VMEA Summer Newsletter

Today, we think about our colleagues, students, and families in Southwest Virginia who have been impacted by the devastation from Hurricane Helene. We keep them in our thoughts and will continue to listen for how we can support them as they work to recover. Thanks to leadership across the state listening and making changes to ensure opportunity for all students affected by Tropical Storm Helene.

At Disney Imagination Campus at Walt Disney World, engaging workshops and performance opportunities let students feel first-hand what it’s like to be a Disney entertainment professional. Experience the excitement that will inspire your performers with a glimpse of just how far they can go – while creating magical memories and learning valuable lessons that will last a lifetime.

VMEA thanks Disney Imagination Campus for their support of VMEA, our teachers, and students!

51 DAYS UNTIL WE COME TOGETHER IN NORFOLK!!!

THE OCTOBER 15 DEADLINE FOR DISCOUNTED REGISTRATION IS FAST APPROACHING!!

Register today so you do not miss out on this discounted price!

VMEA has established the Awards Programs that recognizes service, achievements and contributions to music education for current active members, retired members, and for non-members who show their support for local music programs. We want to recognize you if you have been teaching 15 years, 25 years, or JUST RETIRED! Submit your name so we can include you in our celebrations.

We also recognize Outstanding Music Educator, General Music Educator, Administrator, and Lifetime Achievement with awards. You can nominate someone who has made a difference in your career!

All recognitions/nominations must be received by OCTOBER 15! Click the button below to submit.

Are you interested in learning more about leadership within VMEA? We would love to invite you to be a part of VMEA Leadership Symposium on Thursday November 21st, 2024 from 9:00am - 12:00om. Training and recruiting new leadership within VMEA is essential to our future. If you are selected to attend, you will be contacted by Jonathan Hargis, VMEA President-Elect.

VMEA will reimburse you the cost of your hotel room on Wednesday night as well as your conference registration fee. Deadline for submission is OCTOBER 25, 2024. Interested members should FILL OUT THIS FORM!!

The 2024 Senior Honor Choir will be November 21-23, 2024 at the 2024 VMEA Conference in Norfolk. All 12th grade students enrolled in a VMEA member’s school choral ensemble are eligible to audition.

Due to the devastation in Southwest Virginia caused by Hurricane Helene, we are going to extend the audition window and payment due date for the VMEA Senior Honors Choir auditions.

This change will not affect the open date for the auditions. We will, however, eliminate the 24-hour window for teachers to review submissions after the window closes.

The new timeline for the auditions is as follows:

• Sept. 30 – Oct. 11: Audition window (closes at 5:00 p.m. on 10/11)
• October 7: Payment Due Date (Mailed payment postmarked by this date)
• October 12-19: Adjudication window
• October 20: Audition Committee will review and finalize results
• October 21: Results will be distributed to Directors

If your district or school is affected by this disaster, we hope you are back on your feet and making music together again with your students soon.

--Robin Duncan & Willis Rosenfeld, VMEA Sr. Honor Choir Audition Chairs

Click below for all audition and event information.

The 2024 VMEA Composition Festival is coming!! Applications are available for any K-12 and Collegiate members to showcase new works and creativity happening in Virginia. An amazing opportunity for a workshop/mastercalss with award winning composer Dr. Andrea Reinkemeyer is also available. If you have questions, please reach out to Dr. Jim Criswell and Dr. Ryan Keebaugh at vmeacomposition@gmail.com. DEADLINE TO SUBMIT IS OCTOBER 15!!!

The VMEA Council of Creativity and Innovation has created a Resource Hub for teachers!! Resources include repertoire lists, improvisation and creativity resources, featured artists, and professional development opportunities. If you are interested in sharing or learning more, please contact Taylor Walkup Amos at creativitycouncil@vmea.com

It's once again time to meet our people and hear the stories they have to share on the VMEA Voice!! Join J.R. Snow and Maggie Hagy as they interview educators bringing ensembles to the 2024 VMEA Conference. Click the logo to find all our episodes at our website or listen on Spotify, Amazon Music, or Tune In Radio!! New episodes start TODAY!!

VMEA is proud to welcome our new Collegiate Advisor, Hannah Greer-Young. Hannah Greer-Young is privileged to teach Band and Choir at Shelburne Middle School and is the assistant director of the Staunton High School Storm Marching Band in Staunton, Virginia. Before moving to Virginia, Hannah taught band and general music in Ohio from 2017-2022. She graduated from James Madison University in 2024 with a Master of Music degree in music education, where she served as the graduate teaching assistant for the music education department.

While at JMU, Hannah won several awards and grants for her research in music education, and now serves on an ethical practices for music education task force through the National Association for Music Education (NAfME). Hannah has received invitations to showcase her research at state and national conferences and universities across the country. In 2024 she won the “Best Oral Presentation” award from the JMU Graduate School in recognition of her work establishing the JMU Lab Band, a free enrichment program for band students in the Shenandoah Valley.

Thanks to all of those educators who have registered to bring students to participate in the 2024 All Virginia Orff ensemble. ALL SPOTS HAVE BEEN FILLED AND REGISTRATION IS NOW CLOSED. We look forward to celebrating in November!

The NAfME Equity Resource Center is a collection of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Access and Belonging (DEIAB) resources to support our members in their continuing efforts to make DEIAB actionable in the music education profession. More information can be found HERE.

The NAfME Resource Center shared fact sheets, guides, webinars, talking points, reports and much more to equip music educators with tools to succeed in the classroom and help advance the profession. More information can be found HERE.

Just starting out in your music education career? Welcome to the profession! NAfME offers a special membership rate of half off national dues to first year teachers who were previously members of NAfME Collegiate. Total dues would be $75 which includes the Virginia dues. This offer is not available online; to join, you must call 800-336-3768 or contact memberservices@nafme.org.

The Virginia Coalition for Fine Arts Education works to bring arts education stakeholders together to promote and advocate for sequential, high quality arts programs for all children in the Commonwealth. VMEA is a partner organization with the VCFAE and works to represent you. Visit them by clicking on their logo

Please take a moment to complete this "Music Educator Satisfaction" Survey, which is being conducted annually by the NFHS to help retain and recruit music educators. If you have taken this survey before, please complete the survey again! With multiple years of data, the NFHS can begin to track and interpret trends in the profession, which will help identify “next steps” and build resources to support you! Additionally, this data helps the NFHS to build advocacy information and tools that you can use to promote your programs in your community. The deadline to complete the survey is October 15th

You are invited to complete a survey about your experiences fundraising for your school music program by Dr. Tina Beveridge at George Mason University and Dr. Emmett O’Leary at Virginia Tech. Fundraising is a meaningful part of the work that so many music educators do, and we would like to better understand the fundraising expectations of music educators in Virginia, and how fundraising influences job satisfaction and work-related stress. Access the survey HERE.