willingham, D. T. (2017). The reading mind : a cognitive approach to understanding how the mind reads (First edition.). Jossey-Bass, a Wiley brand.

OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY

MUSIC

2024-2025

Scholarship &

Bachelor of Music

Entrance Auditions

+ Monday, February 17, 2025

+ Saturday, February 25, 2025

+ Saturday, March 1, 2025

Degrees and Areas of Study

Bachelor of Music

+ Instrumental performance

+ Vocal performance, pedagogy, and literature

+ Music Education

+ Piano performance

+ Piano performance and pedagogy

Bachelor of Arts/Bachelor of Science

+ Music

+ Music Technology and Production

+ Contemporary Music Industry (Ecampus online)

Music Minor

BEHIND THE BAND

For 140 Years, OSU’s marching band has given Beaver spirit it’s steady drumbeat

Mike McInally Journalist, Oregon Starter

Rain or shine, win or lose, our marching band plays on

Flash back to this time last year as band members geared

It’s exactly 5:35 p.m. on a cloudy Friday, and the members of the Oregon State University Marching Band arepacked into two tunnels on the north side of Reser Stadium.

This is a game day — kickoff for the Beavers football game against Utah is about a half an hour away — and everything for the next 25 minutes or so hinges on pre cise timing. The band’s pregame show starts in about 11 minutes. This game is being nationally televised, so time matters there as well.

By this point — before the nearly 300 members of the band have played even one note in front of a packed sta dium — they’ve been in their uniforms for more than four hours: band members report five hours before kick off. Hours ago, they rehearsed on the field. Since then, they’ve marched down the Beaver Walk, performed on the steps at Gill Coliseum and the CH2M HILLAlumni Center for appreciative fans and dined on baked potatoes.

At this moment, as they wait in the tunnels at Res er, it will be nearly another five hours before they leave the stadium.

Meanwhile, a pair of military jets is zooming toward Reser for a flyover that’s timed to occur as the band reach es a specific spot in its performance of “The Star-Spangled Banner.” The flyover is scheduled for exactly 5:54 and 30 seconds. If the band doesn’t hit the mark, it’s not as if the jets can just turn around for a do-over.

But that’s about 20 minutes away. Right now, they await the signal to march onto the field.

It’s time for The Spirit and Sound of Oregon State Uni versity to take the field — an OSU tradition that dates back to at least 1890.

Tradition and Good Times

Since those early days, the OSU Marching Band has grown to become the largest student group on campus, and the 202324 edition is one of the largest ever field ed. By the time the full band, including its new first-year members, had gathered for band camp in the days before the start of classes, it was 285 members strong.

Only about 10% of its members are music majors; in fact, 65 different majors, covering all of OSU’s colleges, are represented in the band’s ranks.

The reasons students give for joining the band are legion, but ask around enough, and certain themes emerge: Many have parents or relatives who played in marching bands. Others like the opportunity to perform before tens of thousands of people. Still others just enjoy playing fun music in a collegial atmosphere.

Says Trinity Henderson, one of the four leaders of the trumpet section (the largest section in the band): “It’s an automatic way to have a giant group of friends.”

With so many members, Olin Hannum, OSU’s asso ciate director of bands, has to rely heavily on its student leaders. “When you have numbers like that, organiza tion is from the top down,” he says.

So student leadership is a constant with the band — from signaling instructions all the way to choosing the halftime shows.

3:40 p.m.

Trombones wait in the tunnel for the final pregame runthrough. final pregame runthrough.

3:45 p.m.

Band members rehearse in an empty Reser Stadium.

4:30 p.m.

An early dinner of baked potatoes at the Truax Indoor Practice Center.

4:55 p.m.

Bass drummers outside of Gill Coliseum for the pregame step show.

5:47 p.m.

The color guard takes the field, followed by the musicians.

5:54 p.m. Two jets fly over Reser Stadium.

But while the halftime shows change, the band’s 11-minute pregame routine has been essentially the same since 1968. In fact, Hannum says he hears complaints if he messes around too much with it.

And no wonder: The show plays like a greatest-hits re vue of OSU fight songs, with “The Star-Spangled Ban ner” and the marching band chestnut “Rock and Roll Part II” thrown in for good measure. Much of the music was written by former OSU band directors.

The pregame always includes the maneuver known as the “Beaver Spell-Out,” with the members of the band spelling out the letters “O”, “S” and “U” across the field. Legendary band director James Douglass wrote the mu sic for that section. The pregame show is a celebration of tradition, says Justin Preece, the band’s percussion coordinator and drumline instructor.

