Music Program Leaders Colloquium: 2024 Music Program Leaders Forum Recap

Presenters: Annamarie Bollino, Latasha Casterlow-Lalla, Amanda Karhuse, James Weaver

The NAfME Council of Music Program Leaders (NCMPL) continues the school year with the first event in the 2024 Colloquium series. The February 2023 Colloquium addressed teacher recruitment and retention; the second last May focused on making the most of the summer to plan for the new school year; the third last August provided ideas for working with new music educators; and the October Colloquium focused on strategic arts planning.

This NCMPL Colloquium recapping the 2024 NAfME Music Program Leaders Forum that took place at The NAMM Show will be held on February 29, 2024, from 4:00 – 5:00 PM ET and be presented by Annemarie Bollino, NCMPL Chair; Latasha Casterlow-Lalla, Supervisor of Visual and Performing Arts at Passaic Public Schools, New Jersey; Amanda Karhuse, NAfME Assistant Executive Director, Advocacy and Public Policy; and James Weaver, Director of Performing Arts and Sports for the National Federation of State High School Associations.

Annamarie Bollino recently began working as the Supervisor of the Arts for Prince William County Schools after a 20-year tenure with Stafford County Public Schools as a music educator, building administrator, and fine arts coordinator. Annamarie is currently Chair of the National Association for Music Education (NAfME) Music Program Leaders Council and Vice-President of the Virginia Music Educators Association (VMEA). Her passion for growing the profession is evident through her work with pre-service arts educators at several institutions in Virginia. Annamarie has served on state arts standards writing committees and as a grant panelist for several agencies. As a member of the Virginia Coalition for Fine Arts Education, Annamarie is leading the Commonwealth’s efforts to bring arts education data to stakeholders through the Arts Education Data Project. She is a fierce advocate for arts education and frequently presents content sessions and research at state, national, and international conferences. Annamarie is a proud graduate of West Virginia University, George Mason University, and Virginia Commonwealth University.

Latasha Casterlow-Lalla is a proud product of the Passaic Public Schools. Latasha attended Montclair State University, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in Music Education in 2002 immediately followed by earning a Master of Arts in Counseling, Human Development and Guidance in 2003.

In 2004, Dr. Lalla began teaching in her hometown as an Elementary Music Educator for the next 3 years. Latasha’s journey led her to attain a Master of Arts in Administration & Supervision from Montclair State University in 2007. Latasha served as an Elementary General Teacher for 5 amazing years.

In 2013, Latasha was appointed as the Supervisor of Gifted & Talented for Passaic Public Schools where she implemented the district’s first Saturday Enrichment Academy for 350 students and led the district’s Jump Into Summer Program servicing over 5,000 students. Latasha was selected as the founding Assistant Principal at the Passaic Gifted & Talented Academy, the city’s first magnet school in 2015.

Since February 2017, Dr. Lalla has served as the Supervisor of Visual & Performing Arts. Latasha has worked to revive the Theatre Arts program in three high schools, introduce the Arts Integration, implement Modern Band in 9 schools and launch 5 state-approved Career & Technical Education Arts programs in Graphic Design, Music Technology, Digital Arts, Dance and Theatre Arts. She is a recent graduate of the Center for Arts Integration Certification Program. Dr. Casterlow-Lalla completed the Seton Hall University Executive Doctoral Educational Leadership Executive Program in May 2023. She is the President-Elect and Treasurer of the New Jersey Music Administrators Association.

Amanda Karhuse is the assistant executive director for advocacy and public policy at NAfME where she works with policymakers and other national organizations to promote music as an integral and core component of a well-rounded education. In this role, she coordinates all federal and state policy and advocacy efforts for NAfME, which includes lobbying, coalition-building activities, and strengthening the capacity of music education advocates.

Prior to her tenure at NAfME, Amanda was the director of policy & advocacy for the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP) where she advocated for issues of national significance to school leaders and led a research initiative on principal turnover and retention. She also represented NASSP as the president of the National Coalition for Technology in Education and Training and as chair of Advocates for Literacy.

Amanda worked for four years on Capitol Hill as a legislative assistant for former Congresswoman Karen L. Thurman of Florida and for the Women’s Congressional Policy Institute before embarking on her career in education policy. She has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, VA, and a master’s degree from the Elliott School of International Affairs at The George Washington University in Washington, DC. Amanda was a proud member of the Yorktown High School marching band in Arlington, VA, and she now resides in Leesburg, VA, with her husband, an avid guitarist, and her son who plays piano and sings in the all-district chorus.

James Weaver is the Director of Performing Arts and Sports for the National Federation of State High School 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. He most recently became the President of the National Music Council (NMC) in the Fall of 2021. 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.