Keaton Alexander is an emerging music educator and clinician dedicated to advancing advocacy in music education. A fourth-year senior at the University of Kansas, he will graduate in May 2025 with a bachelor's degree in music education. He currently serves as the KMEA Collegiate NAfME State President, where he works to strengthen intercollegiate collaboration and empower future educators. In this role, he has worked with the statewide mentoring team to support pre-service teachers and foster professional connections. As part of his commitment to music education policy, Keaton attended NAfME's National Assembly & Hill Day in Washington, D.C., where he collaborated with KMEA leadership to advocate for music education in Kansas.

Matt Allison is a seasoned professional with a diverse background in fine arts administration and music education in rural, suburban, and urban schools. He holds a Bachelor's degree in Music Education from Kansas State University and a Master's degree in Educational Administration from Emporia State University.

With over 7 years of experience in Fine Arts administration in the Liberty Public School District and 10+ years as a music teacher, he brings a unique blend of artistic expertise and managerial acumen to his work. Matt started his career teaching K-8 general music in Phoenix, Arizona. His growing family brought him back to the Midwest, where he taught K-12, Band, Vocal, Theater, and general music in Troy, Kansas. While in Troy, Matt was awarded the "Master Teacher Award" for his contributions to the district.

Matt joined the Liberty Public School District in 2017 as the Assistant Director of Fine Arts where he assists in overseeing the Fine Arts Department containing over 87 teachers, 55 staff members, and 6 departments spanning 17 buildings across the district. Currently in Liberty, Matt's passion for education is evident in his numerous presentations at local, state, and national conferences, including the Missouri Music Education Association Conference, Kansas Music Education Association Conference, and the National Art Education Association Conference.

Under his leadership, the Liberty Public School District has been recognized as a Best Community for Music Education from the NAMM foundation for 12 years in a row, A Premiere Community for Theater Education, various state and national performances, a vibrant arts department, and developed teaching artist residencies throughout the school system. Most recently, Liberty Public Schools made history by becoming the first school district in Missouri to receive the Missouri Arts Council Art Award for Arts Education, a significant recognition that highlights the district's exceptional contributions to fostering arts education in the community.

Michael Arbucci is currently serving as the Director of Orchestras at Blue Valley Northwest High School, Harmony Middle School, and Harmony Elementary School in Overland Park, KS. Mr. Arbucci has held this post since 2014. Prior to his appointment at BVNW, Mr. Arbucci was director of orchestras at Leawood Middle School in Leawood, KS for seven years. Mr. Arbucci's orchestras are frequently awarded ensembles composed of high-achieving student musicians, often leading the pack at District and State orchestra. Mr. Arbucci holds degrees from University of Missouri-Kansas City and Baker University. He studied music education at Florida State University and University of Missouri-Kansas City. His violin, orchestra, and conducting teachers/mentors have included Ken Bowermeister, Christopher Mink, Karen Clarke, Paul Hatton, Alex Jimenez, Robert Olson, Joe Parisi, Mary Lou Jones, Joe Keeney, and Jeffrey Bishop.

Mr. Arbucci supports the performance of standard orchestra literature, but his passion lies in what he calls “musica neglectica,” referring to great works that generally receive little to no performance time in today's concert halls. Under his direction, the BVNW orchestras have performed underplayed literature by Mendelssohn, Grieg, Reinecke, Svendsen, Kalinnikov, Wiren, Flagello, Bacewicz, Rota, Hindemith, Walker, Zare, and more.

Mr. Arbucci has served on the faculty of several music camps in KS, MO, and FL, and he has guest-conducted a wide variety of honor ensembles at all levels. He was awarded the ECKMEA Outstanding Orchestra Director award for High School and Middle School in 2024, 2023, 2019, and 2018, and he has been the recipient of other awards such as Master Teacher and KS Sunflower Award. Mr. Arbucci serves as a KMEA mentor for new and developing orchestra teachers and frequently works with student teachers from KS/MO universities. He also teaches violin and viola students in a small private studio and plays violin in a string quartet.

Laura Bock is currently a Ph.D. student in Music and Human Learning at the University of Texas at Austin. She also teaches with the University of Texas String Project where she is an orchestra conductor and the Early Childhood Education Coordinator.

As a young musician, Bock grew up in Westminster, Maryland where she was an active member of her high school band and orchestra programs. She completed a double concentration in music education and flute performance at James Madison University and a master’s degree in Music and Human Learning at the University of Texas at Austin.

From 2011-2015, Bock taught 5th and 6th grade band at Walker Upper Elementary School in Charlottesville City Schools and served as the District XIII representative to the Virginia Band and Orchestra Directors Association in 2014 and 2015. She also performed with the Charlottesville Symphony Orchestra as a 2nd flute and piccolo player and was awarded 2nd Prize in the Piccolo Young Artist Competition of the 2013 Mid-Atlantic Flute Convention.

Between 2017 and 2022, Bock was the Assistant Band Director at Blue Valley Southwest High School in Overland Park, Kansas as well as its associated elementary and middle school feeder schools where she worked with students in grades 5-12. She was also a co-conductor for the first Wind Ensemble program of Harmony Project KC which provides free music instruction to youth in the Kansas City Urban Core. In 2021, she was recognized as the Outstanding Young Music Educator for eastern central Kansas. Bock enjoys working with a variety of students across different musical content areas and age levels.

Ryan Bogner is beginning his 14th year teaching in public education and has spent 12 of those years working with HS students. Mr. Bogner has worked in a variety of settings and three different states, has worked closely with three other master teachers, and now he is back in his hometown of Leavenworth, KS to bring his wealth of knowledge and experience to give back to his community. He has helped prepare choirs to perform at state and regional conventions multiple times, and has demonstrated many years of success at Large Group Contest and even earned superior ratings at the esteemed Madrigal Festival his first year teaching. Mr. Bogner holds a Masters in Music with an emphasis in Choral Conducting from Kansas State University having studied under Drs. Yu and Oppenheim, and a Bachelors in Music Education from the University of Kansas where he studied conducting with Dr. John Paul Johnson and voice with Dr. Hugo Vera, Lane Johnson, and Dr. Christian Elser.

Saxophonist, educator, and military band veteran Christopher L. Burnett is known for his warm and lyrical jazz sound. Following a 20-plus year military career during which he taught and performed, Burnett embarked on a fruitful career teaching at a university and became a performer. He continued to perform in his native Kansas, releasing albums like 2013's Time Flies, 2014's Firebird, and 2021's The Standards, Vol. 1.

Born in Olathe, Kansas, Burnett grew up in a military family. Consequently, he moved often before settling in the Kansas City area. Along with his older brother, drummer Richie Pratt, Burnett was exposed to music growing up. His mother introduced him to the piano and he was a member of the youth choir at his church. As part of his school band program, he took up saxophone and clarinet. After high school, he enlisted in the U.S. Army Music Program where, along with performing, he continued to pursue higher education, studying at the Armed Forces School of Music, Webster University, Missouri's Columbia College, Berklee College of Music, and American University. Burnett spent over 22 years in the military, rising to the distinguished rank of First Sergeant in the position of Enlisted Bandleader. While in the military he held numerous positions, including a staff and faculty assignment at the Armed Forces School of Music. He was also the Leading Chief Petty Officer of the NATO Band in Naples, Italy. There, he served as NATO Ceremonial Band Conductor, directed the jazz band, and performed as a featured soloist. Other assignments included being selected to play the lead alto saxophone chair with the West Point Military Academy Band's Jazz Knights, selection for assignment as a Jazz Ensemble Rehearsal Conductor at the Armed Forces School of Music, and being a featured soloist with the Hof Symphony Orchestra in Germany. By the time he left the military, he had been awarded both the Department of Defense Meritorious Service Medal and Army Meritorious Service Medal.