“And that’s something that multiple generations of fans can recognize,” Preece says. “And they do — octogenar ians standing up, clapping enthusiastically and singing. Kids who haven’t hit double digits do the same thing. And that’s a nice unifying moment.”

A Precision Pregame

On the field, at the north end zone, band assistant Dave Manela, wearing a headset, worries that the cloud cov er might prevent the flyover, now less than 10 minutes away, by two jets racing toward Reser. These flyovers al most never come off on time, he says, and he would know — as a student at OSU, he played tenor sax in the band before graduating with a computer engineering degree. He’s another example of how the band attracts students from throughout the campus.

Finally, at 5:47 p.m., the drumline takes the field, fol lowed by the members of the marching band, drawing a big cheer from the crowd.

New members — those not quite yet drilled in the marching routines — move to the west sideline and play along with the music. The video screen in Reser shows a view of the band as seen from the second deck of the stadium — if you’re seated too close to the ground, you don’t have a high-enough perch to make out whatever the band is spelling.

After a few tunes, the band is ready to play “The Star-Spangled Banner,” but the timing isn’t quite right yet for the flyover. So

7:35 p.m. The band performs the halftime show.

Eric Leung, the director of bands at OSU and the conductor for the anthem, gets the sig nal: Stretch. The opening drum roll plays for an addition al 15 or so seconds before Leung brings in the rest of the band. It’s 5:53 and six seconds.

Eighty-four seconds later — just as the band reach es the “home of the brave” part of the song — two jets scream over the stadium.

They’re right on time.

And the rest of the pregame routine — complete with the Beaver spell-out — goes fine, despite earlier worries. After the show, band members dash for their assigned seats in the south end of the stadium. Preece applauds them as they clamber up the steps off the field, even as the opening kickoff, boomed high into the air, heads their way.

“That was awesome,” Preece says. “Good job, every body.”

Band members won’t march again until halftime. But they still have hours of work ahead.

The Game’s Soundtrack

With the game underway, band members scramble back to their seats to provide the musical soundtrack for the game — a soundtrack that can change at a moment’s no tice, depending on what happens on the field.

Hannum handles conducting duties during the game, using hand signals to cue the selections he wants played at certain points.

The most frequent is the five-note snippet of music played every time the Beavers rack up a first down. (An other former OSU band director, Brad Townsend, wrote that piece.) On this night, as the Beavers collect 15 first downs, the tune — appropriately named “First Down” — rings out 15 times.

But Hannum, who watches the video board as he di rects to keep tabs on the game and to get a sense of what music might be appropriate, can call on any of 14 different selections — and has a hand signal to go with each one.

“Generally, I try to follow the game script,” he says. “If we’re on offense and the team is right in front of us, I’ll hold off on playing to let them communicate. The op posite is true if it’s the opposing offense; I’ll try to play something disruptive.”

It’s not all “Seven Nation Army” and “First Down,” though: A fan with an ear for classical music can pick up snippets from Holst’s “The Planets” and “O Fortuna” from Carmina Burana. Whenever a player is injured on the field — Beaver or opponent — the band stops and members take a knee.

Hardwork And Halftime Magic

The first half zips by. At 7:24 p.m., less than 90 minutes after kickoff, they get the signal to assemble for the half time show and start heading back down to the field.

The 70-second selection the band plays as it takes the field for the halftime show (it’s called, naturally, “Take the Field”) is created fresh each season by Hannum and Preece, the drumline instructor.

In each new version, they sneak in snippets from OSU fight songs. During early rehearsals, the two challenge band members to identify the hidden Easter eggs; Dutch Bros gift cards go to students who get it right.

Tonight, the band is performing — for the first and on ly time — a tribute to Dolly Parton. The idea surprised Hannum when it first surfaced.

The process of creating the band’s three or four half time shows each season starts months beforehand, when students and others are invited to suggest themes for new shows. That session typically yields about 50 ideas, Hannum says, which eventually get whittled down to three or four actual shows.

“We’re looking for shows that are going to be interest ing, not only to the audience that’s experiencing it, but al so to the students who are working on it,” Hannum says. “We’re looking for things that are in the tempos that work well for step sizes and for marching to those pieces of mu sic. We’re looking for interesting concepts that haven’t been done before — or haven’t been done a lot. There are certain cliches in marching bands.”

