NAMM Advocacy Summit

Habib is the Director of Community Building and Engagement at Independent Sector. In this role, he builds out strategies for deep engagement with targeted groups of changemakers through numerous vehicles. This includes managing select programmatic areas for Upswell Summit, Independent Sector’s annual gathering of social good changemakers, and managing the Upswell's fellowship program. Habib has been at Independent Sector for 9 years and has previously served as a Manager focused of community engagement, event logistics, and as the Executive Assistant to the President and CEO of Independent Sector. Prior to Independent Sector, Habib was a program associate for Every Child Matters and Nonprofit HR. Habib is fluent in French and loves to travel. 

Chris Cushing has 30 years of experience in government, politics, and corporate public policy issues, and is an experienced political advisor and strategist, having served in leadership positions on winning presidential campaigns on three continents.

Mark Despotakis is the Director of Public and Government Affairs for the Pennsylvania Music Educators Association. He handles the association's policy development and government relations efforts around music education issues, educates members about policy and advocacy, and works with a variety of stakeholders to advance the association's mission of advancing comprehensive and innovative music education for all students through quality teaching, rigorous learning, and meaningful music engagement.

Previously Mark was the Director of Market Development at Progressive Music in Pittsburgh, PA where he handled marketing and finance for the company that focused on serving school music programs. 

Prior to working at Progressive Music, Mark spent time at CNN Newsource in Washington D.C. Currently, Mark serves on the SupportMusic Coalition Steering Committee, is a member of the Boards of Directors of the Education Policy and Leadership Center (EPLC), Western Pennsylvania’s Tournament of Bands, is a member of the National Association for Music Education’s Advocacy Leadership Force, and serves on the Make Music Pittsburgh and UniSound Pittsburgh Steering Committees. He is a past president of NAMM Young Professionals.

Mark graduated from Clarion University of Pennsylvania with a degree in Communication.

David A. Dik is the National Executive Director of Young Audiences Arts for Learning, the nation’s largest arts in education network. Prior to this position, he was the Managing Director of the Metropolitan Opera Guild, having also served as the Guild’s Director of Education and beginning his career at the Guild as a teaching artist. David serves on the Leadership Team of the National Coalition for Core Arts Standards, Board of Directors for the Music-in-Education National Consortium, the Advisory Committee of the Arts Education Partnership (AEP), and a member of the Harvard Graduate School of Education Arts in Education Advisory Council. David’s career began as a certified school music educator.

As managing partner at Emerson Collective, former U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan returns to Chicago on a mission to improve the lives of young adults in his hometown. Through partnerships with local business leaders, community organizers, and nonprofit groups, Duncan aims to create job and life opportunities for disconnected youth between the ages of 17 and 24.

Prior to joining the Obama Administration, Duncan served as chief executive officer of Chicago Public Schools. From 2001 to 2008, Duncan won praise for uniting the city’s stakeholders behind an education agenda that included opening 100 new schools; expanding after-school, summer learning, early childhood, and college access programs; dramatically boosting the caliber of teachers; and building public-private partnerships around a variety of education initiatives. Duncan graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University in 1987, majoring in sociology. At Harvard he served as co-captain of the basketball team and was named a first team Academic All-American.

Emerson Collective is an organization dedicated to removing barriers to opportunity so people can live to their full potential. Established by Laurene Powell Jobs, Emerson Collective centers its work on education, immigration reform, the environment and other social justice initiatives.

Arne serves on the boards of: Ariel Capital Management, Aspen Institute, Communities in Schools, Lucas Museum, My Brother’s Keeper Alliance, National Association of Basketball Coaches, Pluralsight, Revolution Foods, Thrive-Chicago and Catapult Learning, LLC. He also serves as Co-chair of the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics.

Chris focuses on K-12 school finance as a senior policy analyst at Education Commission of the States. Chris has 10 years of experience working on fiscal policy at the state and local level with a focus on school funding, and his previous research in Virginia informed state policymakers in their design of equity-based school funding. Chris believes in the power of diverse, well-resourced learning environments and the key role school finance plays in setting the stage for student success.

