November 2022 | GMEA Newsletter

NoveMbeR

PAULO COELHO

If you’re brave enough to say goodbye, life will reward you with a new hello.

NoveMbeR

IN THIS ISSUE

WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE?

GMEA CONFERENCE

JOB LISTINGS

MUSIC TECHNOLOGY CHOA MUSIC THERAPY

AROUND THE STATE

DISTRICT 1 DISTRICT 3 DISTRICT 5 DISTRICT 8

DISTRICT 12 DISTRICT 13 DISTRICT 14

YEAR OF RETIREMENT MARCHING BAND UPCOMING DEADLINES

PS FROM THE PRESIDENT

WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE?

GMEA provides a newsletter four times per year as a service to members. The purpose of this publication is to inform members and their students about opportunities available at no cost around the state such as workshops, clinics, masterclasses, concerts, conferences, etc.. In addition, the newsletter is available for members to share musical and other educational accomplishments with their peers, performance and clinician invitations, other noteworthy or shareable news, job changes, items you’d like to gift to another program, or anything you think beneficial for the music education of GMEA members or their students.

MUSIC TECHNOLOGY MUSIC TECHNOLOGY MUSIC TECHNOLOGY

THE 4TH ANNUAL GMEA MUSIC TECHNOLOGY SHOWCASE

We are incredibly excited about the upcoming 2023 GMEA Music Technology Showcase. We have added an Elementary division this year and an Audio Production category. Categories are: Digital Composition,Audio Production, Re-Mix/Derivative, and Multi/Mixed-Media.

Students may submit one entry per category.

REGISTER NOW

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Events and News from GMEA's 14 Districts

DISTRICT ONE

• Dashaun McGee has been selected to present How to Lose a Job in 10 Days: Things I Did Not Realize After College for the NAfME Collegiate Pre - Conference at the Gaylord National Harbor Resort and Conference Center in National Harbor, MD. Dashaun’s session is for young and inexperienced music educators who might not realize that they are violating one or more of the professional ethics standards. His clinic will cover standards like professionalism and what that means, trustworthiness, teacher/student relations, and maintaining confidentiality. These are just a few standards that most music educators tend to break unintentionally or even intentionally. Dashaun will share good practices and techniques to help young educators remain in compliance with their state mandates.

DISTRICT THREE

• HCHS County Women leading the Bands for a little Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate

In the fall of 2022, when the University of Georgia hosts Georgia Tech for a little Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate, two of Harris County’s finest will take the field, not only to perform with each institution's famed marching bands but leading each group in their highest leadership positions.

Recently, it was announced that Kaleigh Griswell, Class of 2020, will return for a second year as a Drum Major for the Georgia Institute of Technology Yellow Jacket Marching Band, and Hannah Marston, Class of 2019, was selected for her first season as a Drum Major for the University of Georgia Redcoat Marching Band.

Both women were members of the Harris County High School Marching Band and spent three years together in classes and on the field. The pair have performed together in large and small groups on several occasions. For the past two years, both have been members of their respective rival college marching bands performing in opposition on those special Saturdays in November. Each of their college bands has hundreds of members, but there are only four drum majors who are selected through competitive auditions. Drum Majors serve in the highestranking leadership capacity for each group, leading their bands and tailgate communities in the traditions of game days, parades, making play calls throughout the games, and conducting throughout performances.

Hannah Marston is the daughter of Tim and Ashley Marston of Fortson, Ga. Tim, originally from Diamond, Missouri, and his wife Ashley, originally from Charlotte, North Carolina, are both Clemson fans and are well known in the Harris County community through volunteering for Little League and Ashley’s work with the county’s parks and recreation department. Hannah’s principal instrument is the clarinet. Her high school band director, Miranda Carlsen, said she could recall teaching Hannah in the 8th grade and sort of tricking her a bit with her high school placement audition. “We use the 11th and 12th grade GMEA (Georgia Music Educators Association) All-State scale sheets as a basis for monitoring progress throughout the student’s high school career. We give it to them early, so kids like Hannah can master them early, and so they can all track their progress toward their goal. What takes some students an academic year or two of work in band class, especially developing range, took Hannah - with her initiative, determination, and skill set - two days at home.”

