We invite you to the 22nd year of the Southern Invitational Choral Conference at Southern Miss to be held September 15 and 16, 2025. This year’s conference will feature clinicians Brett Peppo and Jabarie Glass.
Students will take part in intense rehearsals and highquality performances, meeting fellow musicians from all over the Southeast. Also, at SICC, students have an opportunity to audition for choral scholarships at Southern Miss. Teachers can earn continuing education units (CEUs) by attending the various sessions. We are enthusiastic about meeting and working with you and your students. Please contact us with any questions.
Sincerely,
Gregory Fuller, PhD, Director of Choral Activities
• no audition required
• performance t-shirt and music provided
• opportunity to audition for scholarships from Southern Miss
• new friends and interaction with colleagues
• great choral music
• continuing education units for teachers
• reading sessions and master classes for teachers (music provided)
• final concert on Tuesday afternoon by all singers
SOUTHERN MISS
STUDENT ACDA CHAPTER
COMMUNITY COLLEGE CLINICIAN
BRET PEPPO
Bret Peppo is in his nineteenth year as director of choral activities at Diablo Valley College in Pleasant Hill, CA. He conducts the Concert Chorale, Chamber Singers, Masterworks Chorale, and coaches Vocal Jazz Ensembles and acapella ensembles. Previously, Peppo has held positions as the director of choral activities at Kent State University, Alderson-Broaddus University, the University of South Alabama, and Illinois State University. He has also served as associate director of choral activities at the University of Northern Arizona and as director of the University of Iowa’s Old Gold Singers, amassing over thirty years of collegiate choral instruction experience. His concert, jazz, and show choirs have toured extensively throughout the country and have been selected to perform at numerous All-State and ACDA State and Regional Conferences. As a conductor, Peppo has led many high school and collegiate allstate festivals for both honor choirs and jazz choirs. He is a frequent adjudicator and clinician with many national music festivals and is a regular judge for show choir, vocal jazz, and a cappella competitions.
Bret Peppo received his B.M.E. from Eastern Illinois University, M.M. in Conducting from Illinois State University, and D.M.A. from the University of Iowa in Conducting and Pedagogy.
HIGH SCHOOL CLINICIAN
JABARIE GLASS
Jabarie Glass is a conductor and educator with experience across university, secondary, community, festival, and church choral settings. He currently serves as director of choral activities in the School of Music at the University of Oklahoma, where he conducts the OU Chorale and leads the graduate choral conducting program. Known for his dynamic leadership and compelling programming, Glass brings a commitment to musical excellence, collaboration, and inclusive practice to every ensemble he leads. Choirs under his direction have been featured at the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA) Southern Region Conference, the Mississippi-ACDA Conference, and the South Carolina Music Educators Association Conference.In addition to his passion for conducting works from the choral-orchestral repertory, he is a fervent advocate for new music, dedicated to enriching the choral canon by commissioning and premiering works that embrace diverse artistic perspectives. He has presented interest sessions at regional and national conferences of the American Choral Directors Association, led conducting masterclasses, and published in The Choral Journal. He continues to invest in the musical growth of young choral artists by conducting honor choirs and all-state ensembles across the United States. He also holds leadership positions in professional choral organizations, having served as the Student Activities Coordinator for the ACDA Southern Region and as a member of the National Board for the National Collegiate Choral Organization.
COLLABORATIVE ARTIST
CAROL JOY SPARKMAN
Carol Joy Sparkman is the co-director of choral music at Clinton High School in Clinton, Mississippi. She began her career on the music faculty at Mississippi College, where she served as a collaborative pianist, directed a vocal jazz ensemble, and was the musical director for the Mississippi College Opera/Musical Theater program. She holds a Bachelor of Music Education in Piano and a Master of Music in Vocal Coaching and Accompanying, both from Mississippi College.
An accomplished collaborative pianist, Sparkman is in high demand as an accompanist for choirs and vocalists across the region. At Clinton High School, she directs five choirs and two contemporary a cappella ensembles. In addition to her work in education, she is the music director at Beth Israel Congregation in Jackson and serves as musical director at New Stage Theatre.
She currently serves as the Repertoire & Resources Chair for Contemporary and Commercial Music for the Southern Region of the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA), as well as the Opening Night Concert Event Chair. She has also served as Southeast Regional Director for the A Cappella Education Association and held positions on the Mississippi ACDA Board. Notably, she played a key role in launching an event dedicated to a cappella groups in Mississippi.