Distinguished as a prominent thought leader in public music education, Chiho Okuizumi Feindler is the Senior Director of Programs and Policy for the award-winning Save The Music Foundation (STM).  Chiho is responsible for designing and overseeing the implementation of STM’s national programs aimed at ensuring equity and access to comprehensive music education in America’s public schools.  Chiho has presented at numerous state and national educator conferences, including at the National Council on the Arts/National Endowment for the Arts Meeting, SXSW Edu, KIPP Summits, Arts Education Partnership National Summit, and National Association of Elementary School Principals Conference. 

She was a recipient of 2017 Casio Leadership in Music Education Award; and currently serves on the Senior Advisory Board of The Center for Arts Education and Social Emotional Learning (ArtsEdSEL), National Association for Music Education’s Policy Roundtable, Grantmakers for Education’s Arts Impact Group, and Arts Education Partnership’s Equity Working Group.  Originally from Japan, Chiho holds Bachelor of Science Degree in Music Therapy with emphasis in Special Education and Psychology from Augsburg University (MN); and Master of Arts degree in Euphonium Performance from Montclair State University (NJ).  Prior to her work with Save The Music Foundation, Chiho was a Director of Education and Community Engagement at New Jersey Symphony Orchestra where she was responsible for the Symphony’s education and outreach programs reaching over 900,000 residents in New Jersey.

Dr. Mark Fermanich is a Senior Associate with APA Consulting in Denver, Colorado. Mark’s primary focus is on state and local education issues, including education finance, education reform, educator quality, and educator compensation. He has worked on school finance equity and adequacy studies in a numerous states and has worked with both large and small school districts on the costs of school improvement strategies, the costs of effective professional development, school-based financing systems, school and teacher effectiveness, and redesigning educator compensation systems. Mark has published research articles in the Journal of Education Finance, The Elementary School Journal, Peabody Journal of Education, and other education policy journals.

Prior to joining APA, Mark worked in education policy research for the Center for Education Policy Analysis at the University of Colorado Denver and the Consortium for Policy Research in Education (CPRE) at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, served as a professor of education policy at Oregon State University in Corvallis, Oregon and Sonoma State University in Rohnert Park, California, and as an education policy analyst for the Minnesota State Senate. He also served as an administrator working on policy and budget initiatives for the Minneapolis and St. Paul school districts. Mark received his Ph.D. in Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He holds a Masters in Public Policy and Administration from the La Follette School of Public Affairs at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a Bachelor’s in Political Science from the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh.

Tayloe Harding, composer, is Dean of the School of Music and Ira McKissick Koger Professor of the Arts at the University of South Carolina where he recently served as Executive Vice-President of Academic Affairs and Provost, Interim for 2019-20.  A passionate advocate for advancing the impact of higher education music on American communities, he is devoted to organizations whose missions are consistent with this ethos. 

As President of the College Music Society (2005-2006) and as President of their foundation, The CMS Fund (2009-2015), he helped create the Engagement & Outreach Initiative where efforts of the music professoriate are articulated with national partners to meet common musical and civic goals.  At Carolina he brought a bold idea to fruition: to more fully prepare tomorrow’s professional musicians by combining conventional professional music study with a systematic curricular and co-curricular exploration of music advocacy, music entrepreneurship, and community engagement by forming SPARK: Carolina’s Leadership Laboratory.  

The current national Secretary of NASM, his 2014 TedX talk, “Music & Hope: Towards a More Musical America,” constitutes a public expression of his interests and work.  A frequent presenter on futures issues for university music units and their leadership, he remains an active composer earning commissions, performances, and recordings around the world.

Dr. Susanne Harnett is a Managing Senior Associate at Metis Associates. She has over 20 years of experience with program evaluation, research design, sampling methodology, field research, qualitative and quantitative methodology, data maintenance, grant writing, and technical writing. She has served as the principal researcher on several large-scale evaluations of educational programs and is currently overseeing a team of four researchers. She has deep experience in evaluating arts education programs, including projects for the NYC DOE, Lincoln Center Education, Carnegie Hall’s Weill Music Institute, and Studio in a School, among others. She has substantial experience in the design and implementation of research-based evaluations, including randomized and quasi-experimental designs.

