TN Musician Vol. 72, No. 3

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Jeffrey Chipman 2020 President-Elect Candidate JEFFREY CHIPMAN serves as Choral Director and Performing Arts Lead Teacher for the PAVE Arts Academy at Arlington High School, in Arlington, Tennessee. During his 24-year teaching career he has directed choirs to numerous awards and accolades. The Arlington Chorale was selected to perform at the TMEA Conference in 2018. Jeffrey has taught all levels of students from elementary to undergraduate. His work has also included professional singing engagements and directing community and church ensembles. Mr. Chipman earned his Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in Vocal Music Education at The University of Mississippi. He has worked as an honor choir clinician in the Southeastern United States and routinely provides professional development, most notably in the areas of teaching diverse populations, student assessment and teacher evaluation. Mr. Chipman has served as the chairperson for Choral Music with the Tennessee Music Education Association. Mr. Chipman is honored and excited to travel to Normandy, France with the Arlington High Chorale this June after receiving an invitation to participate in the official closing events of the commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the D-Day Invasion. Among his most cherished recognitions is the “My Favorite Educator Award” from the Memphis-Shelby County Education Association. This award is given based on an essay written about a teacher by a former student whose life was positively impacted through the teacher’s work. 22 | TENNESSEE MUSICIAN | 2020 | Volume 72, No. 3
Vision Throughout my 24-year teaching career, I have had the opportunity to work with many wonderful professionals in all aspects of education. I have spent my career in public schools teaching elementary, middle, and high school levels. I have seen massive change in our field over that time. I have worked alongside you to weather these changes and continue to improve the lives our Tennessee’s children through music. Change is happening at a faster pace each year and we continue to adapt and improve our work. With all of the positive and affirming things I have experienced, there is still much work to do. My vision for TMEA focuses on developing the immense talent of the thousands of professionals serving in music classrooms across our state. TMEA can have a positive impact on the success of all music teachers by investing our resources into quality, focused professional training opportunities. We can improve our connectivity to assist in mentoring new or struggling teachers, or those changing grade levels. We can work cooperatively and expand our network of partner organizations and professionals. And we must continue the forward momentum we have seen with supporting and honoring the diversity of our profession and the students we lead. We must continue to foster and grow strong relationships with partner organizations who share our vision and who will help us achieve our goals. In doing so, we bring added credibility to our mission and connect with an even broader audience across the state. There has been tremendous work over the past several years cultivating these partnerships, specifically with groups such as the CMA Foundation. It is imperative that we sustain these connections and work to expand them. Tennessee’s cultural heritage is rich and undeniably centers on music. From the Blues and Beale Street, to Country and Broadway, to Bluegrass and the Smoky Mountains, music pours from all corners of our state and provides us with a depth and richness of possibilities and connections that can infuse our organization with immense talent and know-how. Working closely with our regional associations who are closest to the organizations in their regions, we can grow stronger connections to other cultural outlets that will result in more learning opportunities for our students and teachers. When teaching middle school, I found that there was a significant need for professional development tailored to the level I taught every day. I have long been an advocate of finding ways to get our middle school teachers to the conference so that they can benefit from all the sessions TMEA has to offer. Without middle school focused honor ensembles, and the approved field trips they would provide, too many of our colleagues are denied the ability to attend our professional development conference. We have started to work toward a solution for this in the choral area, and I remain hopeful that our membership can work toward bridging the middle school gap. There is awesome work going on in so many middle school classrooms, yet many are left out of the opportunities provided by our professional organization due to factors we can help change. I am certain our organization can and will strengthen our pre-K-collegiate partnerships and provide learning and support across that pipeline in benefit of all students. Another area of focus I would continue to strengthen is our work with diverse student populations. I have been amazed and inspired with the silent revolution that has taken place with this generation of students. Their understanding of race, ethnicity, religion, gender, expression, and sexuality are informed, nuanced, and have outpaced their elders by decades. The access to information they have enjoyed has resulted in dramatic shifts in cultural thinking and we must not only be responsive, but when possible, proactive in aligning our organization with those we serve. There are many ways we can achieve this goal to celebrate the diversity we see in our classrooms and in the ensembles we are blessed to prepare at All-State. One significant way is to further develop and strengthen our partnerships with our collegiate chapters of NAfME. The members of these groups are closer to the pulse of these cultural shifts and are invaluable to the development of policies and procedures that respect our diverse students and membership. This would also bring those who will eventually lead our state’s music classrooms into the conversation and offer them ownership in the future of our organization. Additionally, we must provide training and support for our members so that they have the resources they need to advocate for their students and provide all children in our state with quality experiences that celebrate them. This work has begun and it is critical that the forward momentum be maintained. On a personal note, I want to thank TMEA for the opportunities afforded to my students and me. From serving as State Choral Chair, performing for TMEA Conference, leading training and interest sessions, to All-State opportunities for my kids, I am fortunate and proud to be a part of this organization. The relationships built, lessons learned, and futures set are among the greatest achievements of my career and because we live what we do, also my life. Thank you for what you do each and every day. Tennessee Music Education Assocation | www.tnmea.org | 23
Page 1 and 2: The Official Publication of the Ten
Page 3 and 4: TENNESSEE MUSICIAN EDITORIAL STAFF
Page 5 and 6: T UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE PRIDE OF
Page 7 and 8: Social icon Circle Only use blue an
Page 9 and 10: Searching through other historical
Page 11 and 12: BE EXCELLENT. BE CHRIST-CENTERED. B
Page 14 and 15: TMEA BY THE NUMBERS // VERBATIM by
Page 16 and 17: DEPARTMENT OF MUSIC GIVE VOICE TO Y
Page 18 and 19: We are TAMECU by Eric Branscome, Ph
Page 20 and 21: PROGRAM DIVERSITY The next observat
Page 22 and 23: Dr. Ryan Fisher 2020 President-Elec
Page 26 and 27: Lead Creativity Department of Music
Page 28 and 29: Cultivating Relationships Through T
Page 30 and 31: Belmont’s School of Music is a pl
Page 32 and 33: you work hard at sounding good we w
Page 34 and 35: TMEA BACK THEN • In this conferen
Page 36: Tennessee Music Education Associati

TN Musician Vol. 72, No. 3

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?