Candidates for KMEA President-Elect

NCKMEA Vice President 2024-26
NCKMEA President 2020-24
NCKMEA President-Elect 2018-20
NCKMEA Mentor Chair 2014-18

I am the product of Kansas public schools. I grew up in families who were very proud of what Kansas schools were and who understood that you could tell a lot about a school district by looking at its music department. My first 9 years were spent in Cimarron, Kansas, and in the middle of my third grade year we moved to Manhattan, Kansas. My new school building was a lot older, but the kindness and high expectations of my teachers, the friendliness of the principal, and the excitement in the community for what possibilities the school year brought remained the same. I got my Bachelor of Music Education from Wichita State University in 1994. I taught for a year at Southwestern Heights, then took some time off from teaching to spend time with my young family. In the fall of 1998, I was hired as an Assistant Band Director for Manhattan-Ogden USD 383 and I have been there ever since. In 2019, I earned my Masters in Music from Kansas State University. In addition to being a grades 5-12 Band Director in the district and my NCKMEA duties, I was the Accreditation Chair at Manhattan High School for 10 years, and have been on the KNEA negotiations team for the district for the past 4 years. I also lead two adult handbell choirs at my church.

I believe music is a basic component of what it means to be human. Music provides a place for growth and learning. As musicians, we learn about music itself. We learn how to manipulate music through composing and arranging. We learn how to create music with our voices or on an instrument. We learn about different styles of music and learn how to improvise and create our own style. We learn how to work with others and about how our own brain learns. Music helps everyone make connections and grow beyond themselves. When we teach music to our youth, we teach them about history. They learn about the society and culture they live in. We give them windows into other cultures. They learn how to take an active part in a large group in a variety of ways. They learn how to master an instrument over time. They learn about themselves. They learn to express joy, sadness, contemplation, wisdom, silliness all while being held safely in the togetherness of an ensemble. Music is a lifelong endeavor. There is always another level of expertise to be mastered, other cultures or styles to explore, and maybe another instrument to learn. We don’t need everyone to play the same instrument or sing in unison all the time. There is strength, beauty and depth to the different paths where music leads. We are a social group that relies on the strengths of everyone to create something bigger than our individual selves. We stretch ourselves as individuals to make the group stronger. We celebrate our successes, support others when they are struggling, and create a place where all are welcome. It’s about the music, and it’s about being a kind, thoughtful, and respectful human being.