Dr. Harnett is the author of several professional articles and has served on multiple grant review committees, including those for the Institute of Education Sciences, the National Endowment for the Arts, and Frontiers in Education. She is currently an adjunct professor at Montclair State University teaching a graduate course in Research Methods in the Social Sciences and has previously taught college courses in Child Development, Educational Psychology, Learning and Behavior, and Human Development. She holds a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from the University of Virginia.

For over a decade Scott Lang has been educating and entertaining audiences of all ages. As a nationally known leadership trainer, Scott conducts over 120 workshops annually and works with some of our country’s finest educational groups and performing ensembles. As a highly decorated veteran teacher of sixteen years Scott's bands have had many notable performances including the Pasadena Tournament of Rose Parade, the Music Educators National Biennial Conference and for the President of the United States, William Jefferson Clinton.

Scott is a well-regarded author with over ten publications to his credit including; Seriously?!, Leader of the Band, Leadership Success, Leadership Travel Guide, Leadership Survival Guide, Sound Leadership, and is the creator of the highly successful Be Part of the Music series. In addition to his role running Scott Lang Leadership, Scott is the founder of Be Part of the Music, an internationally recognized music advocacy organization. He is also currently serving as the Director of Advocacy for Music & Arts, the nation’s largest music retailer.

Mr. Lang currently resides in Chandler, Arizona with his beautiful wife Leah and their sons, Brayden, Evan and their highly irrational but loveable Golden Retrievers Rexie and Riley. He has breathed in and out approximately 264 million times and plans to keep on doing so until he doubles that number.

Najean Lee is the director of government affairs and education advocacy at the League of American Orchestras, where she has worked since 2007. Najean represents the League’s member orchestras before Congress and federal agencies on a range of issues including federal support for the arts, nonprofit tax policy, arts education policy and funding, cultural exchange, and visa policy for international guest artists. Najean participates in several policy coalitions and working groups with national arts, education, and nonprofit organizations. In addition to her legislative portfolio, she serves as the staff liaison to executive directors of the League’s smallest budget orchestras and to education and community engagement personnel. She also co-leads the League's internal Staff Equity Team.

Najean earned a B.A. in English literature from the University of Michigan and M.A. in English from Indiana University. A former student of the violin and piano, Najean played in the Cincinnati Symphony Youth Orchestra and Starling Chamber Orchestra.

Christian Frederick Martin, IV, was born on July 8, 1955.  He grew up in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, and his familiarity with the family business was limited to occasional visits to his grandfather, Christian Frederick Martin, III, and to summer jobs working at the factory.  As a child, Chris took guitar lessons but “still doesn’t play in public.”  For a while, he considered a career in marine biology but when he attended UCLA, he majored in economics.  While in Los Angeles, Chris apprenticed at Westwood Music, building a classical guitar and familiarizing himself with the retail end of the business.  After just a year, he headed back East to work in the guitar factory where he learned more about the design and construction of the Martin guitar and became familiar with many of the different operations.  He attended the local community college at night and, after 18 months; he transferred to Boston University’s School of Management, earning a bachelor degree in 1978.

Chris then moved to Nazareth where he became more involved in the company, first as assistant to the president, then as vice president of marketing.  When

C. F. Martin, III passed away in 1986 at the age of 91, the heir apparent was still learning about the Martin Guitar Company and he was inexperienced in running a business.  Chris was also only 30 years old.  Nonetheless, after a short transition, the somewhat hesitant members of the board named him chairman.

The Martin Guitar Company was not doing well when Chris took over.  The preceding decade had been one of decline for the organization.  Following an expensive factory expansion, there had been a severe economic recession and a strike by Martin employees.  The effect of the economic downturn was compounded by a change in popular taste from folk music to electric guitars, disco and digital keyboards.  In an effort to keep up with the times, the company had diversified aggressively, acquiring a drum company, a banjo manufacturing firm, a guitar string company and a guitar factory in Sweden.  Of all its acquisitions, only the string company was to survive.