So, for example, you won’t hear the OSU March ing Band doing an Earth, Wind & Fire show any time soon, even though Hannum is an EW&F fan. “It’s been done,” he says. “It’s been done a million times. The Beat les have been done a million times. What are the shows that haven’t been done a million times?”

He says he’s constantly surprised by the suggestions he gets from the students.

“I get exposed to all kinds of weird cool stuff,” he says, like certain genres of Korean pop. (A song by the K-pop band Blackpink worked its way into the band’s tribute to girl groups. Another show featured music from Avatar: The Last Airbender.)

And, as Hannum learned, students these days are very much into the music of Dolly Parton. “I wouldn’t have predicted that,” he says.

The Parton show features four well-known tunes: “I Will Always Love You,” “Jolene,” “Why’d You Come in Here Lookin’ Like That” and “Nine to Five.” Once Hannum and company obtain licensing rights to per form the songs, they start working on custom-made ar rangements that fit the band.

“We arrange the wind parts, and then that arrangement gets sent off to the drumline people,”Hannum says.“And then that whole thing gets sent off to the color guard in structor, who writes the choreography for the color guard. When all of those charts are done, I write drill.”

It used to be that marching band directors worked out drill routines outlining every step of a routine by us ing graph paper — hundreds and thousands of sheets of graph paper, each with dots showing the location of ev ery member of the band.

Today, those dots are created digitally — but the goal is the same: to ensure that every member knows where to stand to be one piece of a bigger picture. Just a few members out of place means that picture can get fuzzy in a hurry.

8:20 p.m. Associate Director of Bands Olin Hannum signals to the musicians.

9:00 p.m. The Beavers win!

9:10 p.m.

The band performs its last serenades after OSU’s win.

When Hannum finishes creating a drill, he shares it with each of the band members, who download the program on their smartphones, identify the dot that rep resents them, and get a sense of how the drill is supposed to work and how and when they have to move.

Each halftime program involves a different set of visu al challenges for the band members. For the Parton pro gram tonight, the band spells out the word “ALWAYS” during “I Will Always Love You.” Then they reform into the shape of a guitar. Along the way, they put down their instruments to perform a little two-step. Finally, they spell out the name “Dolly!” (See it all in action at bit.ly/ dolly-halftime.)

During rehearsals, it has proven to be a tricky bit of business to get the two “L”s in the name straight. But to night, it’s better — the second “L” might be a little off to a practiced eye, but the thousands of spectators can easily make out what they’re spelling.

The show takes almost exactly 10 minutes. It rep resents hours of work — and some shows, like this trib ute, are performed only once.

The Last Serenade

The Beavers build on a 7-0 halftime lead and pull away for a 21-7 win. The players head to the locker room.

It’s 9:22 p.m. — more than eight hours after the band’s initial call — but the musicians still have work to do as fans stream out the stadium.

At the end of every home game, band aficionados — friends, family, music fans — head over to the south end zone to watch the band perform tunes like “Radar Love” and the inevitable “Beer Barrel Polka.”

Somebody watching calls out for “Free Bird.”

The band does not play “Free Bird.”

Instead, the final selection is always the alma mater, “Carry Me Back to OSU.”

More than 20 minutes later — it’s 9:44 p.m. — the show ends. Instruments go back into cases. Equipment is packed up. The members of The Sound and Spirit of OSU head out into the night.

“It was what I was hoping for,” Hannum says about the season’s first full band performance.“I’m always expect ing things to go well. If I’m ever pessimistic about things, I tend to rehearse down to it.”

But he’s already looking ahead.

“Monday’s going to be a pregame day,” he says. “Take the field.”

This article was previously published in the Fall 2024 issue of Oregon Stater, images by Blake Brown.

MY “PANDEMIC EPIPHANY”: A Career Pivot in Music Education

Jason Rogers Digital Audio Production CTE Instructor, Woodburn High School

If you were a teacher during the pandemic - or if you know a teacher, or you’ve heard accounts of teachers, or you found yourself becoming a teacher - you already know: it was hard. Zoom teaching was awkward, too much screen time melted everyone’s brains, and nobody was happy about their decline in mental health and fitness. As a music teacher, I faced my own set of challenges during Distance Learning that forced me to rethink and reshape my approach to teaching. Here’s the story of how the pandemic turned my world upside down and led me to discover a new path to Digital Audio Production.

