Music Alumni News

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DSU Music Alumni Updates

We always enjoy hearing about what our alumni are doing, so please e-mail a sentence or two about your current activities if you would like. It will be added to the Alumni News section in the next newsletter and on our website. We highly value DSU Music Alumni. Please let us know if there’s anything we can do for you!

• Clint Boleware, BME (Saxophone) '06 is currently Director of Bands at North Pike High School (along with Lynn Weaver, MME '01; BME '97) where they won the Grand Championship at the Copiah Marching Festival in the fall. He and his wife Misti welcomed their first child, Brennan, in June 2008.
• Rebecca Carter, BM (Piano & Oboe) '06 graduated from Louisiana State University with her MM in piano pedagogy in May 2008. She began the Ph.D. program in music education in the fall of 2008 at LSU. In October, she was a presenter at the Louisiana Music Teachers Association convention at Centenary College, Shreveport, LA. She currently teaches group piano courses, secondary piano, and is a graduate assistant for music education courses. Rebecca also teaches a Beginning Group Piano course for children and a piano course for adults through the LSU leisure classes. In addition Rebecca stays busy with a small private studio of piano students who are frequent winners at local piano festivals.
• Desi Melancon Goodson, BME (Voice) '07 and Tim Goodson, BME (Trombone) '07 are currently living in Vicksburg, MS. Tim teaches choir at Vicksburg Jr. High School. Desi is teaching elementary music at Sherman Avenue Elementary School where she works with over 600 students each week in grades K-3. Her third-grade choir recently entered a Christmas Contest and won first place - $1,000 to buy new instruments and music for their classroom. Tim and Desi purchased a home in the summer of 2008 and are working to become expert renovaters. Both Tim and Desi are looking forward to becoming parents of a baby girl in May 2009.
• Karen Van Devender Goodwin, BA (Saxophone) '01 and Michael Goodwin, BME (Percussion) '99 MME '01 are currently living in Irving, TX. Michael is head band director for Spence Middle School and plays drums and percussion for Valley Ranch Baptist Church praise and worship band. Karen will graduate from Parker College of Chiropractic with her BS in Anatomy, BS in Health and Wellness, and Doctor of Chiropractic degrees in December '09, when she plans to enter private practice. She also shares her musical talents at Valley Ranch Baptist Church with keyboards, saxophone, and vocals for the praise and worship band.
• Desta Hallmark, BME (Percussion) '08 is taking a semester off to stay home with her seven-month-old son, Troy, and research job possibilities. She and Justin Childress are in the process of planning their wedding for later this year. Desta hopes to begin graduate work in Music Education at the University of Mississippi in the coming year.
• Eileen Carey Jennings, BM (Voice) '07 is pursuing the Master of Music in Vocal Performance at Indiana University, Bloomington, IN. She recently performed her first operatic role in the Love for Three Oranges by Prokofiev, singing the role of Princess Clarissa. Eileen had her premiere role on the IU Musical Arts Center stage in the summer musical She Loves Me, portraying Ms. Ilona Ritter. Since arriving at IU, Eileen has sung with University Singers, the university's select ensemble. She is now in preparation for the presentation of the Rachmaninov Vespers in February. Eileen has sung in the chorus of IU Opera's Susannah and La Traviata, the latter directed by Tito Capabianco. Currently, Eileen is in preparation for her first masters recital, featuring selections by Handel, Chausson, Brahms, Massanet, Ottorino Respighi, and Richard Hundley.
• Joey Lott, BA (Voice) '96 serves as Director of Music Minsitries at Maples Memorial United Methodist Church in Olive Branch, MS, a position he has held for eight years. Maples has a fully graded music program with 150 musicians from the community involved. This year the ministry will become a Worship Arts Minsitry including art, drama, liturgical dance, and music. In August 2008, Joey presented a concert featuring songs from the Harold Arlen Songbook. He is also serving a two-year commitment as chair for the Contemporary Worship Institue with the Fellowship of United Methodist Musicians in Worship and Arts. Joey completed the Master of Music at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 1999. He and his wife Lynn (DSU '95) are the parents of Ethan (5) and Jonathan (3).
• Felicia Keenum May, BME (Saxophone) '95 and John May, BME (Percussion) '93; MME '95 live in Carrollton, TX, just outside of Dallas. Felicia received her Master of Music Education degree from the University of North Texas in 2000. She is Director of Bands at Lake Dallas Middle School, where she has been for 8 1/2 years. Felicia has also performed with the Lone Star Wind Orchestra. She has been married to John May since 1997 who currently teaches band at North Garland High School, where he is an assistant band director and percussion coordinator. John has finished the course work toward a Ph.D. in Music Education from the University of North Texas and has also performed with the Lone Star Wind Orchestra. He has been published in the July and November 2007 Instrumentalist, and more recently in the January 2008 Newslink, an online MENC publication.
• Rodney Mayes, BME (Voice) '03, has been in the Air Force for the past five years and is currently stationed in San Antonio, TX. His job is Communications/Computer Systems Controller-3C2X1. He was recently promoted to Staff Sergeant and is excited about his new, increased responsibilities (and pay, of course). In 2007, he had the opportunity to tour with the infamous Tops In Blue as a keyboardist. TIB is an organization within the Air Force that produces a USO-type show for airmen every year. He toured during 2007 and early 2008. Currently, he is assisting Tops In Blue with their World Wide Talent Competition, a ten-day-long audition process which chooses the following year's cast of performers. Rodney highly encourages anyone who decides to join the Air Force to consider auditioning for Tops In Blue. Rodney still hopes to be chosen for the band career field in the Air Force; only not as a vocalist but also as a piano/keyboardist. He is currently studying private piano at Lackland Air Force Base.
• Jennifer Lungrin Milner BME (Voice) '99 is employed as a K-5 music teacher at South Pontotoc Attendance Center. She teaches over 900 students and directs the 4th and 5th grade and a 6th thru 8th grade Honor Choirs. Her elementary and middle school honor choirs will attend the Brandon Elementary Choir Festival in April and the Smokey Mountain Music Festival in Gatlinburg, TN in May. Through fund raising efforts, the choirs have already raised $3,500.00 to defray the cost of their trips. Jennifer had six students chosen to sing with the MS All-State Elementary Honor Choir and four students were selected to sing with TrebleSong, a national honor choir sponsored by the MS GirlChoir. She also has four students who will be auditioning for the All- State Junior High Honor Choir in February. Jennifer and her husband Sean have two daughters, Sarah (5) and Becky (3).
• Darlene McCune, BME (Voice) '98 recently transferred to Natchez High School, Natchez, MS and is now the Director of Choral Activities. She is active in the Natchez Little Theatre and recently sang the role of Maria in The Sound of Music.
• Ashley Brown Owen, BME (Voice) '08 is living in Benton, MS and teaching music at Benton Academy, 3K - 12th grade. She is also the music leader at the Pleasant Hill Church of God in Carthage MS. Ashley is married to Jason Owen, and they are the proud parents of baby girl Emma Claire.
• Erik Taylor, BME (Voice) '08 is serving as choir director at Amanda Elzy High School in Greenwood, MS. He works with the Intermediate Choir, Mixed Choir, Advanced Mixed, Showchoir, Gospel Choir, and teaches two General Music classes. Eric is also the organist for Mt. Olive Baptist Church in Cleveland, MS.