2023 ASPA Facilitator Elections

While I am unable to be present for day 2 ASPA brainstorming session to better introduce myself, I am very interested in serving as a co-facilitator of the Critical Examination of the Curriculum ASPA. As an emerging music teacher educator with hopefully decades of work in this field ahead of me, I feel a strong calling and passion for all topics related to curricular revisions that better fit our evolving field. As such, I would love to help oversee and check in on the multiple projects that will be happening concurrently. I am also currently looking at local curricular issues in my own program and resonate with many of the issues addressed in our first meeting of SMTE 2023. If not selected, I still plan, and am very excited, to be a highly active member of this group, participating in as much research as possible to aid in moving these discussions forward.

I have been involved in four published studies in recent years that were made possible by collaboration within this ASPA(Examining ensemble requirements for music education majors, Hill, et al.; Navigating curricular revision in music teacher education programs, Wilson et al.; A comparison of music faculty and music education faculty beliefs regarding music curricula for pre-service teachers, Wilson & McGinnis; and Comparing Faculty Perspectives of Music Teacher Preparation, Weidner, et al.) I am currently working on a project with one of my students that addresses a music teacher education curriculum issue, but it shall remain nameless as it is under review! When we were brainstorming at our first meeting, I was inspired by so many ideas and found myself wanting to be part of ALL of the working groups. Thank you for your consideration.

My research has centered around issues of gender, communities of practice, LGBTQIA+ experiences in music education, and culturally responsive and sustainable music education. I recently served as editor and contributor for the Routledge Companion to Jazz and Gender (2022). My current research focuses on Mariachi Music Education, rethinking curriculum in music education especially as it relates to the training of preservice music educators. I strongly believe in this work and the important changes necessary so that music education really is for and represents all.

I am both an Instrumental Music Educator and an Ethnomusicologist. My research focus has been in culturally responsive teaching practices in general, but more specifically within the instrumental music program. Questions I am currently pursuing are where are openings for older students, where can we incorporate student voice and choice in the programs, and how can we create classroom of cultural community where students feel validated at every level of music education.

My research has included a pilot study on Gendered Band Directors, which examined the perception of Non-Binary, Female and Male Band Directors, presented at Suncoast 2023 at USF. “We’re Not Getting Bullied Back Into The Closet,” which was a qualitative study of 3 K-12 LGBTQ+ music teachers in Florida, and accepted as a poster for the 2024 FMEA Conference. Currently, I’m working on a quantitative study in process that examines the experience of K-12 and Higher Ed LGBTQ+ Music Teachers in America. Previously, I have served as the Vice President of the Tampa Bay Pride Band, and personally, am a non-binary full time music teacher and PhD student with a masters in Educational Leadership, and also selected as a 2023-2024 Emerging Leader in Music Education as part of FMEA. These involvements and leadership experiences have prepared me for a role to facilitate something I am passionate about, and want to continue advocating for, especially in a climate like Florida.

Given the new direction of this ASPA emerging from the symposium, I am both inspired and humbled by the work happening by all of the members. My research is currently centered on the “people” aspect of our new areas of focus – I am investigating the collegiate experiences and perspectives of preservice music teachers of color – but my interest in acting as a facilitator for this ASPA comes from the skills I’ve developed from “Leading Equity and Inclusion in Organizations,” a certificate program through my institution. My goals, therefore, as a facilitator for this group are to help guide the implementation of the ideas and projects generated from members, and provide logistical support and organization to continue to drive the work we’re all doing forward so that we can see its effect in the greater music education community.

Lorenzo Sánchez-Gatt is a doctoral candidate at Michigan State University. Their work focuses on challenging unspoken facets of music education, specifically how these facets can (un)intentionally harm Black youth and people belonging to various diverse identities. Lorenzo utilizes various race-based theoretical frameworks in their research to conceptualize a music education that is both ontologically and epistemologically diverse and situated in the lives of students. Their recent scholarship operationalizes Afrofuturism as a site of critical praxis in music classrooms. 

I have been a member of the MTE ASPA since 2017 and have contributed to and participated in projects in some capacity throughout that time. Most recently, I served as the lead author for an ASPA research study consisting of 7 ASPA members that we presented findings for at NAfME last fall and will submit for publication later this semester. I will also being leading a book club to help MTEs collaborate on stress-reducing practices to prevent burnout. I am interested in continuing to find avenues for helping to make our ASPA productive and benefit the field of music teacher education.