Adversity and Change

Five days before the start of school in the fall of 2020, I found out that my class schedule at Valor Middle School in Woodburn would be totally scrambled: year-long, sequential band and choir classes would become two non-consecutive quarters of randomly-populated groups. Class sizes ranged from 4 to 20; choir students were mixed with band; and beginning, intermediate, and advanced levels were all blended. While I hold no ill will toward my administrators and counselors, who had to make some very difficult scheduling decisions to make Distance Learning work for our school, it still felt like twenty years of dedication to carefully constructing a strong and successful program was gone in a finger-snap.

I know teachers who somehow managed to make the messiest of schedules work during this time, and Iknew I had navigated some tricky schedules in the past, but this was prohibitive to any reasonable semblance of “band” and “choir” (and many of my students’ lockdown experiences wouldn’t have facilitated playing an instrument or singing aloud, both situationally and technologically). Quite simply, we would have to do something else. So, I made the difficult decision to create a new curriculum to match the digital realm in which we found ourselves: Digital Music Production.

Mourning the Loss, Embracing the New

Needless to say, the start of the year held a lot of disappointment over the loss of the program I’d spent half of my life building. There was guilt, too, both for feeling like I had let my students down, and for allowing a break in the flow of skills from middle school to high school. It was like mourning, and it took until February 2021 - with the prolonged closure of schools and little chance of returning to in-person instruction - for me to come to terms with the situation and start moving forward.

When my head and heart were relieved of that weight, I was able to more clearly reflect on the positives I was experiencing and the problem-solving I was engaged in. In a very short period of time, I had familiarized myself with a new webbased Digital Audio Workstation platform (Soundtrap for Education 1) and created lesson plans for a mode of musicmaking that I had little touched in 25 years. Digital Music Production was fun for students, and it invigorated me in a new way.

Granted, not all of my students were on board with the idea. For some, it was “not what I signed up for,” and they simply dismissed it (along with all the other myriad apps that teachers were asking them to use). For many, Distance Learning was not working for them in general, and so it didn’t matter if it was music, math, or language arts: they weren’t engaging in lessons or completing assignments.

But for some, especially 6th graders with little or no preconceived notions about what band and choir were “supposed to be,” they dove in and did some really cool things. Jonathan had his sights set on becoming a videogame programmer, and he saw music production as a way to learn about composing and arranging backing music. Ellie was awkward and struggled with anxiety and ADHD, but was fearless with the microphone. Katelynn (one of the few 8th graders who embraced the new curriculum) wanted to be a YouTuber, wrote her own original lyrics, and jumped at the chance to learn how to record and arrange them. As a teenager, I know that I would have loved this class (and a lot of friends and colleagues have told me the same). I shared these successes with my principal and was able to add a new class called Music Technology to my schedule for the 20212022 school year. Band and choir students were able to go back to business as usual (3 to 6 feet apart, of course), but a new path arose for others.

Representation is Key

Another point of clarity that emerged in my reflections (or I should say merged with my reflections) was my own grappling with white privilege in the wake of George Floyd’s death and what it means to be a white male teacher in a majority Latinx district. Though I have tried to select music that reflects the cultural heritage of the students in my classroom, it is difficult to get away from the fact that the entire machine (the instruments we use, the dominant literature canon, the compositional style, the director-ensemble dynamic) is built on a colonialist past of 18th-19th century, Western European, white cis male music tradition.

1 https://www.soundtrap.com/edu/

And then I thought about all of the reasons that students don’t participate in music, whether it be never starting at the middle school level, dropping music once they get to high school, or never touching their instrument again after high school. Quite simply, many students don’t find themselves represented in our traditional music education system. I know that I have been responsible for students losing their curiosity and passion for music over the years by creating learning environments that are too rigid and non-inclusive, and that breaks my heart.

It turns out there have been studies on the student demographic who have been un-served, under-served, or driven away by our traditional music class offerings. In 2012, David Williams collected and analyzed music participation data on 6th-12th grade students across the United States 2 . He found that, on average, 80% of middle and high school students do not participate in the traditional music ensembles and courses offered in their schools. Eighty percent! I can relate: while I have had participation rates as high as 1 in 3 students in my middle school, fewer than a quarter of those students typically join music at the high school. It doesn’t mean these students are not interested in music, though, it’s just that they may need to pursue it independently, and most likely through popular music styles.

