Dear NWSMTA members,

Our NWSMTA Community: Past, Present and Future

Welcome to all returning and new members of the Northwest Suburban Music Teachers Association (NWSMTA)! I look forward to serving you, and together serving our greater Northwest Suburban Chicago Community now and in the months to come.

In the past, due to the dedicated and gracious contributions of service to the organization by its members, NWSMTA has operated successfully in serving its members and the Chicago-area northwest suburban communities. Year after year, NWSMTA members have demonstrated their willingness to volunteer in numerous ways for the dual purposes of maintaining the working-professionalism of the organization and serving the communities where we live. Without the dedication of its members, the organization would not exist. NWSMTA continues to thrive, however not without a few challenges that are common to many organizations during the present time.

As the iconic song writer Bob Dylan once wrote in his multi-meaning song, “The times they are a-changing.” How true! The “times” are always changing in ways that include both advantages and disadvantages. While not every moment in history carries with it a pandemic, ours has. We are still working to adapt to the positive and not so positive effects that are a result of it.

Since the pandemic, virtual involvement in all aspects of social living and participation has become a reality. The pluses and minuses of virtual participation are many. Although the virtual world makes possible an individual’s ability to participate where otherwise it might be impossible, for example in meetings, the difference between participating primarily in a virtual way and participation that involves face-to-face group interactions and communications can be considerable. Lost opportunities to work together at event sites and to work out plans and ideas during face-to-face committee meetings, over time, can lead to apathy, complacency, and feelings of isolation. The pandemic gave rise to such conditions and perhaps, in its collection of leftovers, are varying levels of the influence of these conditions as well as at times, too much dependency on technology. Many organizations are struggling to rebuild a sense of community; that is, the desire and commitment of its members to engage in collaborative endeavors that build and support their organization’s community as well as the community, outside of the organization, that it serves. In pondering over the decrease in physical attendance by NWSMTA members at meetings during the past year, and the recent difficulty in securing members who are willing to take on responsibilities as chairs or board officers, it might be wise to regard these as a call to action to collectively use our creative and intellectual capacities towards adapting and forming new ways of doing things as needed in our present time.

For almost everyone, time is as precious a commodity as it ever was. Many individuals feel stretched to capacity with the number of work, family and professional responsibilities they juggle on a weekly basis. Yet, somehow, they find time to contribute to the organizations they hold dear. For years, members of NWSMTA have especially enjoyed and benefitted from the hard work of individuals who are willing to serve in leadership roles: board officers, chairs of events and committees, and as committee members. Under the mentorship and role modeling of these individuals, new members, and those who are in the early years of their careers have developed into leaders. This kind of participation and dedication to the organization, and willingness to “work together for the good of all” is a hallmark of successful organizations and has certainly been a hallmark of NWSMTA in the past to present times.

It goes without saying that there are many different situations, per educator, in our profession. Various conditions are common along the life-timeline of musicians who choose a career that combines a variety of professional responsibilities inclusive of private teaching. For example, there are different needs for individuals who are in the early years of establishing a private studio and the needs of those who are well established – perhaps even over-loaded with students. There are differences in condition between educators who have young children and those who are empty nesters; those who work in schools, churches, and universities besides their private teaching and those who are 100% private studio educators. When, how much, and in what ways NWSMTA members will be able to participate and contribute to the organization will differ. Yet, everyone can participate, everyone is welcome to participate, and each contribution to NWSMTA community is valued and appreciated.

What are some of the ways we can serve NWSMTA? Several ways have already been mentioned: serving on committees, helping out at events even if you have no students entered, attending concerts, recruiting new members, and marketing are a few of the ways we can serve. However, there are others.

During the two years society gradually emerged from the pandemic, a NWSMTA committee was hard at work researching, discussing and implementing the resulting suggestions made from their efforts. While many topics from the work of the, “Rethinking NWSMTA Meetings” Committee were addressed and/or have been implemented, there are items that can be a part of ongoing discussion, research and action. Additionally, more suggestions are in-coming from members as possible new ways to adapt to life in our profession as it is now, and to continue to influence change. I look forward to our work together in maintaining what is vital and valuable in our ways of doing and programing that serve our community within and without NWSMTA, and look forward to creating new, exciting ways to serve our students, community and ourselves.

Sincere thanks to Chyi-Ling Evans, immediate past president, the NWSMTA Board, Committee Chairs and members, and to Nancy Dempsey, and the Rethinking NWSMTA Meetings” Committee for their vision, dedication and subsequent report. From this work, and the work of many NWSMTA individuals, we move onward and upward. 

In Closing

To have the opportunity to nurture and support the education of another individual or group of individuals, be they children or adults, is a grave responsibility and privilege. Private music educators have that opportunity. Ours is indeed a noble cause and a noble profession. Our job requires knowledge and expertise in our area of teaching, endless patience, love of humankind, and dedicated commitment to the educational success of the students, institutions and communities that place their trust in us. Often, that kind of commitment requires sacrifices of time, the various comforts of life, and a sacrifice of goals and activities in what we would like to do for ourselves and our own families.

As we approach another year of teaching and events, and the joys and challenges of working so closely with our fellow humankind, let us work together to keep our NWSMTA community strong. With the strength that comes from within our community, we will continue to serve our communities in all the vital ways we have in the past, and continue to grow, develop and adapt to the needs of our public during our present moment and immediate future in history.

Wishing you all much joy and success in your teaching, your family life, and in all of your professional and life endeavors,

Lois

Lois Veenhoven Guderian, PhD (New President, NWSMTA)