MENC: The National Association for Music Education Announces Tri-M® Chapter of the Year Recognition Winners
Award Recipients Demonstrate Diversity, International Scope of Tri-M® Music Honor Society Program
RESTON, VA (June 10, 2008) — MENC: The National Association for Music Education is proud to announce the results of the 2008 Tri-M® Chapter of the Year Recognition. The Tri-M® Music Honor Society rewards exceptional middle and high school music students throughout the world. The Chapter of the Year Recognition was developed specifically to recognize outstanding Tri-M members and chapters. Summer music scholarships are awarded to members of the winning chapter and the two runner-ups in each division. The Senior and Junior Chapter of the Year also receive a permanent engraved service plaque.
The Senior Division winner for the Chapter of the Year is Nazareth Academy, Tri-M Chapter #2096 of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, advised by Margaret Lafferty. Nazareth is the proud recipient of this honor for the second year in a row. This year, the chapter hosted a summer music program for students from their school and other local schools. The chapter also adopted a family for the holidays through Salvation Army and participated in a “Singing Around the World” concert designed to promote unity through music.
The first runner-up in the Senior Division is Villa Maria Academy, Tri-M Chapter #1227, located in Malvern, Pennsylvania, and advised by Joyce Prichard. The second runner-up is John L. Miller – Great Neck North High School, Tri-M Chapter #2605, located in Great Neck, New York, and advised by Joseph Rutkowski.
The Junior Division Chapter of the Year is St. John’s School, Tri-M Chapter #4154, located in Upper Tumon, Guam, and advised by Allan Nazareno. This year, the students focused on global citizenship by taking a tour through Southeast Asia. During the tour, they performed selections from Broadway musicals that celebrate cultural diversity and visited charitable organizations serving children in Manila, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, and Guam. In the months leading up to their trip, the students worked hard on a variety of fundraising initiatives for the charities. Advisor Allan Nazareno said, “The most important aspect of our tour was the humanitarian aspect in which our students got to meet the beneficiaries of our charities.”
Conyers Middle School, Tri-M Chapter #5030, located in Conyers, Georgia, and advised by Christine Bruns, is the Junior Division first runner-up, followed by the second runner-up, Ranney School Tri-M Chapter #4410, located in Tinton Falls, New Jersey, and advised by Lillianne Torrente.
More information about the winning Junior and Senior chapters is available at http://www.menc.org/news/view/2007-2008-tri-m-chapter-of-the-year-winners.
Active chapters of the Tri-M Music Honor Society are encouraged to participate in the 2008-2009 Chapter of the Year Summer Music Scholarship Program. More information about Tri-M and its recognition programs is available at www.menc.org/resources.
Tri-M currently has approximately 45,000 members in more than 1,500 chartered chapters worldwide. The purpose of the Tri-M Music Honor Society is to inspire music participation, create enthusiasm for scholarship, stimulate a desire to render service, and promote leadership in the music students of secondary schools.
For more information, call MENC at 1-800-336-3768 or visit www.menc.org/resources.
MENC: The National Association for Music Education, the world’s largest arts education organization, marked its centennial in 2007 as the only association that addresses all aspects of music education. More than 130,000 members represent all levels of teaching from preschool to graduate school. Since 1907, MENC has worked to ensure that every student has access to a well-balanced, comprehensive, and high-quality program of music instruction taught by qualified teachers. MENC’s activities and resources have been largely responsible for the establishment of music education as a profession, for the promotion and guidance of music study as an integral part of the school curriculum, and for the development of the National Standards for Arts Education.
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