/ Membership / Meet Our Members / Ryan Meeks
Candidate for 2025-2027 Southwestern Division President-Elect
Ryan Meeks Biography
Ryan Meeks Curriculum Vitae
What do you see as the major challenges music education will face during your term and in what ways can you transform these into opportunities during your presidency?
It is difficult to go even one week without hearing calls for an overhaul of our educational system. Parents, legislators, celebrities, media personalities, students, teachers—there seem to be endless competing beliefs and values regarding the role of education in our society, and the extent to which our current educational system does or does not fulfill those roles. These issues present monumental challenges for the daily work of music educators. We must implement strategies to support in-service music educators as they navigate these challenges, while also coordinating targeted advocacy efforts to inform all stakeholders of the wide-ranging positive impacts that music education may have on students and communities. In addition to these efforts, we must also develop innovative offerings and instructional approaches that reflect and honor students’ life experiences outside of school. Creating music-making opportunities that resonate with student interests and cultures will provide an opportunity for students to see themselves reflected in our curricula. This is an opportunity to coordinate with state associations to program strategic professional development offerings, launch advocacy campaigns, and strengthen professional communities.
What do you see as the major challenges the association will face during your term and in what ways can you transform these into opportunities during your presidency?
Just as music educators must consistently investigate how their curricular offerings, musical programming, and instructional practices enrich the lives of students, NAfME must continue to evaluate, develop, and promote the value of its resources and programs to its members. With a world of resources available at the push of a button, why choose to maintain membership in NAfME? The organization must not only provide relevant and accessible resources and services but must also highlight the value of membership. This is an opportunity for NAfME to leverage the accessibility of online platforms to display the many values of membership beyond the occasional state-level professional development conference. While music educators are facing monumental sociological challenges, NAfME is uniquely positioned to support members through advocacy initiatives. NAfME has an opportunity to work from the ground up, sharing the stories of students and teachers from diverse communities and backgrounds to exhibit the life-changing impact of music education.
How do you plan to advance equity/DEIA in NAfME during your term of office?
I am inspired and encouraged by the positioning of Equity in Music Education as a keystone element of the 2022 NAfME strategic plan. The three pillars of Advocacy & Policy, Professional Learning & Growth, and Research & Music Teacher Education will only be successful if all educators, students, and communities are seen, heard, and included. I will focus my efforts to advance DEIA through celebrating the diversity in music education and promoting equitable practices.
Many educators and organizations have done extensive work to develop innovative and diverse curricular offerings, pedagogical approaches, and programming initiatives. We are now positioned to build on this great foundation to expand our offerings of culturally relevant and responsive music opportunities at all levels of music education, including offerings from state music educators’ associations. Like many other states, OkMEA has recently developed popular and contemporary music offerings for students and teachers through a student honor ensemble and expanded professional development programming to support teachers. Similarly, I will promote and support state-level efforts to expand programming in ways that are relevant and appropriate for their member teachers and schools.
Every student deserves access to music education, and every music teacher deserves access to high-quality professional development and professional community regardless of their geographic location or financial resources. I have directly observed the significant burden that many teachers experience as a result of geographic isolation from a professional community and financial constraints that act as a barrier to participation in music-specific professional development offerings. Many states have implemented programs and funds to help mitigate the financial barriers associated with travel, housing, and registration. We have an opportunity to establish a region-wide collaborative initiative to address this systemic barrier for so many preservice and inservice teachers to fully participate in our professional communities.
While the work to be done to advance DEIA is integral to the future of music education, it is also extensive and varied. The NAfME vision and mission will only be fulfilled through the collaborative efforts of its members to create positive change.
Equity Statement
Music is an experience found across all cultures. As such, music education should be accessible to every individual, regardless of background, identity, or circumstances. It is critically important that we continuously work to create an inclusive culture in the field of music education—a culture in which every student and educator feels valued and supported. Recognizing and honoring the wide-ranging knowledge, experiences, values, and challenges that students may bring to our classrooms, we must develop innovative pedagogies and create accessible and inclusive environments that lead to meaningful learning experiences for all. I consistently work to help pre-service teachers examine their experiences, beliefs, and assumptions while challenging them to broaden their perspectives and create relevant and meaningful music learning opportunities—opportunities that are not only culturally responsive but culturally sustaining. Similarly, we must support our in-service colleagues through the development of targeted professional development offerings, strategic professional communities, and easily accessible resources. It is vital that we provide accessible pathways for entry to the music teaching workforce and celebrate the great work of colleagues from all backgrounds.
My deep commitment to developing a more inclusive and accessible culture of music education is evidenced through my work as a member of the NAfME Council for Innovations, OkMEA Executive Board, and OkMEA The Collective chair. Through this work, we are collectively developing opportunities for more students and teachers to engage in the field in ways that honor their musical and professional identities. It is not enough to simply acknowledge the existing barriers to innovative and relevant educational opportunities in music, we must actively work to dismantle these barriers and amplify the voices of marginalized students, teachers, artists, and leaders.
Leadership Statement
I firmly believe that the measure of our leadership is found in the people and organizations that we lead. I frequently turn to L. David Marquet’s words as a foundation for my work as an educator and leader— “Leadership is embedding the capacity for greatness in the people and practices of an organization.” Perhaps the most important bit of this quote is the part which is only implied, “…and then get out of the way and let them be great!” While this may sound good on the surface, it can only be achieved through a focus on building connections with people and by honoring each person’s unique strengths and perspectives. A leader empowers the members of the organization to utilize their collective expertise and creativity to identify, refine, and fulfill a collaborative vision. While visionary leadership is essential to the success of an organization, that success may only be realized through the greatness of its people and practices.
