Sigma Alpha Iota

MUSIC MEDLEY Apply Now for State Convention Booths By Dorothy Kittaka SAI Music Education, Committee Chairman G reetings to all SAI music educators who are now back at school making music class an exciting wondrous place for your students. It is such a fantastic feeling to see the schools all filled with eager, excited faces. As soon as the students walk into our classrooms, all is well, since we are prepared to share our love, knowledge and skills of music in ways that will enrich their lives. In the Music Medley column, we would like to feature ideas which have worked for you. Please send us your suggestions which will help both those who are new to the field of teaching and those who have been teaching for a long time. We welcome new and different ideas or revivals of a technique that you have been using for many years, which have worked fabulously with your students. Have a fantastic time with your students. SAI GRANTS FOR STATE NAfME CONVENTIONS • Did you know that SAI will pay for ½ the cost of having a booth at a state NAfME convention? • Did you know that SAI will provide materials for your booth, including a banner, brochures, and SAI stickers which are great give-away gifts to all who visit the booth? Do not be left behind this coming year. Apply for the SAI State NAfME Convention Grant. Connect with your SAI Sisters across the state at your state gathering. It has been very exciting to read the final reports about the success of last year's SAI booths. In the Fort Wayne IMEA Convention our SAI chapters offered an early morning breakfast for all SAIs with casseroles, coffee, fruit, pastries, and piano music played by an SAI sister. The Baltimore Alums reported that they attracted much attention as they gathered by the booth and sang "The SAI Chorale" [see below]. Please apply early, since grant awards will be given out on a first-come, first-served basis. All you have to do is fill out the form on the new Officer Portal and submit it to National Headquarters (see link at sai-national.org homepage). I WANT A MEM (Music Education Muse) If you are a new teacher and want to have a SAI Master Teacher as a mentor (MEM-Music Education Muse) please apply on line at: saiNational.org or dkkittaka@frontier.com. Your MEM will be available to exchange ideas, lessons, and just listen to your concerns and/or questions via email or phone for the school year. Beta Mu initiate Dorothy Kittaka is a co-founder, past president, and consultant for FAME (Foundation for Art and Music in Education) in Fort Wayne, IN, where seven arts programs annually have reached over 3,000,000 children and adults in the past 23 years. MENC Changes Name to NAfME O ne of the world's oldest and largest arts education organizations entered a new chapter in its distinguished history in September when it officially assumed the name National Association for Music Education (NAfME). This organization of music educators and music education advocates was founded in 1907 as Music Supervisors National Conference, and later became Music Educators National Conference, with the familiar acronym "MENC." In 1998, the association became known as MENC: The National Association for Music Education. September 2011 marks the completion of the name transition to National Association for Music Education. "Our new name says exactly what we are and what we do: an organization for music education for everyone in our nation, an association that supports music teachers and the profession of music education," said Executive Director Michael A. Butera. "We are proud of our traditions and celebrate them every day," Butera continued. "Now we must adapt to the changes demanded by a new century if we are to succeed in our mission — to advance music education by encouraging the study and making of music by all. To do this, it's critical that we have a name that is instantly understood." The National Association for Music Education (NAfME) addresses all aspects of music education. The membership of more than 75,000 active, retired, and pre-service music teachers, and with 60,000 honor students and supporters, serves millions of students nationwide through activities at all teaching levels, from preschool to graduate school. NAfME is guided by the belief that for today's students to succeed tomorrow, they need a comprehensive education that includes music taught by exemplary music educators. — NAfME.org Chapters Combine for Baltimore MENC Convention By Melissa Gnibus, Michelle Whitlock, and Susan Gaztañaga T welve voices floated in the air of the Baltimore Convention Center, united by one association: Sigma Alpha Iota. This impromptu chorus consisted of twelve sisters from the Delta Phi chapter at Mansfield University plus two SAI alumnae. Singing the "SAI Chorale" in convention centers and other public places is nothing new for SAIs. It was the circumstances that made this happen that made this experience unique and special. Turning back the clock a little, we find ourselves at the March Baltimore Alumnae Chapter meeting discussing the Music Education State Conference Grant Application. Our chapter had lots of questions. "Should we apply for it, should we not? Will anyone be there to monitor the booth? Who will fill out the application for the MENC booth?" Ultimately, we decided that the positive benefits of doing such a booth — informing musicians, music educators, and other vendors about SAI and what it has to offer, such as scholarships and composition competitions — far outweighed the challenges of putting the booth together. The additional benefit of being able to reach out to inactive SAI sisters was also a great bonus. We applied for and received a Music Education State Convention Grant from the Fraternity which paid for half of the cost of our booth. In order to receive this grant, we needed CONVENTION continued on page 6 sai-national.org FALL 2011 PAN PIPES 5

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