Outside the military, Burnett continued to teach, holding the position of director of the jazz ensemble program at Missouri University of Science and Technology (formerly University of Missouri-Rolla) where he worked as an Adjunct Lecturer for a decade. He has performed with artists like Bobby Watson, Will Matthews, Marcus Hampton, Ahmed Alaadeen, and many more. Based in the Kansas City area, Burnett is the Founder and Artistic Director of KC Area Youth Jazz and along with colleagues Erica Lindsay and Sumi Tonooka is a co-founder of the large independent recording label, Artists Recording Collective.

He has performed at the Roots Festival in Paola, Kansas, held residencies at the historic Drum Room and the Black Dolphin in Kansas City, and appeared as a guest artist and clinician for the Northwest Missouri State Jazz Festival. In 2013, he formally released his debut album as a leader, Time Flies. Firebird arrived in 2014. In 2021, he released the studio album The Standards, Vol. 1. A second volume of standards (Live at The Drum Room in Kansas City) arrived in 2022.

Kevin Cerovich is a Latin Grammy nominated trombonist originally from Overland Park, Kansas. He began playing trombone at the age of ten, and by high school, was excelling on jazz trombone under the tutelage of his band director, Kim Harrison at Shawnee Mission East High School. Cerovich continued his studies at the University of Missouri Kansas City where he earned a Bachelor of Music in Jazz Trombone. While studying there with Bobby Watson and Paul McKee, he won numerous awards including the 2007 International Trombone Association's JJ Johnson Jazz Competition and the Eastern Trombone Workshop's Solo Jazz Competition.

Cerovich moved to New York City in 2008 to further his music career and was quickly hired by jazz piano icon Eric Lewis with whom he toured internationally and recorded on the 2009 Sony Pictures soundtrack, "Dark Country." From there, he recorded and toured for several years with French music legend Charlelie Couture in Europe and Canada. Cerovich was also a member of the Charlie Persip Big Band and the National Jazz Museum in Harlem All Stars.

In 2012, Cerovich won the jazz trombone chair with the famed Airmen of Note, USAF Band, Washington, D.C. Since joining the Air Force, he has performed and arranged on numerous albums with the Airmen of Note and toured extensively with the band. In addition to the United States, Cerovich has performed in Indonesia, Scotland, Canada, Jordan, Kuwait, Afghanistan and Qatar. As part of the Airmen of Note, he has performed with Christian McBride, Peter Erskine, Steve Turre, James Taylor, among others. His work with Andres Salguero was nominated for a Latin Grammy in 2015. In 2022, Cerovich released his latest critically acclaimed album, "Aging Millennial." Cerovich plays Rath trombones exclusively.

Suzanne Charney is in her fourteenth year of teaching and is currently pursuing a Ph.D in Music and Human Learning at the University of Texas at Austin where she teaches undergraduate courses in instrumental methods, music education, and is a Field Supervisor for student teachers. She is passionate about cultivating future music educators who will create quality learning experiences for all students.

Originally from Springfield, Ohio, she earned a Bachelor of Music Education graduating with High Distinction from Indiana University in 2012. Prior to returning to higher academia, Ms. Charney taught for seven years as a middle and high school band director, earning consistent distinguished teacher ratings. She was actively involved with the nationally recognized Lawrence Central High School Performing Arts Department in Indianapolis, Indiana and the TMEA 2A State Honor Band in 2014. Throughout her career, Ms. Charney's ensembles have consistently cultivated joy of music engagement and she was honored to be selected as a Top Ten Teacher of Influence in 2017, 2019, and 2020. She returned to Indiana University to pursue a Master of Music Degree in Wind Conducting and Music Education. While at Indiana University as an Associate Instructor, Ms. Charney instructed the Marching Hundred, was an Interim Athletic Band Director, and served as a guest conductor for their wind ensembles. She currently pursues research in music education as a Teaching Assistant in the Butler School of Music at UT Austin. Her work has recently been published at the NAfME National Conference, Society for Music Perception and Cognition, the International Society for Music Education Research Commission and the Texas Music Educators Association Clinic and Convention.

Kristin Chisham is the Middle School/High School Vocal and Musical Director at Douglass High School. For the past 22 years she has also taught in Oklahoma, Missouri, and Kansas.

She holds a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance degree from Wichita State University in which she was an Olive Beech Scholar. She also has her Master of Music Education from Central Methodist University.

Kristin holds various leadership position for both SCKMEA, KMEA and KCDA. She just finished her tenure as the SCKMEA Elementary Honor Chair and she is the KMEA Music in Our School Month Advisor. This summer she will be the KCDA's Soprano/Alto Honor Choir Chair.

Kristin is also the Director of the Delano Chamber Choir as well as the Director of Music at Hillside Christian Church. She is an avid performer and debuted her very own Jazz/Cabaret Show "Cabaret with Kristin" in the fall of 2021 at Mosley Street Melodrama.

John retired in 2019 after leading the band in Louisburg for 40 years. The Louisburg Band marched in the 2018 Tournament of Roses Parade and was the first band to receive the "Service Through Music Award." John currently plays in the De Soto Brass Band and the Sounds of South Kansas City. He is assistant director of the international Band Directors Marching Band. With that group, he recently performed in the 2022 Rose Parade and the 2023 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. John is the 2020 KBA Kansas Bandmaster of the Year and a Laureate of the Sousa Foundation Legion of Honor. He holds BME, MA, and EdS degrees from UMKC.

Mary Cogswell recently retired after directing bands for 33 years, the past 29 years in the Brookings, SD School District teaching beginning band. Her service to the profession includes President of SD Bandmasters Association as well as Phi Beta Mu Sigma Chapter, SDHSAA All-State Band Music Chair, and contributing member of the National Band Association and Women Band Director’s International. Mary’s service to the profession also includes serving as co-editor of the Beginning Band Adaptable Series through Murphy Music Press, which emphasizes flex arrangements based on a rubric specifically created for beginning bands. Mary has delivered many presentations emphasizing recruitment and proper instruction for the success of beginning band musicians and has been an invited speaker for several national band podcasts. Her conducting engagements include the 2018 SD Middle School Festival All-State Band, and various area honor bands and summer band camps. Mary’s recognitions include the 2019 SD School Band and Orchestra Magazines "50 Directors Who Make a Difference," 2020 Phi Beta Mu Sigma Chapter Distinguished Service Award and 2021 Phi Beta Mu Sigma Chapter Outstanding Bandmaster.

Over the course of the past decade, Ryan Diefenderfer has served as the Director of Bands and Orchestras at Paradise Valley High School in Phoenix, Arizona and Adjunct Faculty Member at Paradise Valley Community College. Ryan is the proud recipient of the 2021 Silver Apple Arizona Teaching Award and was a Quarterfinalist for the 2024 Grammy Award in Music Education. Most recently, Mr. Diefenderfer joined the staff at Klein Cain High School in Houston, Texas as Associate Band Director. Mr. Diefenderfer received his undergraduate degree from Indiana University, and is currently finishing his Master's Degree at Arizona State University.

Keith Dodson is currently Director of Orchestral Studies and Assistant Professor of Conducting at Central Michigan University in Mount Pleasant, Michigan. Additionally, he is the Music Director and Conductor of the Chamber Orchestra of the Smoky Valley, a professional orchestra based in Central Kansas. Dr. Dodson completed the PhD in Music Education with an emphasis in Orchestral Conducting at the Florida State University College of Music, where he concurrently completed the Specialized Study in Music Theory Pedagogy program.

As a conductor, Dr. Dodson was selected to participate as a conducting fellow at the Conductor’s Institute in South Carolina under the direction of Dr. Donald Portnoy. He was a conducting participant in the College Orchestra Directors Association’s Conducting Masterclass with Bruce Hangen in Boston, Massachusetts. Since the summer of 2021, Dr. Dodson has served on the orchestral conducting faculty at the Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp in Twin Lake, Michigan. He was a finalist for the American Prize in Collegiate Orchestral Conducting for the 2021 to 2022 academic year, and was a finalist honorable mention for the American Prize in Professional Orchestral Conducting for the 2023 to 2024 academic year. In the fall of 2022, Dr. Dodson served as a guest conductor for the University Symphony Orchestra at the University of Kansas in Lawrence, Kansas. His conducting teachers include Alexander Jiménez, Michael J. Garasi, and Joseph Kreines. As a proponent of new music, Dr. Dodson has conducted works by Michael Gordon, Victoria Bond, James Primosch, Richard Maltz, Avner Dorman, Ash Stemke, Aaron Houston, Brian Junttila, and Eunseon Yu. Prior to his career in higher education, he held secondary instrumental positions at Space Coast Junior/Senior High School and Matanzas High School in Central Florida.