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Hannah marched on the drumline in high school and tried out for and was accepted to the cymbal line for UGA. Hannah said one of her favorite performance events are home game-day performances at the Tate Student Center drum shows.

While she was in high school, she also independently took A.P. Music Theory online, earning and maintaining an A throughout the course. “I think she asked for help twice and didn’t really need it,” said her high school director. In 2018, Hannah applied for via a taped audition and was accepted to the Macy’s All-American Band and performed in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Since going to UGA, Hannah has been working on a double major in Music and Entertainment and Media Studies and is pursuing a certificate in Music Business. She has been inducted into Sigma Alpha Iota, an international music fraternity. She’s performed in multiple recitals for clarinet and percussion, performed as a member of the UGA Steel Drum Band, arranged music for and performed with the UGA Wind Symphony, and performed at the 2019 SEC Championship and Sugar Bowl, the 2021 SEC Championship and Capital One Orange Bowl, and the 2022 College Football Playoff National Championship. Hannah says her favorite performance to date was the 2019 Notre Dame game. She added, “There were SO many people, and it was also the first time Sanford Stadium used their new red lights.” She said her favorite experience was this past year's CFP National Championship game; Marston exclaimed, “Nothing can beat the feeling of defeating Alabama and getting to experience UGA’s first national championship win in more than 40 years!”

After a lengthy audition process that started with 20 candidates in March and was cut down

to seven finalists, who auditioned at the Spring G-Day game, Hannah was selected as a drum major.

Kaleigh Griswell was a part of the graduating class of 2020 that shut down on March 13 due to COVID-19. She served as a Drum Major of the Harris County High School Bands for three years, winning at the end of her freshman year and after only one year of marching band, in which she performed on the Color Guard by spinning flag and rifle. Kaleigh’s principal instrument is flute. She has also served our local community in the pageant world as Miss Harris County’s Outstanding Teen 2019 and Miss Harris County 2020 and 2021, with 2021 as extension due to Covid. Her high school director said, “While in high school, she raised nearly $4,000 for the HCHS Bands as our Miss HCHS and has recently launched her own non-profit organization that supplies music education materials to parents of newborns in hospitals as well as provides NICU departments with scientifically composed music that promotes greater cognitive development in premature babies.” To find more information on her foundation, please visit her Music Makes Miracles Foundation website (www.MusicMMiraclesFoundation.org) or her social media accounts on Facebook and Instagram as @MusicMMiraclesFoundation.

In the Spring of 2021, Kaleigh was selected as one of four drum majors for the Georgia Tech Marching Band. Just as she accomplished in high school, she won her college audition after only a year of performance and as a sophomore. To add to the feat, Kaleigh’s first year of Tech Band was only in the stands for an abbreviated season in which members were used in weekly shifts due to COVID protocols.

Kaleigh said her favorite thing about last season as Drum Major was leading spirit bands before home games. “We take a sixth of the band and roam around and play for people before the game starts and it's just really

fun!” She also has learned how to call plays for basketball, volleyball, and lacrosse games. Kaleigh says she looks forward to a second year as Drum Major, because she’s past the learning curve. “As a 2020 RAT, I didn’t get to experience what a normal marching season was like, let alone a normal marching season as drum major.”

This year she looks forward to knowing “the process of a normal marching season” and being better prepared for it but believes she’s “made a lot of progress in being able to read a football game. There’s a lot of nuances that go into judging the mood of the song you want to play and fitting that into an indeterminate amount of time, and I think with last year under my belt, I’ll be able to do that better.”

HCHS Band Director Miranda Carlsen said, “Hannah and Kaleigh have always been incredibly remarkable women. That we have ended up seeing them both earning spots as Drum Majors for their respective prestigious schools’ marching bands should not have come as a surprise. They’ve always been destined for greatness. I feel lucky and honored that they still think to send me the occasional message to update me and supply me with great photos so I can brag on them. They are both a great source of pride for Harris County.”