COLLABORATIVE ARTIST
SHAWN KIRCHNER
Shawn Kirchner is a composer/arranger, singer, and pianist based in Los Angeles whose choral works are sung throughout the world. A tenor with the Los Angeles Master Chorale since 2001, Kirchner emerged from the ranks to be appointed as the ensemble’s composer in residence from 201215, a position formerly held by Morten Lauridsen, and since by Eric Whitacre and Reena Esmail. Best known worldwide for his lively, contrapuntal setting of the Kenyan song “Wana Baraka” and “Heavenly Home: Three American Songs,” Kirchner has also written imaginative choral cycles on the poetry of Euan Tait, Pablo Neruda, Sylvia Plath, Gerard Manley Hopkins, Susan Cooper, and William Blake. Kirchner’s publishers include Boosey & Hawkes, Oxford University Press, and Santa Barbara Music Publishing. His original songwriting ranges in style from jazz/gospel to folk/bluegrass, the latter featured on his CD Meet Me on the Mountain. As a singer with the LA Master Chorale, Kirchner has also performed hundreds of concerts with the LA Philharmonic and has sung on dozens of feature film soundtracks, including the “Lorax,” “Frozen,” “La La Land,” “Avatar,” and films of the “Star Wars” and “X-Men” franchises. As a pianist, Kirchner often performs throughout the country in performances of his music with collaborating choirs, and is celebrated for his wide stylistic range, improvisation, and musicianship.
SCHEDULES
HIGH SCHOOL SCHEDULE
Monday
10:00 am – Registration begins on the second and third floors of the Thad Cochran Center
Choral scholarship auditions for The University of Southern Mississippi will be held during the conference Rehearsalsandbreaksareatthediscretionoftheclinicians
SCHOLARSHIP AUDITIONS
STUDENT SELECTION PROCESS
Each high school and community college is invited to bring three or four balanced SATB quartets. Students should be excellent sight-readers, have good vocal technique, and display exemplary rehearsal behavior. If possible, priority should be given to students who will continue to sing in college. Please limit selection to those students who read music well and work hard in rehearsal.
If you have a need to bring a group that is not balanced with voice parts, permission must be sought from Dr. Gregory Fuller (gregory.fuller@usm.edu).
SCHOLARSHIP AUDITION
At SICC, students have the opportunity to earn choral scholarships to The University of Southern Mississippi for the 2025 - 26 academic year. Auditions are open to all high school seniors and community college students who attend SICC. Students planning to be music majors should prepare two songs—one of a fine art (or classical) nature and one from any style. Those planning on being music minors, or who do not plan on majoring in music at all, should prepare one piece of a fine art (or classical) nature. An accompanist will be provided.
FAQ
STUDENT ATTIRE School-appropriate clothing should be worn for all rehearsals, and the SICC T-shirt and jeans, or khakis, should be worn for the concert (no shorts for performance).
REHEARSALS To help us make SICC a successful conference, we ask that any deviation from the schedule be cleared with Dr. Fuller. It is important that all conference attendees help our productivity by being present and keeping distractions at a minimum. Please consult with us before allowing any student to arrive late or depart early from any rehearsal or event.
PARKING PASSES Parking passes will be available prior to SICC on the web at usm.edu/sicc.
CEUs CEUs are not included in the teacher registration fee but are available at an additional cost. Teachers must attend all CEU sessions in order to receive their credits.
STUDENTS BEST SUITED FOR THE SICC EXPERIENCE WILL POSSESS THE FOLLOWING QUALITIES IN THIS ORDER: strong work ethic, musicianship skills (sight-reading) and choral singing experience.
LIABILITY
Southern Miss does not take responsibility for students when they are not attending an SICC event. The remainder of the conference, including travel, downtime, dining breaks and overnight lodging, is monitored by teacher, chaperone or other responsible adult named on the SICC registration form.
CONFERENCE CODE SICC COST DEADLINE
*All rates and info subject to change
When making your reservations, please use the conference code SICC to receive special rates. Remember that most of the rooms have two double beds and can accommodate four students. Make sure to specify if you want double/double rooms or kings. Monday night is the only required night; however, some schools may want to arrive Sunday evening.
Luckyday Citizenship
Vann
ONLINE REGISTRATION usm.edu/sicc
Early Payment Option
$65 per student/teacher/chaperone
Paid in full by September 2, 2025
High Schools and Community Colleges may bring up to 16 students
Imprinted items such as T-shirts cannot be guaranteed for registration occurring after September 2, 2025.
Please make check or money order payable to Southern Miss Choral Activities and mail to Dr. Gregory Fuller
The University of Southern Mississippi 118 College Drive #5081 Hattiesburg, MS 39406
Payment Option
$75 per student/teacher/chaperone
Paid in full after September 2, 2025
Students without a school affiliation must be at least 14 years of age, exhibit strong musicianship skills, have some choral singing experience, and possess a strong work ethic.
Designed to make SICC accessible for homeschool students and students whose schools are not participating in the conference
CHORAL ACTIVITIES
118 College Drive #5081
Hattiesburg, MS 39406
SI CC
THE NO WORRIES CONFERENCE No audition No pre-purchase of music No pre-conference preparation