At Central Michigan University, Dr. Dodson serves as Music Director of the Central Michigan University Symphony Orchestra. This flagship ensemble is host to top performing undergraduate and graduate music majors, in addition to talented non-majors at CMU. He previously served on the faculty of Bethany College in Lindsborg, Kansas where the program grew from one to seventeen music majors over the course of four years. He is the founding music director of the Chamber Orchestra of the Smoky Valley (COSV). COSV is comprised of faculty members from Kansas State University, the University of Oregon, Oklahoma City University, the University of Kansas, and also personnel from the Wichita Symphony Orchestra, the Topeka Symphony Orchestra, and the Kansas City Symphony. As an active clinician, Dr. Dodson has conducted the Southwestern/Northwestern Kansas Music Educators Association (KMEA) Orchestra, the East Central KMEA Blue Orchestra, the South Central KMEA Orchestra, the Kansas City Metro District #3 String Orchestra, the Wichita All City Orchestra, and numerous middle school and high school bands and orchestras throughout the states of Florida, Kansas, Michigan, and Missouri.

Dr. Dodson earned bachelor’s degrees in Music Performance and Music Education from the University of Central Florida, Orlando. He completed a master’s degree in Music Education from the Florida State University, Tallahassee. Dr. Dodson is an active member of the National Association for Music Education (NAfME), MMEA, the College Orchestra Directors Association (CODA), the American String Teachers Association (ASTA), and Pi Kappa Lambda.

Mark Dupere is Associate Professor of Music at Lawrence University, where he is the Director of Orchestral Studies. He currently conducts the Lawrence Symphony Orchestra as well as Philharmonie Austin. As cellist, Mark performed throughout Europe with the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra, Haagsche Hofmuzieck, Anima Eterna and was an apprentice with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment in London. Mark was a "Emerging Artist" at the Victoria Bach Festival, performed in the Leipzig Bach Competition, and most recently named a national finalist in the American Prize in Conducting. Mark holds degrees in Cello from the University of Texas at Austin, Royal Conservatoire in The Hague, The Netherlands and a Doctorate in Orchestral Conducting from Michigan State University.

Audrey Garvey is a proud Jackson Jaguar and is in her 8th year teaching elementary music in Wichita Public Schools USD-259. She earned her Master of Music Education from Wichita State University in 2017, with emphases in choral and elementary music, and a Bachelor of Vocal Music Education, Magna Cum Laude, from the University of Central Oklahoma in 2014. Audrey is Kodály certified through the WSU program. In 2023, she served as the Northeast Area Honor Choir Director for Wichita Public Schools and frequently mentors student teachers and observers from local universities. Audrey is an active member of the National Association for Music Education, Kodály Music Educators of Kansas, and other professional organizations. She regularly attends and presents at workshops.

Greg Gilpin is a celebrated ASCAP award-winning choral composer and arranger and a highly respected choral conductor. He is known throughout the United States leading performances at New York City's iconic Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center as well as Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee. His international appearances include the Sydney Opera House in Sydney, Australia, Royal Festival Hall in London, England and Harpa Concert Hall in Reykjavik, Iceland.

In additional to composing and conducting, Mr. Gilpin has worked as a singer for the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra as well as background singer for Grammy award-winner, Sandi Patty and other highly acclaimed artists. He has worked extensively in the recording industry as a singer, pianist, arranger and producer with projects from Disney to commercial jingles.

In 2021, Mr. Gilpin wrote the score for the award-winning short film, "Rosie's Rescue" and was awarded "Best Score" for this same movie. He also teamed up with renowned opera singer, Angela Brown, and created the world premiere of the thrilling arrangement of "What Child is This?", debuted by Ms. Brown and the Indianapolis Symphonic Choir.

Mr. Gilpin is a proud member of ACDA, NAfME, SAG-AFTRA, and is a Life Loyal Member of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia and continues is position as Editor and Director of Educational Choral Publications for Shawnee Press.

Ann Cameron Haenfler has been involved in music education in grades K-12 in both the instrumental and vocal classrooms. She served as band and general music specialist in Mesa Public Schools and Gilbert Public Schools in Arizona and was previously the Assistant Band Director at Highland High School in Gilbert, Arizona. Ms. Haenfler was head band director at Patrick Henry Middle School in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and was also a band and choir director at the elementary and high school level in the Sioux Falls School District. Ms. Haenfler is active as a clinician, adjudicator, and state conference presenter, as well as honor band conductor for elementary and middle school bands. She continues to serve as a mentor teacher to pre-service and in-service teachers. Ms. Haenfler earned a Bachelor’s Degree from South Dakota State University and a Master’s Degree from the University of South Dakota.

MJ Harper directs choirs in grades 7-12 and at Grace United Methodist Church in Winfield, KS. She holds a Masters of Music from Kent State University and a Bachelors of Music Education from Pittsburg State University as a vocal major and violin minor. MJ has also been employed as a choreographer, director, music director, clinician, and workshop presenter in Oklahoma, Missouri, and Kansas. Some of her performing credits include chorus in The Hunchback of Notre Dame (Roxy's Downtown), Frau Blucher in Young Frankenstein (Cowley College), Sally Bowles in Cabaret (Pittsburg State University), and Rose in Gypsy (Pittsburg Community Theater).

Madison Hines Schmoll is a Graduate Teaching Assistant and Masters & PhD candidate in Music Education at the University of Kansas. Prior to starting her graduate studies, she was the former Director of Bands in Andover USD-385. During her four-year tenure in Andover, Madison taught 5-12 Band at Andover High School, Andover Middle School, Cottonwood Elementary, Wheatland Elementary, and Robert Martin Elementary Schools. Under her direction, the marching band, concert ensembles, and jazz ensembles earned consistently high ratings and performed in a variety of venues across the state. Madison strongly believes in the power of community and connection found in band – she strives to offer every student the opportunity to discover their role as a musician and individual in the band world and beyond.

Madison has been honored as a 2024 KBA Outstanding Young Bandmaster, 2-time Jester Award Recipient for Outstanding Pit Orchestra Direction in 2023 and 2024, and 2022 Horizon Award Recipient. Outside of school, she stays active as a performer and brass instructor in the Blue Valley School District. Her professional affiliations include KMEA, KBA, KWBDA, and NAfME.

David Howard is Associate Director of Choral Activities at the University of Oklahoma where he conducts the OU Men's Glee Club and the OU Women's Chorus. He also teaches graduate and undergraduate choral literature and choral conducting in addition to coordinating the annual Young Men's Vocal Workshop and the Women's Choral Leadership Workshop. His collegiate choirs, civic choruses, opera choruses, church choirs, secondary school choirs and festival choirs in the United States and Europe have been hailed for their artistry. The OU Women's Chorus performed by invitation at the Oklahoma Music Educators Association annual conference in 2018 and 2024. Their album Voces in Concordia is available on all streaming services. The OU Men's Glee Club's album of OU spirit songs, Fight for OKU: The Legendary OU Men's Glee Club is also available on all streaming services. Both choirs recently released a second album Septemundos.

Dr. Howard is the founder and artistic director Schola Cantorum Oklahoma, a professional choral ensemble dedicated to the performance of early music. Schola Cantorum Oklahoma has performed the complete Triumphs of Oriana (1601), Charpentier's Messe de minuit pour Noël, H.9 (1694), a program of the music of Hapsburg Spain, and two concerts with the Oklahoma Baroque Orchestra: "Venetian Holiday: Music of Monteverdi, Gabrieli, Legrenzi, and Schütz," and "A Concert Spirituel: Music of Rameau, Delalande, and Lully." Upcoming concerts will feature early Baroque music from the French court and Roland de Lassus's Psalmi Davidis Poentitentiales (1584).