DISTRICT FIVE

• The CMA Foundation, the national music education nonprofit and the philanthropic arm of the Country Music Association, hosted its sixth Music Teachers of Excellence Awards on October 19, 2022, and Dr. Samuel Holmes, music specialist at Garden Hills Elementary in Atlanta Public Schools, was among the honorees. He was one of ten recipients in the national category and the only recipient from Georgia. The event honored 30 music educators, in total, for their dedication

and commitment to music education in their classroom and throughout their school community. The event featured US Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona, as he and recipients discussed the importance of music education in the country. The CMA Foundation created the Music Teachers of Excellence program in 2016 in an effort to recognize the best and brightest music teachers from Nashville and beyond. Award recipients were selected because of their dedication to bringing a quality music program to their students and the impact they’ve had on their school community through music. Sam is the District 5 Elementary Chair for GMEA.

DISTRICT EIGHT

• Hometown Band Director/ Pastor Leads Middle School Band to Excellence

The 2021-2022 term ended in May of this year for most schools around the nation, but for one southern middle school, it did so on a very high note—particularly for the institution’s arts department.

Scintilla Charter Academy (SCA), located in Valdosta, Georgia, opened its doors in 2015 as a school that served children from K through 4th grades, and over the years, it has expanded to include higher grade levels. As of the 20222023 school year, it will educate children through 8th grade.

Last school year, SCA added something else to their curriculum that they’d not previously had—a full scale band. And when the school decided to implement this into their arts

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department, they brought in a name and face that is familiar and respected in and around the city of Valdosta.

Dr. Albert L. Bussey Jr. is the presiding bishop and CEO of Victory Bible Believers Fellowship, Inc., headquartered in Waycross, Georgia. Before his retirement in 2018, Dr. Bussey was employed for 27 years as band director at Ware County High School. He is a Valdosta native, a 1984 graduate of Lowndes County High School and a 1988 graduate Valdosta State University, where he majored in music education. He later graduated from Troy State University, and then from St. Thomas Christian University, where he received his Doctor of Divinity. Last school year, after a statewide search (assisted by Michael Thomas at Lowndes High School), SCA asked the then-retired Dr. Bussey to form SCA’s inaugural band. He hit the ground running.

“There were 36 original band members,” Dr. Bussey shared. “After some delays with COVID, we finally started rehearsing with instruments in early September [2021].”

Dr. Bussey pointed out that a person only gets one chance to make a first impression, and for him, it was the Christmas concert that was held on December 13.

“I assumed a great deal of pressure on myself not to let anyone down who had given me the chance for this historic moment to start a band program from scratch,” he said.

He wasn’t alone in his quest to make SCA’s band and their first concert one that people would not soon forget. Band leaders from other schools in the area—such as Travis Kimber (head of Valdosta City Schools Band Department) and Jon Bowman (head of

Lowndes High School Band) stepped up to show their support by permitting Dr. Bussey to borrow instruments and music. In addition, a handful of their students arrived to assist.

“That night, December 13 [2021] at 6:45 P.M.,” Dr. Bussey shared, recalling the months-ago night like it was yesterday. “A packed house in the SCA lunchroom. IT HAPPENED. The first full band concert, and the tunes we played were recognizable!” he said with a laugh. That night marked the beginning of what would later blow the minds of SCA faculty, students and perhaps, the entire Valdosta community. The next big thing would bring the band validation that most schools would likely take years to achieve. During the April 22, 2022 Wild Adventure Classic Music Festival, SCA’s band played “Tempest” by Robert W. Smith and “Let’s Rock” by John O’Reilly.

Dr. Bussey shared, “The students exceeded expectations and received all superior ratings, which is the highest rating, with all A’s on the score sheet!”

An unexpected detail that makes this achievement even more remarkable is that prior to September, when the band got its start, only four of the band students had ever played a band instrument. Meaning, within seven months, Dr. Bussey had taken them from a status of novice to noteworthy. The judges were amazed to learn that so many of the musicians in SCA’s band had advanced so far in such a brief period of time.