Shortly before Chris took over, The Martin Guitar Company cut its work force.  In 1982 production had dropped to just 3,153 instruments, the lowest since World War II.  Following C. F. Martin, III’s death, serious consideration was given to either selling or liquidating the company.

The new, young Chairman was determined to put the company back on track.  After taking over a family business that had been in existence for over 150 years, Chris did not want to be the one to write the final chapter.  He took a short course in strategic planning, was personally transformed by Outward Bound, learned public speaking and eventually re-focused the company and its employees on its primary strengths: steel stringed acoustic guitars and strings.

Chris believes in a team approach and he demands that management and employees be involved in The Martin Guitar Company’s annual strategic plan.  This document is not simply prepared and filed, but is carefully created and ultimately implemented and embraced at every level.  Chris regularly joins both management and hourly workers on Outward Bound programs, believing that the experience forces people to look both to themselves and members of their team for cooperative survival.

Chris’ decade-long efforts to turn the company around has succeeded beyond anyone’s expectations. Martin has re-established its reputation worldwide as the builder of the highest quality guitars.  Eric Clapton and Paul Simon are among the countless artists who have chosen to be involved in designing new limited edition guitars. The process is difficult and time consuming, but it’s also rewarding.  Interestingly, some of the biggest competition for Martin comes from used Martin guitars which are sought after by both performers and collectors.

The Martin Guitar Company is thriving under Chris’ direction.  His team-oriented management style is friendly and personal, yet firm and direct.  Chris travels extensively in order to stay abreast of market trends and to hold instructional clinics at Martin dealerships around the world.

On May 19, 1990 Chris married Diane S. Repyneck, district justice from Lower Saucon Township and Hellertown, Pa.  Several days after Chris had appeared in her courtroom for a traffic violation, he called to ask Diane to consider having dinner with a lawbreaker.  She consented.

On September 13th, 2004 Claire Frances Martin (“C. F. Martin !”) was born. She is the 7th generation of the Martin family in America and of course, there are high hopes that one day she will wish to be involved in managing the company that bears her name.

With more than three decades of leadership positions in the Legislative and Executive branches of the Federal government, Connie represents clients on a variety of education, business and community development issues that come before Congress and the White House. From her vast experience on Capitol Hill and with the U.S. Department of Education, Connie possesses great skills in advocacy, strategy, policy, programming, regulation and funding at the Federal level. She is highly regarded throughout the nation’s capital and beyond for her sage advice, her collaborative nature and her tireless work in behalf of her clients.

Dr. Lance D. Nielsen is the Supervisor of Music for Lincoln Public Schools where he supervises all music programs K-12. Lance has served as National Association for Music Education (NAfME) North Central Division President and Chair of NAfME Professional Development Committee, President of the Nebraska Music Educators Association, and NAfME National Tri-M Chair. He serves on various boards including Lincoln’s Symphony Orchestra Board of Directors and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Hixson-Lied Performing Arts College Alumni Advisory Board.

Stephen Parker directs policy and advocacy for education and workforce issues, including: early childhood, K-12 and postsecondary education, workforce development and child nutrition. He is the liaison between governors and the federal government on education and workforce issues.

Parker led governors’ partnership with Congress to pass the Every Student Succeeds Act, which led to governors’ first endorsement of any federal legislation in 20 years. He also led NGA’s work with Congress to pass the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, updating federal job training policy for the first time in 16 years. Prior to working for the nations’ governors, Parker served as Senior Special Assistant to Governor Timothy M. Kaine and Senior Policy Advisor to the Adjutant General of the Virginia National Guard.

Parker serves on the U.S. Department of Labor’s Advisory Committee on Veterans’ Employment, Training and Employer Outreach, the Alexandria Commission on Children, Youth and Families and volunteers at Hopkins House preschool in Alexandria. Parker serves on the foundation board and is a graduate of Southside Virginia Community College, received a bachelor of arts from Longwood University, studied political leadership at the University of Virginia and public policy at the College of William and Mary.