Equally at home as a baritone soloist, Dr. Howard has performed nationally and internationally in oratorio and cantata presentations, and as a recitalist. Recent performances include Schubert's Winterreise, D. 911 with pianist Igor Lipinski, Brahms's Ein deutsches Requiem, Op. 45 with the Tulsa Chorale and Orchestra, and Handel's Messiah with the Bartlesville Chorale and Orchestra. His commercial album of sacred music for voice, piano, and harp, entitled Consecration, on the Blue Griffin Records label, is available through streaming services.

Dr. Howard's scholarly articles have appeared in the British academic music journal, Musical Times, and in The Choral Journal and ChorTeach. Moreover, his performing editions and choral arrangements are published by Alliance Music Publications. He has presented on a range of topics at national conferences including the American Choral Directors Association, the Texas Music Educators Association, and the Kansas Music Educators Association.

He holds the Bachelor of Music Education degree and Master of Music degree in vocal performance from the University of Central Oklahoma and the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in choral conducting from Michigan State University.

Emily Howe is a versatile conductor, educator, and ethnomusicologist whose passion for community-building through music has taken her into concert halls, schools, prisons, and places of worship throughout Boston and around the world. Currently Assistant Professor of Music at Curry College in Milton, MA, Emily leads the choral program and teaches courses in Musicology and Ethnomusicology; she also serves as a Conductor with the award-winning Boston Children's Chorus, where she has led choirs in high-profile performances around the world and developed music curricula fostering social inquiry with singers aged 7-18. Emily has authored publications, given presentations, and taught university courses on topics related to music education, choral music, and world music cultures, and she continues to explore issues related to global repertoires, performance, and identity in her scholarly and creative practice. Emily holds an undergraduate degree in Music and English from Davidson College and a master's degree in Choral Conducting from Boston University, where she also earned her Ph.D. in Ethnomusicology.

Michael Huestis has been involved in music education since 1991 and is currently serving as the administrator for the Percussion Solutions for Band Directors social media platforms, the Percussive Arts Society Board of Directors, and as Director of the Music for All National Percussion Festival. Throughout his career Mr. Huestis' bands, percussion ensembles and drumlines have performed at the Percussive Arts Society International Convention, Music for All National Percussion Festival, MENC Biennial Conference, finalists at the Bands of American Grand National Championships, President Bush's inaugural parade in Washington D.C., the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City and the Drum Corps International World Championships.

A highly sought-after composer, arranger, and clinician. Mr. Huestis has worked as the percussion arranger for Pacific Crest Drum & Bugle Corps from Diamond Bar, CA, Genesis Drum & Bugle Corps from Austin, TX and Raiders Drum & Bugle Corps in Burlington, NJ. His compositions are published by Tapspace Publications, C-Alan Publications, Rowloff Productions, JKS Music, and Key Poulan Publications. Michael is also the author of "Developing the Percussionist-Musician" method books.

Mr. Huestis has presented clinics and master classes at numerous state music education association conventions and universities. His professional affiliations include Texas Music Educators Association, National Association for Music Education, Jazz Educators Network and the Percussive Arts Society, where he served as a chapter president of both Utah and Texas. Michael is an endorser of Yamaha Instruments, Remo Drumheads, Zildjian Cymbals & Vic Firth drum sticks.

Amy Ives has taught vocal music ensembles in middle and high school, K-6 general music, and guitar for the past 21 years in Eureka, Wichita, Garden Plain, and Newton, KS. She is currently teaching choir and guitar classes at Newton High School. Amy earned her bachelor's degree in music education with an emphasis in vocal performance from Missouri Western State University and her master's degree in music education with an emphasis in Kodály from Wichita State University. As a choir director, Amy's ensembles have consistently received excellent and superior ratings at contests. She has began guitar ensembles in two of the districts she has taught. Ensembles directed by Mrs. Ives have received superior ratings at the Festival Of Music competition at Worlds of Fun, and won overall best ensemble of the day. Mrs. Ives has also started a successful show choir at Newton High School that was invited to perform at Disney in 2020 and 2022.

Amy is a proud member of the Kansas Music Educators Association, Kansas Association of American Educators, and Kansas Choral Directors Association. Amy has been the SCKMEA Elementary Honor Choir Chair and the KCDA Soprano/Alto All-State Choir Chair.

Shannon Jeffreys is Professor of Music, Director of Choral Activities, and Assistant Dean for Student Experience in the College of Arts and Humanities at Georgia Southern University in Statesboro, Georgia. Her focus is the Southern Chorale, teaching in the undergraduate and graduate conducting and music education curriculums, along with directing Southern Gentry barbershop ensemble. Dr. Jeffreys has led these choirs in six international choral competitions and two national competitions where the choirs won significant awards. Most recently, Southern Chorale won both of their categories in the 2022 Sing Berlin International Choral Competition. In 2019, she received the Conductor's Award from the Ave Verum International Choral Competition in Baden, Austria. Choirs under her direction have also been featured at multiple state and national conferences, recently performing at the National Collegiate Choral Organization's Conference.

Dr. Jeffreys maintains an active schedule as a presenter, adjudicator, lecturer and guest conductor from secondary to collegiate institutions and churches throughout the United States. She serves as an international choral adjudicator with Meeting Music and recently published in ACDA's ChorTeach.

Before coming to Georgia Southern, Jeffreys served as Director of Vocal Studies at Erskine College and Theological Seminary. She holds degrees in music performance and conducting from Birmingham Southern College, the University of Mississippi, and the University of South Carolina.

Philip Kaul is Assistant Director of Bands at De Soto High School, where he directs marching, concert, and jazz bands. He also teaches Applied Instrumental Music and ACT Prep and is the Assistant Scholars Bowl coach.

Mr. Kaul holds Bachelor's and Master's Degrees in Music Education from the University of Kansas. He was the DHS winner in the Kansas Teacher of the Year program in 2021, was the ECKMEA Outstanding Young Band Director in 2022, and was the KBA Outstanding Young Bandmaster in 2023. Groups under his direction have had consistent success at competitions, including 1st place finishes at the KBA Jazz Championships and Basically Basie Jazz Heritage competition, and multiple finalist placements at the KBA Marching Championships in recent years.

His professional affiliations include KMEA, KBA, and Phi Beta Mu, and he currently serves ECKMEA as the Vendor Representative and the Jazz Chair-Elect.

Internationally recognized percussionist, educator, composer, and ethnomusicologist Jeremy Kirk is an Associate Professor of Music at Southwestern College (Winfield, KS). Recipient of the Southwestern College Exemplary Professor of the Year Award, Kirk is deeply committed to providing students the skills necessary to excel in today's world as an educator, performer, and global citizen. Highly regarded and in demand for his expertise in arts and culture of Polynesia, he combines his traditional training in Western percussion with his extensive knowledge in world music to create a unique global perspective in his teaching and performing. Kirk is an artist and clinician with Majestic Percussion, Mapex Drums, Vic Firth Sticks & Mallets, Sabian Cymbals, Remo Drumheads & World Percussion, and Black Swamp Percussion. To learn more about and connect with Kirk, please visit www.jkpercussion.com.

Kathy Kuddes holds Bachelors and Masters degrees in Music Education from Millikin University in Decatur, IL and the University of North Texas in Denton, TX respectively, and a Kodály training certificate from the Foundation for Aesthetic Music Education/University of Texas program at Festival Hill in Round Top, Texas. She retired in July of 2022 after serving 38 years in public music education in various Texas school districts.

Prior to her final position as the Director of Fine Arts in the Plano Independent School District for 20 years, she taught elementary music in Plano, College Station and Killeen, TX and secondary music in Stafford, TX. She is the Founder, Coordinator and Folk Music Research & Materials Instructor of the Plano Kodály Teacher Training Program at Southern Methodist University, endorsed by the Organization of American Kodály Educators. Mrs. Kuddes remains an active presenter doing presentations at state MEA conferences, American Orff-Schulwerk Association (AOSA) and Organization of American Kodály Educators (OAKE) national conferences and the International Kodály Society Symposia in Australia, Hungary, Scotland, and Los Angeles.

