President's Welcome

Jeff Carnall jcarnall@phm.k12.in.us

Welcome to the 2024-2025 school year!  I hope that you were able to relax, rejuvenate and spend time with friends and family over the summer. The beginning of the school year can be filled with a multitude of emotions: excitement for the possibilities, desire for success, fear of failure and anxiety over the unknown. These feelings are a sign of the importance of your job. Bringing students from adolescence to positive, contributing young adults is a wonderful responsibility, and music aids students’ transformation. Music gives the voiceless a voice, the insecure confidence and every student a sense of belonging. As you set goals for the new year, please add membership in Indiana Bandmasters Association (IBA) to your list.

Giving your students performance opportunities is essential to student success. The IBA has a long-standing tradition of creating amazing experiences for Indiana music students. Students can participate in All-Region Honor Band (Grades 7-9), Junior All-State Band (Grades 7-9), All District Honor Band (Grades 9-12) and All State Band (Grades 9-12). Although the beginning of the year can be overwhelming, make it a priority to go to the IBA website to become a member of IBA so your students can participate in these unforgettable opportunities.

These student experiences could never happen without IBA's professional community, which we encourage you to join. Opportunities include serving on the selection committee, running sectionals, and attending the concerts for All Region or All District Honor Bands. Teacher volunteers make these events more successful and more memorable for students. You can earn professional development credits for leading sectionals, chaperoning, or even just attending Junior All State and/or All State Band weekends. This year, the Junior All State Band will be under the direction of Dr. Shelley Jagow, Professor of Music at Wright State University School of Music. The All State Band will be under the direction of Dr. Caroline Beatty for Texas State University and the All State Honor Band will be under the direction of Dr. Sara McKoin from Texas Tech University. Observing these iconic directors rehearse the all state ensembles is a great way to add new tools to your tool box.

Your voice is important, therefore attending our two meetings per year is appreciated. One takes place in Fort Wayne during the yearly IMEA conference while the other is in West Lafayette on All State Band weekend. New ideas are the lifeblood of successful organizations, and they start with you.

If you are an experienced teacher, please reach out to new directors in your area and help them with IBA membership. Whether a first-year teacher or a veteran teacher new to the state, learning how the Indiana organizations work and what each offers can be overwhelming. Experienced guidance can go a long way to help our organization grow. Also, the Indiana Band Director Mentoring Project is a great way to support new teachers. If you know a new teacher in your area, encourage them to contact Glenn Northern for more information.

Thank you to our outgoing board members Andrew Brinkman and Bryan Golden for their years of service to IBA. Welcome to our new board members Tim Carnall and Chris Paulson.