Dear TODA Colleagues,

On behalf of the TODA Executive Board, I am honored to formally invite you to attend the 64th Annual TODA Summer Convention. We are excited to welcome music educators from across the state for a dynamic and enriching professional development experience. This year’s convention boasts a thoughtfully curated schedule featuring over 30 clinics that address a wide array of topics tailored to meet the needs of our diverse programs. Attendees will benefit from sessions on string pedagogy, creative assessment strategies, program organization, mariachi education, conducting tips and tricks, Title 1 program success, and culturally responsive teaching amongst many other offerings!

We are also pleased to offer an exciting lineup of reading sessions, including a session dedicated to symphony orchestra music, in addition to our popular traditional sessions.

We are especially proud to welcome our distinguished headliners:

Heather Lofdahl
Assistant Professor of Music Education, The Ohio State University

Bruce Walker
Associate Professor of Music, Columbia Basin College
Director, Walla Walla Symphony Youth Orchestra

Please take a moment to explore this issue of the TODA newsletter to learn more about the exciting offerings we have planned for you. Registration is open on the TODA website!

We can’t wait to see you this summer as we come together to learn, connect, and recharge before the new school year begins!

Sundas Mohi-Truong
President, TODA Board of Directors

Lamar Smith
McKinney North High School
TMAA Orchestra Vice President

At this point in the school year, nearly all of us in the classroom have completed our annual UIL Concert and Sightreading Evaluations with our students. For those of us who grew up in Texas, going to UIL is just part of life as a secondary music teacher. Most states have something similar to UIL, but there seems to be a special mystique and gravitas attached to “the Texas way.”

As I prepare to enter my new role leading TMAA adjudication workshops, I’m pondering what matters most to us and our students when we participate in UIL every year. Here are a few things to consider:

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• It’s an evaluation. Changing language is hard. Most reading this likely still refer to the event as “contest,” and some also speak of going to “compete.” UIL made an important decision when it decided to use the word “evaluation” instead. Only marching band and mariachi have a true contest. For anyone who is feeling overly stressed about the process, it can be helpful to remember that no comparison or ranking is involved—just assessment.
  
  
• Be honest with your students about UIL. Judges come from our own ranks for a good reason: we are all in the same boat and want everyone to succeed. Avoid making the judges seem intimidating or scary. Share the exact rules and regulations with your students without embellishment or falsehoods (no, you can’t get disqualified for talking in the sightreading room!). The process should feel like another performance, not a standardized test.
  
  
• Treat your stage performance as a real concert. Sometimes the audience is tiny, but it always has at least three supporters in it. Acknowledge applause and stick to your usual procedures as much as possible. The rumor that the conductor must wait between pieces for the judges to finish writing is just that—a rumor! If you treat it like a normal performance, your students will feel empowered to make the most meaningful music possible.

Anyone who is interested in gaining more insight into the judging process is invited to attend a TMAA workshop to learn more. You don’t have to be on the path to membership to attend.

Here’s to a restful summer that includes an annual recharge at the TODA Convention this July.