Kathy is a former member of the boards of the Kodály Educators of Texas (KET), OAKE and the Texas Music Administrators Conference (TMAC). She was the recipient of the 2010 OAKE Outstanding Administrator Award, the 2016 TMAC Outstanding Administrator Award, the 2020 KET Lifetime Achievement Award and the 2020 Arts Leadership Award from the ArtCentre of Plano. In her retirement Kathy is enjoying travel, continuing to research folk songs and build her Online Rhyme and Folk Song Collection and participating in teacher training programs committed to Kodály-Inspired instruction.

Described by Eugene Rousseau as "a talented saxophonist," Jason T. Laczkoski is a performer, conductor, and educator. He has performed solo and chamber recitals throughout the United States, in addition to appearances at the North American Saxophone Alliance Conference and the International Navy Saxophone Symposium. Currently teaching at Dakota Wesleyan University, he is an assistant professor of music and the director of bands. Jason studied saxophone with Joseph Murphy at Mansfield University of Pennsylvania and with world renowned saxophonist Kenneth Tse at the University of Iowa. Laczkoski is ABD and expects to complete his doctoral degree in the spring of 2025. In addition to his saxophone studies at Iowa, he completed a secondary area in conducting, studying with Myron Welch and Richard Mark Heidel. Laczkoski is a Yamaha Performing Artist and performs exclusively on Yamaha saxophones. He is an E. Rousseau Mouthpiece Artist and performs exclusively on E. Rousseau mouthpieces. More information may be found at jason-t-laczkoski.com.

Praised for her passionate and insightful interpretations, Sharon Lavery is known for connecting with audiences of all ages and backgrounds. Since 2007 she has been music director of the Downey Symphony Orchestra, an ensemble hailed as one of the best metropolitan orchestras in Southern California. Ms. Lavery has appeared as guest conductor with numerous orchestras, including the National Symphony Orchestra of Costa Rica, Vermont Symphony, Hollywood Chamber Orchestra, La Jolla Symphony, and San Bernardino Symphony, just to name a few. For many years she held the post of cover conductor for the Pacific Symphony Orchestra, and she has also served as cover conductor for the San Diego Symphony. She has been the assistant conductor of the Pasadena Symphony, the associate conductor of the Herbert Zipper Orchestra of Los Angeles, and has also served as music director of the MUSE International Music Day Festival in Chiba, Japan. In addition, Lavery has made recordings at Warner Bros studio in Burbank, CA, and with Delos Records, Inc.

In conjunction with her professional duties, Ms. Lavery serves as Resident Conductor of the Thornton Symphony, Chamber Orchestra, and Wind Ensemble at the University of Southern California Thornton School of Music. She has led USC’s ensembles in concert on countless occasions and served as music director of the Thornton Concert Orchestra for seven years. In addition to these duties at USC, Lavery teaches instrumental conducting.

Ms. Lavery is also known as an advocate for music education. She has conducted several All-State orchestras and wind ensembles throughout the United States, and she has served on the conducting faculty of the Interlochen Arts Camp and the International Honors Performance Series at Carnegie Hall.

Hailing from Ossining, New York, Lavery received her Bachelor of Music Education from Michigan State University, and Master of Music in Clarinet Performance from the New England Conservatory of Music. She also earned a Master of Music in Orchestral Conducting from USC Thornton where she was awarded the Leonard Bernstein Memorial Scholarship.

Stacy Lendt is a horn player and music educator based in Kansas City. With over two decades of experience teaching private lessons, she has worked as a clinician, adjudicator, and band director at the middle and high school levels. She has also taught at various music camps and festivals across the region.

In 2013, Stacy co-founded the Kansas City Horn Club, where she serves as president and director of the KC Horn Club Youth Ensemble, creating performance and educational opportunities for horn players of all ages. She is the adjunct horn professor at Northwest Missouri State University and Kansas City Kansas Community College and coaches horn for the Blue Valley School District and Kansas City Young Chamber Musicians.

Stacy holds degrees from Northwest Missouri State University (B.M.E.) and the University of Kansas (M.M.E.), where she studied with Dr. Paul Stevens. She actively performs in the Kansas City area and collaborates with her husband, horn player and composer Gavin Lendt.

Brandon J. Lesando is the Director of Bands at Blue Valley Southwest High School in Overland Park and the President-Elect of the Kansas Bandmasters Association. Starting his music education career in Northeast Florida, ensembles under his direction have performed on national and regional stages including with accolades including Bands of America Regional Finalist and Class Medalist, earning several invitations to perform at the the Kansas Music Educators Association convention, and commissioning new works for the wind band genre. In the fall of 2024, Lesando was named ECKMEA’s Outstanding Band Educator of the Year. Lesando has also presented clinics on brass pedagogy, ensemble rehearsal strategies and sound concepts, and group travel for music ensembles.
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Lesando did his undergraduate and graduate work at the University of North Florida and the University of Colorado-Boulder, respectively, studying horn, conducting, and music education. Outside of academia, Lesando has designed shows and visual programs for marching bands, indoor drumlines, and drum corps. Additionally, he has experience and worked as a performing member, caption head, and program coordinator for groups that compete in the DCI, BOA, and WGI circuits.

Originally from Easton, PA, Lesando enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 2004. His assignments and duties included serving as a submarine nuclear weapons technician and Fire Control Supervisor onboard the USS Rhode Island (SSBN 740 GOLD) and as a Navy Formal Schools instructor for incoming students and fleet sailors at the Trident Training Facility in Kings Bay, GA. In 2011, Lesando was Honorably Discharged from active duty as a Missile Technician, 1st Class (Submarines) with awards for achievement, volunteer service, and good conduct.

Captain Darren Y. Lin joined "The President's Own" United States Marine Band in July 2019 as a percussionist. He was appointed Assistant Director in July 2021 and commissioned to the rank of 1st Lieutenant in January 2022. He was promoted to the rank of Captain in September 2023 and appointed Associate Director in December 2023.

Capt. Lin is a 2009 graduate of Hershey High School in Pennsylvania. He earned a bachelor's degree in percussion performance and a teacher's certificate in 2014 from the University of Michigan (U-M) in Ann Arbor; a master's degree in percussion performance and literature in 2016 from the Eastman School of Music at the University of Rochester in New York; and pursued additional studies at the New England Conservatory in Boston. His principal percussion teachers were J. William Hudgins of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Michael Burritt of the Eastman School of Music, and Joseph Gramley and Jonathan Ovalle of U-M. He also has studied conducting with Christopher James Lees, Michael Haithcock, and Rodney Dorsey.

Prior to joining "The President's Own," Capt. Lin was an active educator and performer. He was the adjunct instructor of percussion at Lebanon Valley College in Annville, Pa., and performed frequently with the Buffalo Philharmonic in Buffalo, N.Y., the New Haven Symphony in Connecticut, and the New World Symphony in Miami. He has performed under the batons of conductors like Valery Gergiev, Michael Tilson Thomas, Andris Nelsons, and JoAnn Falletta. He is equally at home performing contemporary music, having performed with the NakedEye Ensemble and both founding and leading the group [sunflower]. He has worked closely with composers Steve Reich and John Luther Adams, and has premiered works by Dave Hollinden, Molly Joyce, Angélica Negrón, Randall Woolf, and Chris Vu.

As Assistant Director, Capt. Lin's responsibilities include conducting the Marine Band and Chamber Orchestra in their winter and spring concert series and summer concerts on the National Mall as well as at ceremonies in the national capital region and at the White House. Additionally, he serves as a supervisor for the acclaimed fall and winter Chamber Music Series, which features the virtuoso musicians of "The President's Own," as well as all pre-concert music.