Much of my research has focused on holistic choral music educator wellness, which has opened the doors to exploration of physical wellness concerns such as vocal and musculoskeletal health as well as breathing, mindfulness, and Transformational SEL practices. I have presented locally, regionally, and nationally on many of these topics. In practice, I utilize breathing, mindfulness, and stretching strategies with my students on a daily basis and work to model balance and boundaries for my students. I have been involved in the Music Teacher Health & Wellness ASPA since my first SMTE in 2019.

I have been a member of the Health and Wellness ASPA since its creation in the late 2010s. Mental health and wellness in music education is at the heart of what I do in my current role as a music teacher educator at the University of Louisville, and formally as an in-service music educator. I have been actively researching trauma-informed pedagogy since I was a masters student and completed my doctoral dissertation research in Social Emotional Learning in the Elementary General Music Classroom. My current research agenda focuses on equitable Social Emotional Learning and practical applications for pre-service and in-service music educators. I am well-organized, detail-oriented, and passionate about the work of this ASPA. I would love the opportunity to serve in a leadership role and further the work that has been done over the past several years.

I have been involved with the Music Teacher Identity Development ASPA since 2019, and in that time, I have enjoyed getting to work with colleagues so committed to better understanding the intricacies of music teacher identity and how it commingles with other aspects of one’s personal and professional self. In my recent research, I have explored the process of early preservice music teacher identity development in the first two years of an undergraduate program (along with co-authors Heather Babb Graham, Tami J. Draves, and Drew Brooks). I have also investigated how leadership identity, another facet of occupational identity, can be developed alongside a person’s music teacher identity. I was energized by the projects and research ideas that emerged during our recent work meetings at SMTE, and I would be honored to co-facilitate this fantastic group of colleagues and scholars in the coming years.

My research sits at the intersection between critical curriculum development and the ways in which various policies and policy enactment impacts teacher agency. Currently, I am working with several doctoral students at Boston University to explore the ways in which policy related to divisive concept laws impacts teachers’ conceptions of relational, temporal, and locational agency. I have been a member of the Policy ASPA for the last 4 years, and I look forward to the opportunity to work with the Policy ASPA members to serve educators in our field.

I’ve been a member of this ASPA since 2018.
My dissertation was on professional learning communities.
I’ve completed research projects on professional development with colleagues in this ASPA, most recently with former facilitator on Arts Administrators role in music teacher PD.

My research interests include music technology, online professional development, and the impact of artificial intelligence. I want to help students and teachers alike be prepared for technological changes in the 21st century.

I have been a member of the P3A ASPA since 2015 and believe that it serves an important role in continually examining the processes and barriers our students experience.

I have been involved with this ASPA for several years now and have participated in two research projects with members of the group, one of which is in press with JMTE. I have also developed, and am maintaining and overseeing, many school-university partnerships in my current position at LSU. I am passionate about ensuring mutually beneficial experiences for all involved in these partnerships and guiding other university faculty that might need assistance with developing their own partnerships.

I would like to be considered as a co-facilitator for the Supporting Beginning Music Teachers ASPA, as this has been an area of interest of mine for some time. For many years, I have conducted research on beginning music teacher attrition and the state of mentoring programs for beginning music teachers. Specifically, my master’s thesis work culminated in a study on the status of mentoring for first year music teachers in the state of Florida. As a music teacher educator in the state of Georgia, I would like to continue this line of research in that state and beyond. I am excited by the prospect of serving SMTE as an ASPA co-facilitator in this area.

Many of the projects that I am currently engaging in center around facets of music teacher recruitment and, by extension, teacher retention. Such works include a regional teacher demographic profile and preservice music teachers’ perceptions of teaching locale and employment needs. I am actively involved in recruiting and outreach on my campus, serving as the UND Music Department Recruitment Chair and a member of the UND Office of Teacher Recruitment and Retention (OTRR) and its outreach committee. I thoroughly enjoy collaborative work and feel confident in my ability to facilitate such collaboration among my peers. I hope to have the opportunity to serve this group as we pursue questions, applications, and policy implications relating to music teacher recruitment.

I am an international music educator from China. I worked closely with international students who want to pursue a music education degree in the United States. I have also helped many Chinese international students find a suitable program in the US and prepared them for school applications. My current research focuses on international music education students’ learning experiences in the US. In the future, I want to further study international music education students’ experiences with school applications and examine how music education programs in the US can make their admission policies more inclusive and accessible for international applicants. I am dedicated to serving as a facilitator for the ASPA Teacher Recruitment category and will continuously explore research topics related to teacher recruitment and retention.