It’s hard to believe but we have all wiped our brows of last spring’s hard work, rested through the summer, and now we are returning bright eyed (I hope) and ready to engage our students back in our ensembles and classrooms. The 2022-2023 school year is going to be full of excitement… and stress. As I prepare my own classroom and engage with my school community, I am impacted by a recent quote I read.
Whatever our individual situation presents, we must remain true to ourselves and maintain our awareness of self. We know that everyone has unique circumstances with relation to schedule, resources, student body, parent support, work/life balance and more. Please know that CMEA is here for YOU and to advocate alongside your professional endeavors. We cannot grow without one another and our professional connections hold us up. Reach out and talk to a colleague. And with that, we hope to hear from YOU and cross paths soon.
DEIA News from the President-Elect
Casey Cropp
Here we go!!… For 32 years at this time of the year I questioned my preparedness to start a “new” school year. It’s been interesting to watch that same transition many of you are making now. I truly wish you the very best in getting your music program started once again. In many cases it seems that regardless of your professional experience, or how long you’ve been in your same position, it is necessary to reset and regain the culture that once was the norm for the programs you’ve enjoyed during your tenure. Unfortunately, these are the times we are in, but they are also an opportunity to be the champion for each of your students. I have the utmost confidence in you – the music education professionals in Colorado!!!
I’ve been wrestling with the terminology of diversity and equity and what they might mean to our organization. Each person or organization has a different and sometimes conflicting definition which causes confusion and in some cases disunity. May I suggest we concentrate on one area to start with, and that would be celebrating and continuing to emphasize how we can enhance music programs in small schools. That’s not to say that I would encourage anyone to abandon the excellence of the large school programs in Colorado. I’d just like to have our membership consider how we can give all schools the opportunity to experience great music and understand music through our history and structure. The CMEA leadership and councils have been working most of the summer to put together a wonderful conference this coming January for all of you. The clinic sessions are quite interesting, and I believe will challenge you and meet your needs. I hope you will make plans now to join us in attending the CMEA Conference! Early registration is now open on the CMEA website!!
Here’s just a few sessions to look forward to from each of our councils-
General Music:
Integrating Social Emotional Learning into Orff Shulwerk, Sara Posey,
Coping with Hearing Loss in the Music Education Setting: Teacher and Student, Edward Ercilla
Writing Inclusive/Adapted Music Units for Students with Special Needs; Amy Martinson, Edwina Lucero, Melissa Grundy, Megan Stacey, Libby Dubose
College/University:
Supporting Students with Needs in Ensembles, Inclusion or Integration?, Samuel Gray
Trauma-Informed Mindfulness in the Classroom, John Lindsey
A special session being designed by our own Wesley Broadnax from UNC that you will not want to miss!!
Instrumental:
Engaging Rehearsal Strategies for Students Who Can't Practice at Home, Megan Lewin
Peer Teaching in the Ensemble, Bethany Nickel
Vocal:
Choral Storytelling: Tools and Techniques - Jeff Horenstine
Building a Culture of Creativity - Stephanie Kelln
Balancing the Individual Science of Vocal Pedagogy in Group Settings - Chris Munce
I look forward to meeting with you all in just a few short months at the Broadmoor!!!
General Music News
Cathy Keller
Welcome back to the 2022-23 school year to my fellow General Music Educators!
As many of you might be experiencing within your own buildings, this school year is still proving to be a challenging start with the dwindling numbers of educators across the country. However, YOU are here! You are already a bright light to even one student who will love the engaging games, play, and music you will make together.
We have fresh excitement, ideas, and lesson plans!
I hope each and everyone of you had the opportunity to rejuvenate over the summer months. One thing COVID taught me personally was to remember mental and emotional health is significant. You cannot be good for your family, friends, colleagues or students if you are not good for yourself. Remember as we start this school year to take time for yourself during the school year! We must remember that in order to be great teachers, we must have time for self-care. Some tips and tricks to self-care from psychologist Brittney Newcomer:
Set and maintain boundaries
Acknowledge moments of gratitude and joy
Reflect on your feelings and needs
Recognize what is and isn’t in your control
Use self-care routines throughout your day
Finally, don’t forget to attend workshops from our local organizations and chapters. The Rocky Mountain Chapter of the American Orff-Schulwerk Association will HOST events this year, including Matthew Stensrud, the RMC-AOSA sponsored Clinician at the 2022 CMEA Conference! Check out ROCKE’s (Regional Organization for Colorado Kodaly Educators) calendar HERE.