Henry Littich began conducting the Salina Junior Youth Symphony in 2011 and was named Salina Symphony Youth Education director and Youth Symphony conductor in 2019. He has taught orchestra/strings since 1997. He was named director of orchestras for Smoky Valley Public Schools in 2009, where he teaches at Smoky Valley High School, Smoky Valley Middle School and Soderstrom Elementary School (grades 4-12). Since Littich's arrival in Lindsborg, the Smoky Valley High School String and Symphony Orchestras have consistently earned first division superior ratings at the KSHSAA Large Ensemble Music Contest. In addition to outstanding ensemble performances, Littich's students have earned individual accolades, earning seats in the State and District Honor Orchestras as well as high ratings at state and district solo and small ensemble music contests. The Smoky Valley High School Orchestra performed at the Kansas Music Educators Association In-Service Workshop in February 2015 and the Smoky Valley Middle School Orchestra performed at the Kansas Music Educators Association In-Service Workshop in 2024. Prior to coming to Lindsborg, Littich taught orchestra in Odessa, TX. He holds a bachelor of music education and a master of music from Kansas State University, where he studied violin with Dr. Cora Cooper. In addition to his work in the Smoky Valley school district, Littich has served as the orchestra chair for South Central KMEA and state president of the Kansas American String Teachers Association.

Erin Lloyd is the Director of Bands at Riley County Schools USD-378. She has been the 5-12 Director since 2015. Erin earned her BME from Kansas State University in 2014 and MM from Emporia State University in 2023. Within the school district she is the Tri-M advisor, Pep Club sponsor, Mentor Teacher for the High School Building, member of the Building Leadership Team, and a member of the Negotiations Team. As a strong believer in the importance of performing and community outreach, her ensembles play annually at each of the consolidated district's communities, around the State of Kansas at a variety of festivals, and at both the Alamo Bowl and Cheez-It Bowl games. Her marching band background began in Texas as a member of a small school marching band, playing in the KSUMB as a clarinetist, then learning through service as a member of the KSUMB student staff. Her belief is that all schools can support a marching band to create life-long musicians and community fellowship.

Tiffany McGrew is the Director of Choral Music at Deer Creek Public Schools in Edmond, Oklahoma, where she conducts choirs for grades 6-12, teaches AP Music Theory, and acts as music director for the high school musical. In her 20 years in education, Ms. McGrew's choirs have received numerous Superior ratings and Outstanding Achievement Awards in OSSAA Concert and Sight-Reading Contests and Best in Class and Outstanding Performance at festivals, selection to district and state honor choirs, and her high school jazz choir has been invited to perform as an OkMEA Honor Group. Ms. McGrew is highly sought after as a clinician and presenter.

Ms. McGrew received her BME from Northeastern State University, and her MME from Southeastern Oklahoma State University. She is an active member of NEA, NAfME, and ACDA. She is the 2011 recipient of the GlobalHealth Inspiration Award for Employees in Education, the 2015-2016 Bixby Middle School Teacher of the Year, the 2019-2020 Oklahoma Music Educators Association Exemplary Middle School Teacher Award, and was named a quarterfinalist for the 2021 Grammy Award for Music Education.

Michelle Meyer is the Director of Bands at Colby Community College, where she directs three bands (Concert Band, Jazz Ensemble, and Pep Band). There she also teaches Aural Skills and Applied Studies and serves as a CCC mentor teacher. In her career spanning two decades, she has focused on the needs of rural education and high-needs schools in both Virginia and Kansas. While in Virginia, Michelle served as an instructor for the Virginia Governor's School for the Arts, a unique program for gifted and talented students from across the Commonwealth. At Colby Community College, she has provided professional development opportunities for local music teachers and reestablished the Colby Community Band that performs during the summer. In 2020, she was named the Northwest Kansas Music Educators Association Outstanding College Music Educator.

Michelle received her bachelor's degree in music education from Kansas State University. After teaching public school in Kansas, she attended Radford University, earning a Master of Arts in Music with a dual emphasis in clarinet performance and conducting. Michelle is an active member of several professional organizations for band, music education, and clarinet performance. Ms. Meyer is an active performer, conductor, clinician, and adjudicator throughout the Plains States.

Aaron Money has had a distinguished career in education, with a strong foundation in both music and theater. He graduated from Central Methodist University in Fayette, Missouri, earning dual degrees in Music Education with a focus on voice, as well as Theatre/Speech Education. He later pursued advanced studies, obtaining a Master's in Curriculum and an Education Specialist degree in Superintendency.

Mr. Money's career in education began as a vocal music teacher in rural, urban, and suburban districts, where he spent over a decade shaping young minds. His passion for arts education led him to an administrative role, and he became the Director of Fine Arts for Liberty Public Schools. In this capacity, he has influenced educational practices and arts integration on a broader scale, both within his district and beyond.

He has shared his expertise at various conferences at the national, state, regional, and local levels, contributing to the advancement of arts education. His leadership extends beyond Liberty Public Schools, as he serves as the Advisory Chair for the Midwest Region of the John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts Partners in Education program.

Throughout his career, Mr. Money has received numerous accolades for his impact in education. He was named "Teacher of the Year" in the Blue Springs School District, and as Director of Fine Arts, he has earned the "Administrator of the Year" award from multiple organizations, including the Missouri Alliance for Arts Education, the Speech/Theater Association of Missouri, and the Missouri Music Educators Association. His dedication to arts education has made a lasting impact on students, teachers, and the broader educational community.

Under his leadership, the Liberty Public School District has been recognized as a Best Community for Music Education from the NAMM foundation for 12 years in a row, A Premiere Community for Theater Education, various state and national performances, a vibrant arts department, and developed teaching artist residencies throughout the school system. Most recently, Liberty Public Schools made history by becoming the first school district in Missouri to receive the Missouri Arts Council Art Award for Arts Education, a significant recognition that highlights the district's exceptional contributions to fostering arts education in the community.

Joshua Palkki is Assistant Professor of Music Learning and Teaching/Choral Conducting and Associate Director of Choral Activities at Arizona State University and co-author of Honoring Trans and Gender-Expansive Students in Music Education published in 2021 by Oxford University Press (with Dr. Matthew Garrett, Case Western Reserve University). At ASU, he leads the Barrett Choir and guides students in music education pedagogy, choral pedagogy, music teacher education, and choral conducting. Dr. Palkki is an internationally recognized scholar on topics of equity and justice in (choral) music education, particularly centering on inclusive practices for LGBTQA students and teachers.

Prior to his appointment at ASU, Palkki served on the faculty at California State University, Long Beach where he taught courses in music education, interfaced with the College of Education, and led the University Choir. Under his leadership, that ensemble was selected to perform at the 2019 California Choral Directors Association (CCDA) State Conference.

Palkki earned a Ph.D. in music education (choral conducting cognate) from Michigan State University and was a finalist in the graduate division of the 2011 American Choral Directors Association national conducting competition while earning a master’s degree in choral conducting at Northern Arizona University (NAU) with Dr. Edith Copley.

His writing appears in the Choral Journal, Journal of Music Theory Pedagogy, Journal of Research in Music Education, Research and Issues in Music Education, Music Education Research, Research Studies in Music Education, and International Journal of Music Education. Palkki has contributed book chapters to Engaging Musical Practices: A Sourcebook for Middle School General Music (Rowman & Littlefield), Routledge Companion of Jazz and Gender (Routledge), Handbook of Music and Art (Bloomsbury), Choral Conductors Companion (Meredith/Hal Leonard), Oxford Handbook of Gender and Queer Studies in Music Education (Oxford), Oxford Handbook of Feminism in Music Education (Oxford).

Joshua Pedde is the artistic director of the Indianapolis Children's Choir (ICC), one of the largest and most respected children's choir programs in the world. In addition to conducting ICC's advanced treble choirs, Josh is also the artistic director of the Anderson Area Children's Choir. During his twenty years with the ICC, Mr. Pedde has been instrumental in growing the ICC's Innovations program which provides free music education workshops to public and private schools throughout central Indiana. In addition, he has pioneered ICC's Neighborhood Choir Academy within Central Indiana which provides a six to eight-week musical experience for students to explore the world of choral music which culminates in a performance with the ICC and the creation of ICC Connects, which allows singers from around the world to work and sing with the ICC choral program in central Indiana.

