Pennsylvania Music Educators Association Recognized with 2025 NAfME Excellence in Advocacy Award

Pennsylvania Music Educators Association Recognized with 2025 NAfME Excellence in Advocacy Award

HERNDON, VA (June 16, 2025)—The National Association for Music Education (NAfME) honored the Pennsylvania Music Educators Association with the 2025 NAfME Excellence in Advocacy Award in recognition of their efforts advocating for music education. NAfME President and Board Chair Deb Confredo presented the award during the NAfME National Assembly gathering on June 10, 2025.

“On behalf of the NAfME National Executive Board and the entirety of our membership, we share our heartiest congratulations and thanks to the Pennsylvania Music Educators Association for their tremendous fervor and resoluteness in championing music and arts education this past year,” said NAfME President Deb Confredo. “Through systematic efforts and purposeful collaboration, their work will endure for years to come in educational policy that will affect children throughout the Commonwealth.”

“Through systematic efforts and purposeful collaboration, their work will endure for years to come in educational policy that will affect children throughout the Commonwealth.”

The Pennsylvania Music Educators Association (PMEA) is recognized for their outstanding work to revise the Pennsylvania State Arts and Humanities Standards, which have not been updated in more than 20 years. A priority of their work focuses on ensuring that all students have access to high-quality music and arts education. They partnered with dance, media arts, theatre, and visual arts educators to create an interdisciplinary approach to their advocacy efforts. Through this coalition of advocates, they were able to collect data, case studies, and other resources to help inform the Pennsylvania State Board of Education on the importance of updating the standards. Their work has led to the start of a formal review of the Pennsylvania Arts and Humanities Standards.

“This effort not only aimed to modernize the benchmarks for arts education in our state but also to address pressing issues of equity, access, and instructional excellence in music and arts education,” stated Mark Despotakis, PMEA Director of Public and Government Affairs. “By engaging a diverse group of educators and stakeholders, our initiative demonstrated how thoughtful, targeted advocacy can influence policy and drive meaningful reform at both the state and local levels.

“Through targeted meetings, public forums, and joint statements, we built a powerful coalition that united diverse voices under the common goal of advancing arts education in our state,” he continued. “This network not only increased awareness of the challenges facing music education but also provided a platform for continued advocacy beyond the immediate project timeline.”

The NAfME Excellence in Advocacy award, presented annually at the NAfME National Leadership Assembly, recognizes a state music education association (MEA) for outstanding accomplishments in music education advocacy. State MEAs around the country are advocating by meeting with State Boards of Education, advocating with elected officials in state legislatures, and engaging affected parties in advocating for music education.

The 2024 Excellence in Advocacy Award recipient was the Rhode Island Music Education Association. The 2023 Excellence in Advocacy Award recipient was the New Mexico Music Educators Association. The 2022 Excellence in Advocacy Award recipient was the Georgia Music Educators Association. The 2021 Excellence in Advocacy Award recipients were Louisiana, Ohio, and Vermont Music Educators Associations; the 2020 Excellence in Advocacy Award recipient was the Wisconsin Music Educators Association; the 2019 Excellence in Advocacy Award recipient was the Florida Music Education Association; and the 2018 Excellence in Advocacy Award recipient was the Michigan Music Educators Association.

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The National Association for Music Education (NAfME) is a collaborative community that supports music educators and advocates for equitable access to music education. The only association that addresses all aspects of music education, NAfME, together with its affiliated state music education associations, advocates at the national, state, and local levels and provides resources and opportunities for teachers, students, parents, and administrators. Founded in 1907 and representing more than 57,000 members teaching millions of students, NAfME advances the music education profession and promotes lifelong experiences in music.

Follow NAfME on Facebook (facebook.com/nafme) and Instagram (instagram.com/nafme). For additional information, contact Catherina Hurlburt at catherinah@nafme.org or 703-860-4000.