All of the members of Scintilla Charter Academy’s band that completed the full year received award certificates and a trophy that commemorated their superior rating at the Wild Adventure performance. Nine of the students were selected to attend the GMEA District 8 Beginner Band Clinic that took place in Jesup, Georgia, giving them their first Honor Band experience.

Dean Mandy Brewington of SDA remarked, “We are so proud of the students’ progress this year. Mr. Bussey and students exceeded all of our expectations with the band this first year.” Despite the excellent accomplishments of the 2021-2022 term, greater things can be expected for the coming school year as Dr. Bussey has already announced his return.

DISTRICT TWELVE

• The Walton High School Chamber Orchestra directed by Perry Holbrook and Sara Grimes will perform at The Midwest Clinic on Tuesday, December 20, 2022 at 9AM in Ballroom W375E. Works to be performed include Serenade for Strings in E Major, Op. 22 (Antonin Dvořák), Neon (Kevin Day), Overture in C Minor (Franz Schubert), Concerto for Orchestra (Jennifer Higdon), Sleep (Eric Whitacre), and more.

DISTRICT THIRTEEN

• On November 16th, 2022, Mill Creek High School Orchestras will be the featured performers before an Atlanta Hawks basketball game versus the Celtics. This opportunity will feature a compilation of students from all levels, as well as the MCHS Band percussionists, performing pop song “Thriller”, by Michael Jackson, and the Game of Thrones theme song. These orchestras are led and conducted by Tori Wilson and Sadie Glasgow.

DISTRICT FOURTEEN

• Congratulations to Josh Brandon for being selected as the Loganville High School Teacher of the Year! This is Dr. Brandon’s 5th year at Loganville High School, where he has been a finalist for teacher of the year since the 20192020 school year.

The ensemble was scheduled to perform in 2020 and 2021, but COVID stopped both of these performances. The ensemble members were determined to reapply and realize their dream to perform at Midwest---and now they are getting that opportunity!

For those unable to be in Chicago, there will be a send-off concert on Sunday, December 11, 2022 at 3PM at Walton High School (1590 Bill Murdock Road; Marietta, GA). For additional information, please e-mail waltonhighschoolorchestra@gmail.com.

• Congratulations to Dr. Anand Sukumaran, Assistant Professor of Music at Piedmont University, on the successful defense of his doctoral dissertation this past summer: “Many Streams, One River: Multimusical Educators in the K-12 Music Classroom.” His PhD in music education was awarded by the University of Michigan (Ann Arbor). Anand is excited to build on this work through encouraging and equipping teachers at all stages to engage with music in diverse ways.

YEAR OF RETIREMENT STACY BRANCH

During her 33 year career, Stacy Branch served as the Director of Choirs at Columbia Middle School (2 years) and Assistant Band Director (2 years) as well as Director of Choirs and guitar at Lakeside High School (31 years). She holds the degrees of Bachelor of Music from The University of Georgia, Master of Science in Education from Troy State University and a degree in Educational Leadership from Augusta University. Ms. Branch helped in organizing District events such as Large Group Performance Evaluations, District Honor Chorus and Region Literary Meet. She also organized a vocal competition hosting groups from throughout the southern region of the United States including Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi and Virginia. She was named teacher of the year at Lakeside High School in 1998 and in 2016.

Choirs under her direction consistently received Superior ratings at the Large Group Performance Evaluations and were named Grand Champions and placed in the top 5 in Show Choir competitions in Georgia, Alabama, Florida, and Mississippi. They also represented the State of Georgia as Georgia Ambassadors in Branson, Mo. Her soloists, trios and quartets have won region and state Literary competitions.

In May of 2023, Ms. Branch plans to retire, relax and see what new music opportunities arise.

YEAR OF RETIREMENT GEORGE R. EVANS

Choral music as always been at the heart of Mr. Evans. His love started at Weir Elementary School in Macon, Georgia, when he joined the chorus in 4th grade. His participation continued at Ballard B Jr. High and at Southwest High School in Macon. In addition to his mother, his talent was fueled by his instructors and retired Georgia educators, Bonita Thomie and Renee Leonard.

