Monday Notes, September 8, 2025

Happy Monday! Here is to a great week filled with music and great classes. Please take a few minutes and review the important information in this newsletter.

The NMMEA Board is happy to announce that Daniel Fear has been selected as our next Executive Director,. Daniel will take over for Neil Swapp in August 2026 at the end of this fiscal year. Daniel brings passion, vision, and a strong commitment to music education, and we are excited to welcome him into this leadership role. We extend our heartfelt thanks to all the outstanding candidates who applied and contributed to a very competitive search process. Please join us in congratulating Daniel!

Be a part of history! Apply to perform during a lunch slot of the 2026 New Mexico Legislative session to celebrate the NM Year of the Arts in Education. Help make the voices of music education heard by our lawmakers across the state and celebrate your programs and everything you do.

Review the legislature rules and fill out the application with your top three choices of dates for a performance from 12 to 1 pm in the rotunda. The 2026 session lasts from January 20th to February 19th. Feel free to pair up with a colleague from your school or district! Email your application to building.services@nmlegis.gov.

Contact Laura Eberhardt if you need any assistance filling out your application at president@nmmea.com.

Also keep an eye out for the official Roundhouse Day for NMMEA where everyone is invited to come to the State Capital to talk to your lawmakers about what music education means to your students and communities.

Note: The dates below are a Statue Holiday so please refrain from requesting that day unless you are associated with that organization.

• February 2nd Guadalupe Hidalgo Treaty Day
• February 3rd Asian American, Pacific Islanders, Hawaiian Day
• February 9th Hispanic Cultural Day
• February 13th African American Day
• February 6th Indian Day

Resources

• Details from NMMEA
• Application
• Building Policies

Please plan to attend our Fall Town hall (Zoom) on Sept. 17, 2025 at 6pm for more tips & tricks and to ask questions regarding the new process.

• Townhall link

The registration for All-State Auditions is now open! Please follow this link to register students for auditions and make sure to keep these important dates regarding auditions in mind. And lastly, did you follow PO Pat's advice?

There are several helpful links at the bottom of the registration page if you are new to the system or need a refresher.

Reminder to check audition material for updates! As of note:

• There is a tempo correction for the Bizet orchestra excerpt!
• Clarification of the Bizet cello excerpt starting measure.
• There is an updated Dona Nobis Pacem choral audition piece uploaded with conductor markings and a word correction in M. 28

Link to audition information

Take care of submitting for your All-State POs today! Remember a PO must be in place prior to registering for events. Once a PO is in place, please send a pdf copy to Neil Swapp

It is time to register for the 2026 All-State Music Festival & In-Service Conference & Jazz All-State! Don't miss out on jam packed days of learning, sharing, music, and connecting. Register now!

Registration: Link

• Conference Dates: January 14-17, 2026
• Location: University of New Mexico
• Jazz All-State Dates: January 22-24, 2026
• Location: Eastern New Mexico University

Plan now to attend the 2026 Business meeting and Awards Luncheon. Tickets are available here. If your district is paying for your registrations, please check with your music coordinator to see if the luncheon is included in the registration they will complete.

• Link to purchase

We are using a new credit card processing application for luncheon tickets that doesn't charge NMMEA a fee however there is a donation option back to the company. You can simply select "other" and leave it zero if you do not wish to donate.

Governor Lujan Grisham has officially declared it, and it’s up to all of us to make sure the spotlight stays on Arts education. Mention it often. Build it into your curriculum. Talk about it with your students, your colleagues, and your communities.

Moments like this don’t come around often, and we have an opportunity to show exactly why the Arts matter — in every classroom, for every student.

Below, you’ll find a few tools and resources to help you plan and bring the Year of the Arts to life. Let’s lead with purpose and make this year unforgettable.

• Monthly Event Submission Form
• Due by the 15th of each month for following month
• Spotlight your program & events on the NMACAE Website (artsednm.org)
• Social Media Guidelines
• Share your stories, student work, and events on social media using #nmartsinedyear and tagging @nmartsinedyear.
• Suggested Activities & Celebration Ideas
• Official Proclamation
• Year of the Arts Logo
• Please use on all correspondence and programs

Check out this short NAMM video that features our own Mike White! Congrats Mike...NM thanks you!