Bill Pelto joined the CMS national staff as the organization’s Executive Director in August 2017, after a twenty-six-year career in higher education. A music theorist by specialty, he held a tenured faculty appointment in the Ithaca College School of Music during the 1990s and served as that school’s Associate Dean from 2000 to 2009. While at Ithaca, he collaborated with Richard Hoffman and John W. White to develop the Takadimi system of rhythm solfege.

During the 2004-2005 academic year, he served as an American Council on Education Fellow, including a one-semester residency at Brooklyn College—CUNY and visits to colleges and universities throughout the US. In 2009, he moved to Boone, North Carolina, serving as Dean of the Hayes School of Music at Appalachian State University through June 2017. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Yale University, a Master of Arts in Music Theory from San Francisco State University, and a Ph.D. in Music Theory from The University of Texas at Austin.

Bill joined The College Music Society in 1990, presented frequently at regional and national CMS meetings during the next decade, and facilitated mock interviews at six consecutive national CMS conferences. Prior to his graduate studies in music theory, Bill served as a research analyst in the State of Alaska Governor’s Office of Budget and Management. An avid hiker, downhill skier, and ukulele player, he is a native of Seattle and grew up in Juneau, Alaska. He is married to CMS member, soprano, and choral conductor Linda Larson.

Ainsley Fiedler Rentfrow currently serves as the Performing Arts Curriculum Specialist for the Fargo Public School District, North Dakota. She is also an adjunct Music Education professor at Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota. Prior to this position, Mrs. Rentfrow spent time as an elementary music teacher and an elementary assistant principal. Mrs. Rentfrow received her Bachelor of Music Education degree from Concordia College, Moorhead. Additionally, she has earned Kodaly certification, holds a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership, and obtained Elementary Principal Certification. 
 

Thomas A. Scavone has been the K-12 Fine and Performing Arts Supervisor for the East Hartford (CT) Public Schools since Spring, 2020. This past month, East Hartford was designated a NAMM Foundation Best Community for Music Education for the first time. Prior to this, he was the PreK-12 Music and Visual Arts Coordinator for the Westport  Public Schools. Under his leadership, the Westport music program has been recognized as a NAMM Foundation Best Community for Music Education for the past seven years and Staples High School was selected as a Grammy Signature School finalist. 
Tom has served on numerous state and national Arts committees, most recently as a member of the CT Arts Standards Roll-out Team. In 2012, he was recognized as the CT representative for 50 Music Directors in the U.S. Who Make a Difference and was selected as a Yale Distinguished Music Educator. He serves as a guest conductor and adjudicator in Pennsylvania, Ohio and throughout the Northeastern United States.
 
Tom’s school ensembles have been recognized nationally for excellence and have performed at the Tournament of Roses Parade, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade and the 53rd Presidential Inaugural Parade. In addition, his groups have been featured guest performers at the United States Military Academy’s West Point Jazz Festival, the All-New England Music Festival and with the United States Air Force Academy’s Falconaires. His jazz ensembles have been recognized as outstanding groups at various festivals including Berklee School of Music, UMASS-Amherst and  the University of New Hampshire. 
 

Dr. Mackie V. Spradley is the President of the National Association for Music Education and serves as the Director of Enrichment Education at the Texas Education Agency in Austin, TX. She is also an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Teacher Education and Administration, College of Education, at the University of North Texas (UNT), Denton, Texas. She received the B.M. in Voice from UNT and M.A. in Vocal Pedagogy from Texas Woman’s University, Denton. She received her Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction with an emphasis in Anthropology from UNT.

Spradley has published in academic journals and books, such as the National Forum of Multicultural Issues Journal, Texas Music Educators Conference Connections and Educational Leadership and Music (in press). She is a national speaker on music education, culturally responsive pedagogy, and social justice. As a presenter, Mackie has shared her expertise throughout the United States and aboard. She has presented at various state, national and international conferences including, Texas Music Educators Association, Colorado Music Educators Association, the Society for Music Teachers Education, National Association for Music Educators (formerly MENC), Texas Choral Directors Association, the National Association Multicultural Education Texas Conference and the Gospel Music Workshop of America, Inc.