Addressing the Criticism

Music Production might be frowned upon as an illegitimate music education pursuit because it is grounded in popular music (i.e., “commercial music”: pop, R&B, rock, hip-hop, electronic dance music, etc.). Teaching music production is “composition,” but not the way we were taught in university. Pop music is riff-, hook-, sample-, and loopbased, most often learned and created through an oral/aural process. Producers work in a context more akin to project management - sometimes wearing all the creative hats, from visioner to arranger to engineer to musician - where the live performance of music is not usually the intended outcome.

On the surface of the criticism of teaching composition or songwriting in this way is the fear that students won’t learn how to read standard music notation and play an instrument the legit way, which some believe will undermine music education as we know it. I can understand that fear, because I held it for a long time myself. This is based on the assumption, though, that teaching students to read music and play or sing in an ensemble is inherently better and produces “lifelong learners.” This might be true for some, but I have observed it to be true for only a minority of those who enter our programs. (How many people have you met who say, “You teach band? That’s cool! I was in band, but never touched my instrument again after high school.”) Offering the traditional ensemble models as the only path, or at least the central path, does not meet the diverse

artistic, aesthetic, creative, and cultural needs and desires of our students. We know that music is often a place where students are looking to belong, so this can lead to feelings of frustration or disenfranchisement when they don’t find it, which can push them into that 80%.

These modes of music-making don’t have to be mutually exclusive, though. By starting with the building blocks of songs, we can engage students immediately in the creation of music, making it more likely that they will choose a purposeful exploration of notation and theory. This can also lead to the realization that playing instruments and singing are valuable skills to add to their creative toolbox. It’s a topdown sort of experience - or maybe a side-door - rather than the granular, ground-up approach of our traditional instrumental pedagogy. Think of it like collage art, clipping images and words from magazines. Nobody in the visual art world says, “Put the scissors and glue stick down and step away! Those kids will never learn how to use a paintbrush!” Some will embrace and elevate that medium, others may pursue a mixed-media approach, but most will explore others. I would argue that by giving students control of the creative process from day one, they are more likely to be invested in making music beyond school. And higher ed is increasingly supporting this, with more universities including music production in their major and minor programs. Berklee College of Music takes it one step further by offering a Bachelor of Music in Performance for an Electronic Digital Instrument 3 (laptop + Digital Audio Workstation software + MIDI controller = Electronic Digital Instrument).

Buried under the criticism of this type of music making is often found a racism that comes from the early days of DJing and hiphop sampling and the lawsuits and accusations of intellectual property theft that followed. It was called “lazy music,” and rapping was “not singing.” Using the collage art example, we know that while cutting a picture of a face or a word from a magazine gives us instant access to an image that we don’t have the time or skill to generate ourselves, it doesn’t mean that the we have the vision to incorporate it into an overall artistic composition that makes aesthetic sense. The best hiphop producers possess an almost encyclopedic knowledge of classic jazz, R&B, funk, soul, disco, rock, and pop albums. They use this vast musical repertoire to weave a complex tapestry of clever nods, quotes, and references, building unique rhythmic and harmonic layers of subtext beneath the MC’s rap. And calling rap anything but rhythmic poetry is denying the skill necessary to weave a (sometimes spontaneous) tapestry of words into a compelling story, history, or commentary from the lyricist’s perspective. If the Pulitzer was given to a rapper4 , all should stop and listen. Hip-hop has been around for at least 50 years and is in many ways synonymous with popular culture. If there is still resistance to its existence, then it is because of a racist denial of its legitimacy as an art form and its roots in African American culture.

2 Williams, D.B., Journal of Music, Technology & Education, Volume 4, Issue 2-3, Feb 2012, p. 131-147

3 https://college.berklee.edu/academic-affairs/bachelor-of-music-in-performance-electronic-digital-instrument

4 https://www.pulitzer.org/winners/kendrick-lamar

The Future of Music Education is Culturally Responsive

In their book Electronic Music School: A Contemporary Approach to Teaching Musical Creativity 5 , Will Kuhn and Ethan Hein give three main arguments for teaching popular music styles in public school music programs:

1. “If we are serious about teaching music as an art class, then our students have to be free to create in the styles that are meaningful to them.”

2. “There is a difference between listening to pop music and knowing how to create it.”

3. “By validating students’ own musical identities, we send an implicit message of social and political inclusion.”

