Praxis: The New Forum for Sharing Best Practices - Brian Gibbs
Welcome to Praxis, the online journal for the Center for Music Education (CME) at Sam Houston State University! The founder and inspirational leader of the CME and Director of Bands at SHSU is my friend and colleague, Professor Matthew McInturf. I, along with the members of our esteemed, scholarly Board of Advisors and Editorial Board, share Dr. McInturf’s vision for the CME, and we are pleased to launch Praxis as part of our ongoing commitment to music education.
We consider practicing music teachers, conductors, performers, administrators, and researchers to be the most reliable sources for best practices in pedagogy as well as administrative policy, theory, and research associated with music education. Therefore, Praxis invites practitioners to submit articles that are relevant to any aspect of music education. To maintain the highest standards of quality, all submitted articles will follow our peer-review process for selection and publication.
Each article in the first volume of Praxis addresses a unique aspect of the subject of advocacy for music education, and I believe you will find that the articles demonstrate the exceptional insight and leadership we associate with each author. Robert Floyd, Executive Director of TMEA and Chair of the Texas Coalition for Quality Arts and Education, contributed a thought-provoking article about exactly who is responsible for music education advocacy. Peter Warshaw, Fine Arts Director for Leander ISD, provided an excellent plan for improving your advocacy skills to the level of an expert, and Jeremy Earnhart, Director of Fine Arts for Arlington ISD, wrote a thoughtful guide for advocates of music education to follow in order to engender support for music education among school district administrators. Dr. Brett Richardson, Coordinator of Music and Director of Bands at the University of the Incarnate Word in San Antonio, developed a valuable list of sources for documents, reference materials, and data about music education advocacy. These articles offer detailed perspectives that will inform, enlighten and entertain our readers!
We hope that you enjoy reading Praxis and urge you to consider sharing expertise and insights by submitting articles for future editions. We encourage you to visit the CME website regularly, and we look forward to seeing you at one of our upcoming workshops!
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Brian Gibbs, Ph.D. , is the Editor-in-Chief of Praxis. He is an Assistant Professor of Music at Sam Houston State University. FULL BIOGRAPHY