Texas Music
About TMEA Board & Staff Executive Board
| Executive Board |
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Joe Weir, President
Weir has been a member of TMEA since 1985 and began his long line of service to our organization in 1994 as the Region 19 Vocal Division Vice-Chair. He has served TMEA in some capacity every year since including his recent term on the Executive Board as the Vocal Division Vice-President. In addition to teaching, Weir has maintained a church music position for most of his 28 years in the profession. He currently serves as Director of Music for Atascocita Presbyterian Church. Weir earned his bachelor of music education from the University of North Texas in 1984 and his master of music in choral conducting from the University of Houston in 1999. His professional affiliations include membership in the American Choral Directors Association, Texas Choral Directors Association, Texas Music Adjudicators Association, Texas Music Educators Association, and Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia. Weir is most proud of his eight former students who are now colleagues and fellow Texas music educators and his six former students who are working on music degrees at universities in the state of Texas. Contact Information:
Janwin Overstreet-Goode, President-Elect
In addition, her choirs have twice performed at TMEA, in 2001 (Sam Rayburn HS Chorale Women) and 2008 (Friendswood HS :Campus Singers); she has also been a panelist, clinician, and demonstration choir conductor for TMEA conventions. Overstreet-Goode has also served as Region Choir clinician and accompanist for various regions throughout the state, and is a frequent adjudicator for UIL contests. Other services and honors include: A two-year term as Secretary-Treasurer of TCDA (2007-2009); Co-editor of the newsletter for the Southwestern Division of ACDA; 2010 Tommy Tune Awards – Best Musical Director; Friendswood ISD’s Making a Difference Award (2009); Fidelity FutureStage Outstanding Music Educator in the category of Choral Music by Fidelity Funds and the Houston Symphony (2008); 2006 Kentucky All-State Women's Choir conductor.
Contact Information: John Gillian, Past-President
Gillian began teaching in 1987 working primarily as an elementary music teacher, except from 1993-1998, when he worked as an assistant band director. During the band years, Gillian's groups earned UIL Sweepstakes Awards, competed in the UIL State Marching Contest, and performed at the Midwest International Band and Orchestra Clinic. TMEA has always been an important part of Gillian's professional life. Having first joined TMEA as a college student in 1985, Gillian has served in numerous roles including Elementary Division Vice-President, Region 6 Elementary Chair, Elementary and Band Division convention office volunteer, and he is a member of the TMEA/TMAC Curriculum Assessment Committee. Gillian received a TMEA Graduate Study Scholarship in 2002. Gillian is a member of TMEA, TMAC, TCDA, OAKE, KET, and ATPE. Married to Leslie, also a teacher in Ector County ISD, the Gillians have an elementary-aged son, Jerry. Contact Information: Ronnie Rios, Vice-President and Band Division Chair
He became the Director of Bands at Harlingen High School in 1996. His previous teaching experience included the Kingsville ISD. While at Harlingen HS, all four concert bands have received consistent Sweepstakes, Best in Class, State and National awards and All-State Band and Jazz band students. HHS has made Seven consecutive appearances at the Texas State Marching Contest and received Grand Champion Marching recognitions including a regional championship at the Bands of America Contest. The Concert Band has advanced to the Texas 5A Honor Band Finals four times finishing as high as 9th. The Jazz Ensemble has performed at the Midwest Clinic in Chicago, IAJE in New York, as well as TMEA and TBA in San Antonio. The Harlingen HS band was named the 2011 Texas Bandmasters Association Exemplary High School Band Program of the Year. Mr. Rios has been named to the Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers numerous times and was named Teacher of the Year in the Harlingen CISD. He is also a past Texas Young Bandmaster of the year recipient. He is the Past President of IAJE-Texas, TJEA, past TMAA Vice-President and past TMEA Region 28 President. Mr. Rios is an active clinician and adjudicator in Texas, Arizona, Nevada, and Indiana and also an active adjudicator for UIL, DCI and BOA.