She is the facilitator of the Teacher Retention ASAP of the Society for Music Teacher Education. Mackie is a published author with research interests in music teacher effectiveness, critical discourse, culturally responsive teaching, social justice in music education, and critical theory. Mackie continues to focus her work and efforts on issues related to equity in music education programs and improving music teacher effectiveness.

Lynn Tuttle is Director of Public Policy, Research and Professional Development for the National Association for Music Education. Her duties include supporting music educators and state leaders in the areas of standards, assessment, teacher evaluation and the interconnection of federal and state policy. She also manages the production of NAfME’s 6 publications for the field. She is primary author of NAfME’s ESSA resources.

Prior to joining NAfME in September, 2015, Lynn served as the Director of Arts Education at the Arizona Department of Education, co-led the revision of the nation’s National Core Arts Standards, released in 2014, and was one of the founding members and a Past President of SEADAE, the State Education Agency Directors of Arts Education. Lynn has published in the Arts Education Policy Review on how state teacher evaluation practices impact the arts disciplines (2015) and in the Music Educators Journal on ESSA implementation (2016).  She is also a contributing author to a Brookings Institution Policy Brief on measuring the impact of arts education. A sought-after speaker and presenter, Lynn will be presenting at music educator conferences in Kansas, Kentucky, and Ohio this school year.

Lynn holds a Bachelor of Music degree in flute performance from Peabody Conservatory of Music (valedictorian), Bachelor and Master of Arts degrees in the humanities and world history from the Johns Hopkins University (Phi Beta Kappa), and an MBA from the W. P Carey School of Business at Arizona State University. Lynn continues to teach, study, and perform as a flutist and singer, and is the mother of two young musicians, Peterson (violinist and euphonium player) and Landon (flutist).

Claus oversees efforts to improve statewide longitudinal data systems and provide state-by-state data on STEM education. He has held senior positions in education policy and research for more than 17 years and has spent much of that time helping diverse stakeholders find consensus on important education issues. Claus is dedicated to ensuring that state leaders have the information and guidance they need to make the best possible decisions affecting young people.

Dr. James Weaver is the Director of Performing Arts and Sports for the National Federation of High School State Associations. He has been a teacher and administrator at the district, state, and national level. As the Director of Performing Arts and Sports, Dr. Weaver oversees student participation, professional development, and awareness of performing arts activities throughout the nation’s 19,500+ high schools. Dr. Weaver has been a part of several national projects for performing arts educators including serving as the co-chair of the International Performing Arts Aerosol Study, creating copyright compliance resources, and developing national trainings for performing arts adjudicators.

Dr. Weaver specializes in educational administration and leadership focusing on professional development and teacher job satisfaction and retention. Dr. Weaver has degrees from Concordia College - Moorhead, Northern State University, and the University of South Dakota.

Grammy Award-winning composer and conductor, Eric Whitacre, is among today’s most popular musicians. His works are programmed worldwide and his ground-breaking Virtual Choirs have united singers from more than 145 countries over the last decade. A graduate of Juilliard School of Music, Eric completed his second term as Artist in Residence with the Los Angeles Master Chorale in 2020 having served five years as Composer in Residence at the University of Cambridge. In 2021, Eric was named a Yamaha Artist.

His long-form work The Sacred Veil, a profound meditation on love, life and loss, was premiered by the Los Angeles Master Chorale, and released on Signum Records in 2020. His recent collaboration with Spitfire Audio resulted in a trail-blazing vocal sample library, became an instant best-seller and is used by composers the world-over. In 2021, Eric launches the Virtual School with its first course “The Beautiful Mess: Lessons in Composition and Creativity”.

