I hope you’ve all had a great start to the new school year. There are a number of MEIEA activities to report on. First, the election of new executive board members commences a month earlier this year. Nominations for the positions opens the first of October, followed by the online voting during the month of November. This is an exciting time to participate in the organization and we welcome the nomination of members determined to assist in forwarding the initiatives of the organization during this transformative time in the industry.

The organizers of the 2010 MEIEA International Conference scheduled for March 26-27, 2010 are doing a fine job of producing, what I’m sure will be an exciting and informative session at the University of Miami. Registration will open shortly with discounted early-bird registration rates that I’m sure will be enticing for all. Serona Elton and Rey Sanchez are lining up panels and presentations from some of the most knowledgeable members of the entertainment business. So, keep an eye on the MEIEA website for more information and be sure to register early.

California State Polytechnic University/Pomona and the University of the Pacific are co-sponsoring a MEISA Western Regional Conference on November 14, 2009 at Cal/Poly. Last year at this time an Eastern Regional Conference was held at NYU and it set the stage for our successful MEIEA International Conference at Berklee. We anticipate the same from this year’s western regional and thank faculty advisers, Dave Kopplin and Keith Hatschek for their willingness to collaborate on this endeavor. Hopefully it can serve as precedent for future cooperative ventures between MEIEA/MEISA colleges and chapters. At press time, the board was also considering other regional conferences that may be announced shortly on the MEIEA and MEISA sites.

In May I had the opportunity to represent the organization at the National Music Council’s 2009 Eagle Awards honoring Quincy Jones and Herbie Hancock.
Through the cooperative work of its member organizations, the National Music Council promotes and supports music and music education as an integral part of the curricula in the schools of our nation, and in the lives of its citizens. I believe MEIEA can play an important role in this organization and, at the same time, receive benefits from the affiliation. Look for more on this in subsequent E-zines.

Have a productive semester.

John Kellogg
MEIEA President