MENC Leadership Sets New National Conference Schedule

In April, the MENC National Executive Board (NEB) voted to replace the association’s long-standing national biennial conference with an annual national event or series of events.

According to MENC President-Elect Barbara Geer, who becomes president July 1, the new format, still in development, aims to give members experiences that are even more focused and more in-depth than previous conferences. MENC leadership, she said, will develop an annual national conference “to meet the needs of our diverse membership.”

"After all, we serve members from general music to higher education and research and everything in between, so we will work with leaders from each segment of that community to provide the best possible structure with the best possible content,” Geer said.

An annual national conference, she adds, will also include major performance events that focus attention on the role that music education plays in the society as a whole and offer additional advocacy opportunities for members.

Plans call for a summer 2009 event in Washington DC and a full-scale event in 2010. The NEB meets in June to solidify planning for the future.