Feel free to reach out to me with any questions, suggestions, or just to say hi! You can reach me at cmea.gmc@gmail.com.
Warmly,
Cathy Keller
Instrumental Music News
Pete Toews
Welcome back to my wonderful colleagues!
Author and researcher, Brené Brown says, “Connection is why we’re here; it is what gives purpose and meaning to our lives.” This cannot be more true than in our classrooms. We make connections with students, staff, colleagues, and families. As we head back to school this fall, I’ve been thinking about the ways we strengthen those connections. Spend time to get to know the new staff in the building. Let your administration know what is going right in the building and in your classroom. Thank your custodial staff for the hours they’ve put in over the summer to prepare the building for the inevitable onslaught of that first day. Remember to call home to let families know what kids are doing right five times for each time you send a call home about a behavior problem. Welcome each and every student by name at the door as they come into the room. Building up the emotional capacity of everyone in the system is so important to what we do as music educators. As Dr. Tim always says, “They don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” I’m also going to encourage you to think about the ways you can strengthen your music colleagues within your building, your district, and beyond. As music educators, it is easy to get lost in our own world. Reach out to that first year teacher who needs a mentor. Reach out to a colleague who has been struggling and needs support. Discuss concert programming with others to stimulate new ideas and introduce others to great literature and great composers.
Let us know how the IMC can support you and Strengthen our Connections!
We are ALL CMEA!
Pete Toews
Instrumental Music Council Chair
Greetings from Tri-M
Michelle Ewer
I am excited to welcome you to the 22-23 school year with Tri-M Music Honor Society. If you are a new director, or new to Tri-M let me take a moment to introduce it to you. Tri-M Music Honor Society was created to perform, lead and serve. It fills a need for your students who want to be part of a group that share the same musical passion that they do. Tri-M helps to develop leaders as well as build community spirit. It is designed for grades 6-12. Your chapter can be built around your needs. There is no one size fits all with Tri-M. Please consider starting a Tri-M chapter at your school.
The 2023 Tri-M day will be held Wednesday January 25th at the BroadMoor Hotel in Colorado Springs. I am thrilled to announce that Tia Fuller will be our Key Note Speaker for Tri-M day. Tia is a Colorado Native from Gateway HS. She is a saxophonist, composer and educator, She currently works with artists, Bruno Mars, Ariana Grande, and Beyonce. You may recognize Tia from her role in Pixar’s full length computer-animated feature Soul. Tia will be speaking to our attendees on January 25th.
Students who attend Tri-M day will be able to select their top 3 sessions to attend during the day. They include, leadership, College Applications, Choral warm-ups, Composition, Wellness and brass breath support to name a few. We will have sessions that will address numerous musical interests. Look for registration details around November 1st at www.cmeaonline.org
As you start a new school year, think “How can I incorporate Tri-M into the activities we are doing?” Can they be ambassadors, hand out flyers, recruit beginners etc. I am listing some links from NAFME below to help guide you with Tri-M. Please let me know how I can be of help to you this fall.
When Grammy-nominated Mack Avenue recording artist, composer, and bandleader Tia Fuller picks up her saxophone, something amazing happens. Blending technical brilliance, melodic creativity, and the performing precision drawn from both her academic and stage experience, Fuller is a force to be reckoned with in the worlds of jazz, pop, R&B, and more. Currently, Fuller balances the worlds of performance and education, fulfilling a demanding schedule as both a busy touring and recording artist and a full-time professor at the Berklee College of Music in Boston.
Fuller’s resume makes her uniquely qualified for these roles. The Denver, Colorado native graduated magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music from Spelman College in Atlanta, GA, and summa cum laude with a Master’s degree in Jazz Pedagogy and Performance from the University of Colorado at Boulder. Already established as a leading jazz musician, Fuller was selected to be a member of the all-female band touring with Grammy-winning pop star Beyoncé. Performing as part of the I AM … Sasha Fierce and Beyoncé Experience World Tour on stages across the globe, Fuller also became a featured soloist on the Beyoncé Experience DVD (Me, Myself and I), I AM Yours I DVD (Wynn Theatre) and also appeared on number of major television shows, including Today Show, Good Morning America, The Oprah Winfrey Show, BET Awards, American Music Awards, Grammy Awards and as a featured soloist with Beyoncé for President Obama at the White House.
Early Bird Registration
2023 CMEA Conference
OPEN August 1-October 14, 2022
The CMEA Board of Directors is pleased to announce that CMEA is planning for a full in-person conference in 2023. Our Annual Clinic/Conference will be held at the Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs on January 25-28, 2023.