Williams grew up in Puerto Rico where he discovered his love for baseball and music at roughly the same time. He was eight years old when he fell in love with the sounds of a flamenco guitar his merchant-marine father brought home from Spain. Williams felt that same exhilaration when he first picked up a baseball bat, and the young music student and athlete quickly excelled in both pursuits. He attended the special performing arts school Escuela Libre de Musica and became one of the most noted young athletes on the island for both track and field and baseball. When the 17-year-old Williams signed a contract with the New York Yankees, he brought his love of music with him. During his 16-year career with the Yankees, he anchored this historic team as its center fielder, winning four World Series Championships. Williams is a five-time All-Star and has more post-season RBIs to his credit than any other player in major league history in addition to four Gold Glove awards, six American League pennants, the 1996 ALCS MVP award, and the 1998 American League batting title. Williams is also among the Yankees all-time leaders in every major batting category, with his performance statistics standing alongside such legends as Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, Lou Gehrig and Joe DiMaggio.

During his time with the Yankees, the classically trained musician was known to have a guitar in his locker or equipment bag and released two Latin jazz albums. In 2006, Williams retired from baseball and became more deeply involved in his musical pursuits. Ten years later, he graduated from the prestigious Manhattan School of Music with a bachelor’s degree in jazz guitar and composition.

Over the years, Williams has been a constant and reliable advocate with a belief that all children have a right to receive music education as part of their opportunity in school. Williams currently serves on The NAMM Foundation Board of Directors, he is an artist with the Kennedy Center’s Turnaround Arts program, and he is a frequent guest artist with musical notables around the globe.

Michael Yaffe is currently the Associate Dean of the Yale School of Music. Prior to Yale, Dean Yaffe was Executive Director of the Hartt School of the University of Hartford and Director of its nationally recognized Community Division (1986–2006). He began his career as Assistant Director of the National Association of Schools of Music (1976–1986). While working for NASM and living in Washington, D.C., he also served as the Director of the Arts Reporting Unit at the public radio station WAMU-FM.

At the Yale School of Music, Yaffe’s administrative responsibilities have focused on budget administration and planning, developing the School’s technology systems, managing building projects, and the Music in Schools Initiative. Yaffe was instrumental in envisioning and realizing the live-streaming of School of Music concerts, which allows audiences around the world to enjoy more than 200 performances a year in real time. He co-chaired the building committee for the creation of the Adams Center for Musical Arts and has served on the Provost’s committee to review the mission of the Collection of Musical Instruments.

Dean Yaffe’s passion for equity in music is embodied by his leadership of the Music in Schools Initiative. He has been instrumental in the development of the Initiative’s New Haven programs, which connect School of Music teaching artists, New Haven students and families, and New Haven Public Schools music educators. In addition to guiding the School’s local work, Yaffe is responsible for the biennial Symposium on Music in Schools, the 2017 meeting of which resulted in the nationally recognized Declaration on Equity in Music for City Students (2018).

Dean Yaffe continues to serve the field of music as a consultant, board member, arts administrator and speaker. During his time at Hartt, he was active as a board member of the National Guild of Community Arts Education and the National Association of Schools of Music. As an NASM board member, Yaffe consulted for many schools around the country and served on a number of accreditation teams. He was also the Chair of the Non-Degree-Granting Commission of NASM, and later the Accrediting Commission for Community and Pre-College Arts Schools. In addition, Yaffe has served on the boards of the Hartford Symphony, Full Force Dance Theater, and New England Public Radio.

Yaffe received a Bachelor of Arts in Music from Clark University and a Master of Arts in Musicology from the University of Toronto. His primary performance area was piano. 

Chalise Zolezzi is the Director of Public Relations and Social Media at The National Association of Music Merchants where she leads the organization’s public communication efforts. Alongside a talented team, she creates and implements public relations and social media campaigns to advance the organization’s objectives. Prior to her role at NAMM, Chalise served as the Director of Brand Communications at Taylor Guitars where she implemented integrated communications initiatives to lead the acoustic and electric guitar manufacturer. Her crisis communications skills have become best practices for leading social media experts, specifically in the case of Dave Carroll’s “United Breaks Guitars,” where she managed both the company’s and Carroll’s response to the media boon, which was extensively covered by a long list of communications experts and notably featured in The New Rules of Marketing and PR by David Meerman Scott. During her time at Taylor, she was awarded a “She Rocks Award” for Excellence from the Women’s International Music Network, and an award from Communications Director magazine for Communications Campaign of the Year.