As music educators and musicians, we’ve made learning about music the center of our lives. Can we do that for the music our students listen to? Remember how open we were to new music when we were our students’ age? Remember how important our favorite artists were to our social lives and personal identity? When we went to college, our minds and ears were opened even further as we studied music from across the millennia and around the globe. As the late Jerritt Sheel, assistant professor of music education, jazz, and hip-hop at Berklee College explained 6 , we have to see this as ethnomusicological work in order to gain the cultural competency to meet our students where they are. We don’t have to be the source of all knowledge, and we don’t have to be up on the latest hit songs and trends. All we need is to be curious, be willing to ask questions, and when in doubt, let our students be the guide. I’m a Grunge-era Gen-X-er who listens to a lot of metal. I don’t follow the music my students listen to (and I frankly don’t always love it when I do), but I am able to appreciate that they find these artists and their songs deeply important, and I can show them that I am open to learn.

We like to say that music is a language, so consider the following analogy. In December of 2021, US Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona was interviewed on NPR’s Latino USA Podcast7 where he described some bilingual programs in the US as being “subtractive”: kids enter the school system with a home language (L1), that language is removed and

replaced with English (L2), then 10 years later they are given it back as a prestigious foreign language elective. The case I would make is that children are born into a multicultural pop music world (M1), it is taken away in music class and replaced with a 19th century western European music heritage (M2), and they only get it back as a couple “fun” songs on a program (or in pep band or show choir).

Conclusion

When I know better, I want to do better. My mission now is to reach those students who are not engaged by traditional music programs, the “other 80%.” Since that turning point in the middle of the pandemic, I have sought out professional development in Digital Audio Workstation software, gotten endorsed as a Career and Technical Education (CTE) instructor, and developed a curriculum to foster creativity with a purposeful use of technology. I am indebted to the many family, friends, colleagues, administrators, and industry professionals who patiently listened to me and helped champion my progress. Starting in the 20242025 school year - boosted by a very generous grant for equipment from the Give A Note Foundation 8 - I will begin teaching Digital Audio Production CTE at Woodburn High School to give students real-world experiences in music and podcast production. This program is not meant to replace the traditional ensembles, and is not stealing or poaching students (I found band/choir and music tech kids to be different breeds in my middle school program), but is complementing them and providing an alternative path for students interested in contemporary music-making.

Author Daniel H. Pink said 9, “We need to prepare kids for their future, not our past.” The traditional music education model needs to evolve to include diverse and contemporary approaches. By expanding our curriculum to include music technology and audio production, we can better serve our students and help them find success and fulfillment in their musical journeys. The pandemic may have disrupted our lives, but it also provided an opportunity for growth and change. My “pandemic epiphany” led me to discover a new passion for Digital Audio Production, and I’m excited to see where this new path will take my students and me. If you have had a similar experience, or have recently found yourself teaching music technology, I would be very happy to talk with you!

5 Kuhn, W., & Hein, E. (2021). Electronic Music School: A Contemporary Approach to Teaching Musical Creativity. Oxford University Press. Page 265.

6 https://youtu.be/j1LQvTjKG70?si=AqZ5su9A5ZxLAIyV&t=1107 18:27

7 https://www.latinousa.org/2021/12/03/miguelcardona/ 27:00

8 https://www.giveanote.org/

9 Pink, D. H. (2006). A Whole New Mind: Why Right-Brainers Will Rule the Future. Riverhead Books. Page 132.

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    

       

  certiﬁcation, etc.)

  

CREATIVITY THRIVES HERE

• Vocal and Instrumental Performance

• Sonic Arts & Music Production

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Kendra Taylor, PhD in Music Education Director of Choral Music Education, Western Oregon University

I loved my time at the University of Oregon. The School of Music and Dance felt like home, and I’m grateful for the relationships I built there. Now, as Director of Choral Music Education at WOU, I share the skills I learned at UO with the next generation.

“

Trevor Thompson, MME in Music Education Director of Bands, Joseph Lane Middle School

Mrs. Amanda Sarles, MME in Music Education K-5 Music Teacher, Siuslaw Elementary School

I chose UO’s School of Music and Dance for its diverse Music Education Faculty. After teaching K-12, I returned to gain pedagogical expertise. The equity-focused faculty across Music Education and Dance helped me achieve my professional goals and prepared me for the global classroom.

Cameron Siegal, PhD in Music Education

PreK–5 Music Educator,

“

The UO Ph.D. in Music Education prepared me to excel in music education research, significantly improving my teaching across all levels. The faculty were supportive, accessible, and caring. I highly recommend the program. Go Ducks!

The Music Education Department at the University of Oregon was key in my growth as an educator. I learned important lessons in musicianship, student care, and organization, with strong support from the faculty. Their guidance has been invaluable in job placement and building connections. “