Being a part of the Michigan School Vocal Music Association is more than making music - it’s about growth, connection, and inspiration.  We are all part of a passionate community that truly values the power of music, the value of strengthening confidence, discipline, and appreciation of all genres and cultures.  We strive to foster a supportive environment, surrounded by people who are cheering each other on and striving for excellence together.  The friendships, the encouragement, and the shared love of music make MSVMA feel like a sanctuary to so many.

Reflecting on where we are, where we’re headed, and where we’ve come from, I’ve come up with a brief “State of the Org” with help from the Board of Directors and State Office.  I will speak with candor and transparency about where we stand and how, together, we will build an even more resilient future.

-----------------

We have expanded our view of “traditional” choral repertoire and adjusted our policies to look forward to the future of the choral arts.  With that, we celebrate the blossoming of Specialized Events offerings; from vocal jazz to musical theatre, we are serving students in ways that embrace vocal music in its entirety.  MSVMA is enriching the lives of students and teachers by being willing and able to embrace more genres and respond to the wonderful ideas of our membership.

The creation and growth of our All-State programming.  There was uncertainty of how to celebrate the “best of our best” when MYAF ceased to exist in 2020, but we can be very proud of MSVMA for stepping up and finding a way to reimagine this important celebration!  We’ve almost, already, outgrown our performance space at MSU…which is a testament to the successes of programs around the state. 

We’ve expanded to offer more professional and social opportunities for all of our members.  Wonderful opportunities like free workshops with Lyyra, the National Anthem at Comerica Park, fun social gatherings at MMC (Beer Choir!) and so many more have really helped build a sense of community.

We’ve held important discussions on equity across districts, as well as accessibility and inclusion for every member and student we serve.  From rural to urban and everywhere in between, we have a responsibility to serve with equity and we are getting closer to achieving that goal.

We’ve challenged the “this is how it has always been done” way of thinking and have adopted a “this is what’s best for students and members” outlook - a growth mindset.  It is a very exciting time!  Our Strategic Plan is designed to advance MSVMA in focused areas of Culture (membership, leadership, volunteers), Communication (reputation, promotion, visibility), Education (curriculum, programming, professional development), Inclusion (diversity, equity, accessibility), and Sustainability (funding, fundraising, advocacy).  I am so looking forward to helping this become reality.

We’re moving to a new model of “The Festival Experience” this year (I’m sure your DMs have already filled you in on the changes to registration)!

We’re making the selection of listening panels for so many great pieces of programming much more transparent and much more inclusive, laboring to include membership from every district!

I think it’s safe to say that we’re finally able to move away from “recovering from COVID;” attendance/participation and quality of performances at our festivals have increased tremendously.  The art of vocal music is thriving in our state and we have our membership to thank for it!

With that, I think it’s incredibly important to recognize that Erik Jacobson, our outgoing Executive Director, played a vital role in helping the organization through the pandemic and into the post-pandemic world.  Erik, along with the Board of Directors and State Office staff, were forced to make very difficult decisions aimed at continuing our mission of best serving our membership and students.  We maintained fiscal responsibility through difficult economic times.  We strived to be communicative and lift each other up.  So many arts organizations didn’t make it through, but we found a way.   It is because of Erik’s leadership that we were able to realize so many successes; Erik was often the person who generated ideas and provided encouragement to grow the ideas into action.  To list a few, specifically:

• Provided leadership to successfully navigate the challenges of Covid and the required shutdown of in-person MSVMA programming.

• Provided leadership and helped support and deliver content for a successful online Summer Conferences in 2020 and 2021.

• Led the efforts to transition MSVMA's festivals and honors choir programming to virtual formats.

• Created the Education Scholarship.

• Created the mini-grant program.

• Fostered an environment of student-centric programming with availability to everyone

• Established MSVMA's participation in the Detroit Tigers "Nonprofit of the Night" program.

• Improved the process for collecting information regarding the availability of adjudicators.

• Reviewed and improved the contracting process for independent contractors.

• Developed references documenting programmatic activities for MSVMA's major program areas including Honors Choirs, State Festivals.

• Was a founding member of the Cultural Advocacy Network of Michigan and served on their Board of Directors.

• Provided leadership to accessing grant funding through the Michigan Arts and Culture Council. 

• Led the transition from a weekly membership newsletter (Weekly Notes) to a monthly publication, Tempo!

• Created a budgeting process for the District Managers to assist them in providing effective management of District financial resources.

• Created and let the leadership/volunteer retreats in connection with the Summer Conference. 

• Provided a work environment for staff that offered challenging and motivating opportunities for growth as well as recognizing achievements and success.

Please join me in thanking Erik for his incredible leadership and contributions to MSVMA.   He has been instrumental in giving us a blueprint for how to move our organization forward and we are eternally indebted.

-----------------

To all of our members: your support and involvement keeps MSVMA alive and flourishing!  The collective passion, ingenuity, and resilience that our membership exhibits deserves to be celebrated!

To all of our volunteers, at so many levels: your contributions to our organization are immeasurable.

To all of our supervisors and coordinators: I am so grateful for your continued collaboration and efforts.

To our District Managers: your service to this organization is absolutely invaluable and I hope you know how much you are appreciated.

To our Board of Directors: thank you for your tireless contributions.  I know you will continue to focus on our members and their needs.

Also, please join me in thanking our State Office, led by the ever-faithful and ever-knowledgeable Debra Jacks.  I’m not sure I’ve used the term “magical unicorn” to describe one person as often as I have Debra!  And our new Membership and Office Coordinator, Kathy Balch, is proving to be a great addition to our team!

I’ve been a member of MSVMA for a long time, serving in many roles - Listening Panels, Adjudicator and Clinician, District Manager, State Event Scheduling Supervisor, State Choral Festival Supervisor, Board of Directors Member-At-Large; I am so very excited to serve this amazing organization in this new capacity as Executive Director, using all I’ve learned in these roles to inform my work and recommendations.

I’m proud to be a part of an organization that uplifts student musicians and celebrates the power of  music in schools across Michigan.  

We have such an exciting future and I am humbled to be able to be a part of it.

B