Mr. Evans received his undergraduate degree in Music Education from Georgia Southern University, a Masters degree In Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment from Walden University, and a Specialist degree in Educational Leadership and Supervision from Lincoln Memorial University.

During the course of his career, Mr. Evans taught in Greene County Public Schools, Gwinnett County Public Schools, and Cobb County School District. In addition to music in the classroom, Mr. Evans has been an active singer in the New South Festival Singers and the Emory University Chorus.

In his spare time, Mr. Evans enjoys travel and attending car shows with his classic station wagon. In retirement, Mr. Evans will continue those activities and will be moving to Indiana with the hope of continuing to share music with others. He is very thankful for the support system who made it possible for him to explorer and share music.

YEAR OF RETIREMENT DR. JOHN ODOM

Dr. John Odom has announced his retirement at the end of the 2022-2023 school year after 37 years in public education. John graduated from the University of Southern Mississippi and holds a Ph.D. in Music Education, a Master of Music Education and a Bachelor of Music Education. He also holds a Master of Church Music from the New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. Before coming to Georgia, John taught choral music in Mississippi for 13 years at the junior high and high school levels. While completing his doctoral residency at the University of Southern Mississippi, he served as undergraduate advisor and supervisor of student teachers. John authored “A Vocal Hygiene Program for High School Choral Students”, a five-part program investigating the anatomy of the vocal mechanism, behaviors harmful to the voice, the effects of prescription, non-prescription and illegal drugs on the voice, and proper care and maintenance of the voice. After moving to Georgia, John served as Director of Choral Activities at Lovejoy High School in Clayton County for 5 years. Upon his retirement , he will have spent the last 19 years as Director of Choral Activities at Starr’s Mill High School in Fayette County. Choirs under his direction have consistently received Superior ratings at District, State, and Regional choral festivals, as well as Superior ratings and Best in Class awards at regional competitions. John’s students have been selected for GMEA All-State Chorus and All-State Sight Reading Chorus, as well as Regional and National ACDA Honor Choirs. In addition, the Starr's Mill Choral Department has had 15 students selected to the Governor's Honor Program as vocal majors in his 19 years at Starr’s Mill and has had 22 six-year all state chorus students.

John has conducted major works with chorus and orchestra in such venues as Spivey Hall and the Cathedral of St. Philip in Atlanta. These works include Vivaldi’s Gloria, Schubert’s Mass in G, Faure’s Requiem, the Easter portion of Handel’s Messiah, Britten’s Ceremony of Carols, Mozart’s Missa Brevis in D Major, Randall Thompson’s Testament of Freedom and premiered James Mulholland's Mass Missa Romantica at the GMEA In-Service Conference in 2006. John’s choirs have sung the Prelude to Evensong service at the Washington National Cathedral and the Sunday Eucharist Service at The Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City. His choirs have been selected to perform at two GMEA State In-Service Conferences and made their solo Carnegie Hall debut in the Spring of 2013 with a second solo performance at Carnegie Hall in March of 2017. He has served as GMEA District Choral Chair, District VI Chair, District Honor Chorus organizing Chair, and the Georgia ACDA High School Repertoire and Standards Chair. He served as President of the Georgia Music Educators Association from 2015 to 2017. John has also served on the Spivey Hall Education Committee, the Atlanta Opera Education Committee and the Editorial Board of the Georgia Music News. He was selected as STAR teacher at Lovejoy High School in 2003 and has been selected five times to Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers.

John and his wife Mary, a retired computer network engineer, will be moving “home” to the Mississippi Gulf Coast at the end of the 2022-2023 school year.