Mr. Pedde is a frequent conductor and clinician throughout the United States including the LCMS Worship Institute Children's Choir, the WELS National Convention Festival and Children's Choirs, Indiana Circle the State with Song festivals, the American Hymn Society, the National Conference of Pastoral Musicians, the National Disciples of Christ Conference, American Choral Directors Association all state choirs in Kentucky, Georgia, Mississippi, and New Mexico, and the Indiana Music Education Association Middle School and Elementary honor choirs. Mr. Pedde frequently is a consultant to churches on Liturgical Worship and Children's Choir. In 2003 he premiered the work "The Wraggle Taggle Gypsies" by Irish composer Mary McAuliffe at the National Concert Hall in Dublin. He is founder and artistic director of the Coastal Song Choir Festival.

In addition to conducting at Carnegie Hall, Kennedy Center and Lincoln Center, Mr. Pedde was the backstage conductor for the premiere of the children's opera, The Trio of Minuet. He recently prepared ICC's most advanced treble choir for a performance at Shift: A Festival of American Orchestras at the Kennedy Center. He has conducted at numerous sporting events including the FINA World Swimming Championships, Indianapolis Fever, NCAA Women's Basketball Finals, the RCA Tennis Championships, the 2008 U.S.A. Olympic Diving Qualifications, the 2012 World Choir Games, and Super Bowl XLVI. He has conducted choirs in performances at the Vatican and Canterbury Cathedral, in Austria, Canada, England, Germany, Italy, Ireland, Netherlands, and Spain. In September 2018, Mr. Pedde's treble choir was a featured performer at the 50th National American Orff-Schulwerk Conference in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Mr. Pedde is a member of the NAfME, ACDA, IMEA, and ICDA. He also served as a solo and ensemble and organizational judge for ISSMA and as a clinician for IMEA's ensembles. Mr. Pedde serves as chair for the Consortium of Indiana Children's Choirs.

Mr. Pedde serves at Cornerstone Lutheran Church, Fishers, as director of worship and organist. He is the music director of the Carmel Community Choir and Orchestra. He is a member of the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians, and the AGO. He has received training and certification in Orff-Schulwerk, Kodály, and First Steps methods of teaching. Mr. Pedde was an elementary music teacher in the Zionsville Public School system for five years before joining the ICC as a full-time conductor and from 2001-2005 Mr. Pedde was the Artistic Director of the Kokomo Youth Chorale.

Mr. Pedde earned his Bachelor of Music degree in vocal music education and a master's degree in choral conducting from Butler University, where he was recognized for his outstanding work in elementary music and a DPM from Concordia Chicago.

Frank Perez serves as the Director of Bands and Associate Professor Music at Baker University in Baldwin City, KS. He conducts the Symphonic Winds, Jazz Ensemble, teaches applied low brass lessons and music education courses.

Dr. Perez has conducted honor bands in Iowa, Missouri, and Kansas. As a trombonist, he has performed with the La Jolla Symphony, L.A. Guild Opera, Des Moines Big Band, De Soto Brass Band, and KC Bone Connection. He is also the co-founder and co-conductor for Trombone Christmas, Kansas City!

Dr. Perez serves as immediate Past-President for the Kansas Bandmasters Association, Kansas representative for the Society for Music Education (SMTE) chair for Kansas, and Artistic and Educational Advisor for Impulso Marching Latinoamérica. He is a Conn-Selmer artist and a Dennis Wick artist.

Jared Prost has worked for USD 453 for 19 years, the last 16 years as the band director at Leavenworth High School. He earned degrees from Southeast Missouri State University (BME and BM), the University of New Mexico (MM), and the Conservatory of Music at the University of Missouri, Kansas City (DMA). Jared taught countless private trumpet lessons throughout his college journey. The students he worked with then, and all of the students he has worked with since that time have helped him to develop his approach to music pedagogy.

M. Evan Ricker, Jr., a native of Wichita, Kansas, is an accomplished music educator, conductor, and arts administrator. He currently serves as the Recruiting and Communications Specialist for the School of Music at Wichita State University. Having recently completed his Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction with a Cognate in Music at Kansas State University, Dr. Ricker's dissertation focused on the workplace dignity experiences of LGBTQ+ collegiate wind band conductors.

With a rich background in music education and conducting, Dr. Ricker has led a variety of ensembles, served as Director of Instrumental Music at Cowley College, and taught at Butler Community College. He is also an active clinician, adjudicator, and advocate for fostering dignity, inclusion, and equity in the arts and beyond.

Robert Sheldon has taught instrumental music in the Florida and Illinois public schools and has served on the faculty at Florida State University where he taught instrumental music education classes, conducting, and directed the university bands. Following seventeen years as Director of Concert Band Publications for Alfred Music, he now maintains an active composition and conducting schedule, regularly accepting commissions for new works. Sheldon received the Bachelor of Music in Music Education from the University of Miami and the Master of Fine Arts in Instrumental Conducting from the University of Florida. In 2020, VanderCook College of Music presented him with an honorary Doctorate in Music Education.

An internationally recognized clinician, his music is performed around the world and frequently appears on many international concert and contest lists. Sheldon has conducted Regional and All-State Honor Bands throughout the United States and abroad. He often appears as a Music Education clinician and has presented sessions and seminars at numerous colleges and universities as well as state Music Education Association conferences. He has served as a conductor and clinician throughout the United States, as well as Japan, Canada, Italy, Taiwan, Germany, Australia and China, and has conducted performances of his works in New York's Carnegie Hall, Chicago's Orchestra Hall, Boston's Symphony Hall, Taipei's National Concert Hall, Matsumoto's Seiji Ozawa Performing Arts Center, Hamamatsu's ACT City Concert Hall, the Sydney Opera House and the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington D.C. His teaching career included 28 years in the public schools as well as at the University of Florida, Florida State University, Illinois Central College and Bradley University. He also held positions as conductor of the Alachua County Youth Orchestra in Gainesville, Florida and the Prairie Wind Ensemble in East Peoria, Illinois. He maintains membership in several organizations that promote music and music education, and is lead author for SOUND INNOVATIONS FOR BAND, serving as co-author for MEASURES OF SUCCESS, SOUND INNOVATIONS FOR STRINGS, SOUND SIGHT-READING FOR BAND and MUSIC FUNDATIONS.

His compositions embody a level of expression that resonates with ensembles and audiences alike, and he produces numerous publications for concert band each year. The American School Band Directors Association has honored him with the Volkwein Award for composition and the Stanbury Award for teaching, the International Assembly of Phi Beta Mu honored him with the International Outstanding Bandmaster Award, and he has been awarded membership in the American Bandmasters Association. With over three million copies of his compositions and books sold, he is one of the most performed composers of wind band music today. A twenty-eight-time recipient of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publisher's Standard Award for his compositions in the concert band and orchestral repertoire, Mr. Sheldon has been the topic of articles published in The Instrumentalist, Teaching Music and School Band and Orchestra Magazine, The World Association of Symphonic Bands and Ensembles (WASBE) World Magazine, and is one of eleven American wind band composers featured in Volume I of Composers on Composing Music for Band.

Shanti Simon is the Director of Bands at the University of Oklahoma where she conducts the Wind Symphony and leads the graduate wind conducting program. In addition to her role at OU, she serves as the Associate Conductor with the Oklahoma City Philharmonic. Prior to joining the faculty at OU, Dr. Simon was the Flight Commander and Associate Conductor with The United States Air Force Academy Band in Colorado Springs. Before moving to Colorado, Simon served as Flight Commander and Associate Conductor with The United States Air Force Band in Washington, D.C., where she conducted performances in the national capital region and around the country including the 2011 National Tree Lighting Ceremony with the Airmen of Note hosted by President Obama and the First Family. Dr. Simon was on the faculty of Shenandoah Conservatory as the Associate Director of Bands for the 2013-2014 academic year. In 2016, she deployed to the Middle East with the United States Air Force Central Command bands as the Officer-In-Charge, overseeing musical troop-support, community-outreach and partnership-building missions in seven countries.