Contact Information: Craig Needham, Vice-President and Orchestra Division Chair
Needham serves as the assistant conductor for the New Conservatory of Dallas. His groups have consistently won top honors at UIL contest, the Myerson Orchestra Festival, Sandy Lake Orchestra Festival, Greater Southwest Music Festival, and at numerous other festivals. The Berkner HS Symphony Orchestra was named the TMEA HS String Honor Orchestra for 2006–2007. Needham is a member of TMEA, TODA, Mu Omicron, and the Texas Adjudicators Association. He is a TODA Past-President. When he is not teaching, Needham enjoys playing golf, running, and spending time with his wife, Susan, and his two daughters, Kayla and Sydney. Contact Information: Craig.Needham@richardson.k12.tx.us
Dinah Menger, Vice-President and Vocal Division Chair
Dinah Menger was thrilled to accept the position of Director of Choirs at Arlington HS in 1995 and has loved it ever since! She received her bachelor of music in choral education and vocal performance from the University of Arizona in 1984 under the tutelage of Dr. Maurice Skones and Elizabeth Mosher Kraus. She then served two years as an elementary and junior high music director before coming to Arlington High. Menger has served TMEA as an All-State Choir Section Leader and Coordinator, Ballroom Manager (2010, 2011), and Convention Coordinator (2012, 2013). She has served two terms as the Region 5 Vocal Chair. She has been the Chairman of the UIL Prescribed Music List Committee, TMAA Vocal Vice-President, TMAA President-Elect, and is currently the TMAA President. Menger has been a presenter, panelist, clinician, and demonstration choir conductor for TMEA conventions. She has served as Region Choir clinician for many of the regions throughout the state and is a frequent adjudicator for UIL contests. Menger’s choirs have performed at the 2005 and 2009 TMEA conventions and the 2009 and 2013 national ACDA conventions. The Arlington High Chamber Singers were invited to perform at Carnegie Hall in March of 2013 through the Kurt Weill Foundation High School Program. Menger is proud to be the 1998 AWARE Foundation Secondary Teacher of the Year. Contact Information:
Colleen Riddle, Vice-President and Elementary Division Chair
As a long time member of TMEA, Colleen has brought two invited choirs to perform at the convention. The Spring ISD Elementary Honor Choir, which Colleen founded in 1996, performed at TMEA in 1999. In 2009 the Aldine ISD Children’s Honor Choir, where Colleen was the coordinating director, was invited to perform at TMEA. Colleen was the TMEA Region 19 Elementary Chair from 2007-2013. She has served at the TMEA convention in the positions of performing group organizer, presider, resolutions committee member and volunteer in the elementary office. Professional affiliations include TMEA, TMAC, HAMA, TCDA and OAKE. Colleen has taught and sponsored students that were chosen for the TCDA Elementary State Honor Choir in 2008, 2010, and 2012. She was the Spring ISD District Teacher of the Year in 1992 and has supervised 14 student teachers in her general music classes. She received the Outstanding Supervising Teacher Award from the University of Houston in 1992. Colleen and her husband, Tom, live in Spring, Texas. They have three children, Kelley, Kacie, and Ryan, and two grandchildren, Trey and Sara. Contact Information: Keith Dye, Vice-President and College Division Chair
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| Last Updated on Thursday, 09 May 2013 08:51 |
John Gillian is Elementary Music Curriculum Specialist for Ector County ISD in Odessa and a half-day music teacher at Pease Elementary. He completed coursework in Educational Leadership at the University of Texas of the Permian Basin in Odessa earning a Texas Principal certificate; completed a Master of Music in Kodály Pedagogy from Texas State University and a Bachelor of Music from Sul Ross State University in Alpine.
Craig Needham has taught at Westwood JH in Richardson, Clark HS in Plano, Amarillo HS, and is currently as the Head Orchestra Director at Berkner HS. Needham has performed with nine professional symphony orchestras, most recently as a member of the Amarillo Symphony Orchestra. In the summer, he teaches at the Texas Tech Band and Orchestra camp.