YEAR OF RETIREMENT RICH STICHLER

Rich Stichler is in his 31st year in music education and has served as director of bands at Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe High School, Ft. Oglethorpe, Georgia since 1999. He was director of bands at Ridgeland High School, Rossville, Georgia from 1993 to 1999. Before relocating to Georgia, he taught bands and orchestras in Arizona, California, and Nevada. Under his direction the LFO and Ridgeland High School Bands have received consistent superior ratings for marching, concert, and jazz in Alabama, Georgia, and Tennessee. The LFO Symphonic Band performed, by invitation, at the 2001 University of Georgia High School Music Festival. He served as GMEA District Seven Band Division chair and as the organizer of the GMEA All-State Jazz Ensemble. He is an adjunct professor of music at Georgia Northwestern Technical College and also is an adjunct professor of trombone and Director of Jazz Bands at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. He maintains a busy schedule as a professional trombonist and teacher in the Chattanooga and Atlanta areas and has also freelanced and taught privately in Arizona, California, Washington, D.C., and Las Vegas. He was a member of the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Marching Band, the 1986 Disneyland All-American College Band, and the 15th Air Force Band of the Golden West, March Air Force Base California from 1987 to 1991. He earned the B.Mus. Degree from the University of Arizona and the M.M.Ed. Degree and Ed.S. Degree in Educational Technology from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. He is married to Diane Stichler, a Guidance Counselor at LFO and has two sons. Evan, who is a graduate of the University of Georgia, and Jarrett, who is a graduate of the Georgia Institute of Technology. He and Diane are celebrating the arrival of a granddaughter and are proud parents of Brinkley, a labradoodle and Herbert, a goldendoodle.

P.S. from

Cue the soundtrack to Back to the Future. Let’s fire up the DeLorean and travel back in time to 1971. We have one mission: Find Ray Tomlinson, the computer engineer who sent the first recorded email in human history. Against all odds, we must convince him to abandon the development of email, an innovation that will add stress and decrease preparation time for teachers across the United States in the decades to come.

I realize I am being melodramatic. After all, technology can be valuable. I am grateful that I have never edited a research paper on a typewriter. I can barely remember making plans with friends before cell phones. Email, however, continues to present unique challenges.

Most teachers have no problem reading email, but it is the act of responding that can add a significant burden, such as expending the mental energy to craft a response to a parent or administrator. Recently, I attended a meeting with Human Resource directors of several Georgia school systems. We were discussing work-life balance for new teachers. One of the HR directors adamantly declared, “Do not let first-year teachers put school email on their phones!”

I agree with the idea, although I acknowledge work-life balance is different for everyone. As a teacher, I resisted checking school email on my phone for many years. I didn’t want to lie awake overnight thinking about an email that popped up at 9:30 p.m. from an upset parent. I preferred only checking email when I made time to

from the President

be in front of the computer, mostly at school, but occasionally at home if needed, such as the night before a trip or concert.

No matter how you choose to deal with email, there isn’t a perfect solution. On one hand, failure to adequately manage email can lead to miscommunication and frustration. On the other hand, superhuman response times and “Inbox Zero” does not equal quality music education. The most well-written emails are not a substitute for building personal relationships. Email is better for disseminating information, while phone and in-person is better for two-way communication. I am quick to respond to a complicated email with the request, “Can we chat on the phone when you have a minute?”

In the age of instant communication, we know email can be a distraction and impact productivity. A 2012 study found that participants were more productive and less stressed when email access was removed from the workplace (Mark et al.). Since I began writing this column, I’ve paused several times to read and respond to emails that needed my attention. According to another study, it takes an average of 23 minutes and 15 seconds to regain focus on the original task after each email interruption (Mark et al., 2008).

There is no shortage of articles promoting healthy habits to engage with email while still meeting the communication demands of our jobs. As music teachers, we have an advantage to ensuring we have

balance in our daily routine. We can put our phone and computer aside and devote our attention to making music with our students. Conducting an ensemble. Leading a class in song or dance. These are far more fulfilling than any email we might send or receive.

Best wishes for a productive November and a restful Thanksgiving break! If there is anything I can do to support you or your students, you can reach me at president@gmea.org, or better yet, give me a call at 706-338-4983

GMEA PRESIDENT

Matt Koperniak

Talk among the skeletons this morning

Aside from all the medicine and health

If you could do it all again, would you do it all the same? Is there something that you'd tell your former self?

There were those that wished they'd spun upon a jukebox There were pirates who had never seen the sea But the one recurring theme, the one recurring dream they had Was to be whatever they wanted to be

Coldplay "Flags"