Dr. Simon earned her MM and DMA degrees in conducting from the University of Minnesota where she studied with Craig Kirchhoff. She received her BME and BM degrees from Stetson University with Bobby Adams. Hailing from Florida, Simon served as the Associate Director of Bands at Vero Beach High School for four years, where her ensembles consistently earned top ratings in all areas of district and state assessment. Simon is active nationally and internationally as a guest conductor and clinician and is a voting member of the Recording Academy / GRAMMYs.

After a thirty-year career in music education, Chris Sprague retired in June of 2022. The last twenty-seven years were spent at Bradleyville, a small rural school in southwest Missouri serving 220 students in grades K-12. Her teaching assignments included Band 6-12, K-8 General Music and Vocal Music 9-12. During her tenure at Bradleyville her bands received numerous accolades, including selection to perform at the Missouri Music Educators Association Conference in 2014, six invitations to perform at the NAIA Division II Basketball Tournament, four invitations to perform at the MSHSAA All-State Basketball Tournament, and multiple years of "straight 1" performances at the MSHSAA All-State Large Ensemble Festival.

Chris is currently serving as the Mentoring Chair of the Missouri Music Educators Association. From 2020-2022 she served as MMEA President, and from 2018-2020 she served as the MMEA Band Vice President. She has also been actively involved in the MMEA Mentoring Program for new teachers since its inception. In 2019 she was honored to receive the Missouri State University Outstanding Alumni Award. In 2014, Chris was humbled to receive the John East "Spirit of Orpheus" Mentor Award, an award voted on and presented by the directors of the South Central Missouri Music Educators Association district honoring a mentor teacher in the district. She is an active clinician, adjudicator, and mentor. Her hobbies include fishing with her husband Matt and gardening, and she has been an avid fan of the Kansas City Chiefs for forty-six years.

Matthew Stensrud is an award-winning and internationally acclaimed music educator and currently teaches PK-4 Lower School Music and Movement at Sidwell Friends School in Washington, DC. Previously, Matthew taught kindergarten through fifth grade music for seven years at Annandale Terrace Elementary School, a highly transient and culturally diverse school in Fairfax County, Virginia and for two years at George Mason Elementary School in Alexandria, VA. He completed his Orff Schulwerk certification at the San Francisco International Orff Course in the summer of 2013, his training in Responsive Classroom in 2011, and is an American Orff Schulwerk Association approved Movement Teacher Trainer. Matthew presents frequently on the successful combination of Orff Schulwerk and Responsive Classroom, has published articles on Responsive Classroom in the music room and contributed to a book for specialists on the incorporation of Responsive Classroom. He received the Spotlight Award from the American Center for Elemental Music and Movement in Summer 2017 and was recognized by his school as Teacher of the Year for the 2016-2017 school year. He was also recognized by the Alexandria Chamber of Commerce for the "40 Under 40" Award in 2018. Recently, Matthew gave a TEDx talk on non-verbal communication entitled "Our Power Without Words".

Outside the classroom, Matthew is involved in various volunteer roles in the Washington DC Metro area, served as Chair of the Alexandria Commission for the Arts from 2014-2019 and currently is Vice President of the Middle Atlantic Chapter of the American Orff Schulwerk Association. Matthew also serves on the Editorial Board of The Orff Echo, a quarterly scholarly publication of the American Orff Schulwerk Association. He also served as an education policy advocate for the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development and the National Association for Music Education. Previously, he was a communications intern at The Education Trust.

Erik Stone is a Band Director and Vocal Music Teacher at Gordon Parks Academy in Wichita. He is an experienced clinician and presenter working with students and professionals from the beginning years of instruction to professional level ensembles.

In July of 2017 Erik Stone was recognized by the Kansas Bandmasters Association as the year's recipient of the Outstanding Young Bandmaster Award. He was later named the Distinguished Teacher of 2023 by Wichita Public Schools for his innovative ways to connect with students while building authentic relationships and experiences with his students. Erik Stone is a current Kansas Teacher of the Year 2025 finalist, touring with the #KTOY25 team across the state, advocating for education in Kansas.

After completing his master's degree, Erik found his home with Wichita Public Schools at Gordon Parks Academy. While teaching at GPA, the instrumental music program has grown immensely! With only nine students enrolled in instrumental music just a few years ago, nearly ninety students are now enrolled in some type of instrumental music; his contagious energy played a key role in driving this shift in enrollment.

Check out more at his website, www.erikstonemusic.com

Adam G. White is an Assistant Professor of Music Education at Northern Kentucky University. He teaches courses in choral music education, conducting, and directs the low-voice choir. Adam holds a PhD in music education from Northwestern University. His research and academic interests include sight-singing, singer assessment, vernacular music making in the United States, issues of hearing loss among musicians, and cooperative rehearsal practices. Adam has presented at state, regional, and international conferences. He has a bachelor's degree in music education from Kansas State University and a master's degree in music education (choral pedagogy) from the University of Kansas.

Adam began his teaching career in rural Kansas where he taught K-12 vocal music, eventually becoming the Vocal Music Director at Washburn Rural High School in Topeka. Under his direction, the Washburn Rural Chorale received top ratings at festivals each of the 11 years he taught there. The Chorale also commissioned and premiered new choral works by Timothy Takach, Andrea Ramsey, and Jacob Narverud. Adam's choirs have twice been invited to perform at the Kansas Music Educators Conference, the state's top honor. In 2008, Adam was honored as the WRHS Educator of Excellence.

Adam is a member of the American Choral Directors Association, the Society for Music Perception and Cognition, the College Music Society, and the National Association for Music Education.

Blair A. Williams is Director of Professional Development for the American String Teachers Association. She has served our string teaching community in public school, higher education, civic and youth symphonies, and in the string studio for over 25 years. Her school ensembles consistently achieved superior marks at contests and festivals. Recent conducting and clinician engagements have included youth, regional, and all-city ensembles in Alaska, Kansas, Hawaii, Ohio, Oregon, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Utah, and Texas. She is on the conducting staff with the Manhattan (KS) Youth Symphony and frequently performs as a freelance musician.

Her presentations and research have been accepted or presented at international, national, and regional conferences and symposia. Her research interests include: music teacher education, community music, and music teacher recruitment. She is published in International Journal of Music Education, Journal of Research in Music Education, Update: Applications of Research in Music Education, American String Teacher, SmartMusic, and in volume 4 of Teaching Music Through Performance in Orchestra.

A frequent guest conductor, clinician, lecturer, and adjudicator, Dr. Williams enjoys working with and learning from teachers, musicians, and students across the country. Originally from Newton, Kansas, she holds degrees from Ohio State University, Kansas State University, and Baylor University.

Tom Wine is Chair of Music Education and Director of Choirs at Wichita State University. Recipient of the 2009 WSU President's Distinguished Service Award as well as the Burton Pell Award from the Wichita Arts Council, Wine is editor of the book, Composers on Composing for Choir. Wine is past-president of Kansas ACDA. His choirs have appeared at KMEA fourteen different times as well as Carnegie Hall in 2009. Wine has conducted district and All-State choirs in Kansas, Florida, Oklahoma, Missouri, Alabama, and South Carolina. In 2016 he received the HRW Lifetime Achievement Award from the Kansas Choral Directors Association. He directs the Chancel Choir at Eastminster Presbyterian Church.

MacKenzie Wright (Ohio Wesleyan University, B.M., Piano and Organ Performance, California Institute of the Arts, MFA, Performer-Composer) started her career as a concert pianist, church organist, and composer. She transitioned to vocal coaching while residing in Los Angeles, primarily working with adults with limited formal music backgrounds. After relocating to Kansas City, MacKenzie began studying comedic theatrical improvisation (“improv”) and quickly became a sought-after accompanist for musical improv. In addition to pursuing a Ph.D. in Music Education at the University of Kansas, MacKenzie is the Visiting Director of Choral Activities at Baker University and also coaches Tweety Todd, the resident musical improv team at The Bird Comedy Theater in KC. As an instructor, MacKenzie firmly believes that anyone can sing, and sing joyfully.