National Office Candidates.

In accordance with Article VI, Sec. 2. of the MTNA Byaws, this slate of the two candidates per office was prepared by the MTNA Nominating Committee, consisting of: Joan Reist, NCTM, Lincoln, Nebraska, chair; Arlene Krueger, NCTM, Sioux Falls, South Dakota; Peggy Lewis, NCTM, Arkansas; Paula Gardiner, NCTM, Wilmington, Delaware; Sumy Takesue, NCTM, Van Nuys, California; Norma Seifert, NCTM, Collierville, Tennesse; William L. McKay, NCTM, Richland, Washington; Philelle McBrayer, NCTM, Tulsa, Oklahoma; Charlotte Heermann, NCTM, Lincoln, Nebraska; and Virginia Marks, Bowling Green, Ohio.

President-elect

Judith A. Price, NCTM, from Olympia, Washington, has maintained an independent piano studio for thirty years and holds a B.A. degree in music theory. During her tenure as a private teacher, she has been very involved in her local associations, holding a number of positions, including president. Judy has a special interest in furthering educational opportunities for both students and teachers. As Washington State MTA (WSMTA) Education Board chair and two terms as WSMTA president, her deepening awareness of the challenges facing the private teacher was heightened. As chair of the National Certification Board, following four years as the Northwest Division representative on that Board, Judy worked with others in the formulation of policies and procedures for certification. She has further served the national organization with her work on the MTNA Membership Committee, the Summit for MTNA Leadership Planning Committee, the Finance Committee and as a presenter at the National Conference. As past president of the Northwest Division, Judy just completed a term on the MTNA Board of Directors and as a trustee of the MTNA FOUNDATION Board. In addition to her studio teaching and MTNA service, Judy is active in her community as a collaborative pianist and volunteers regularly as an accompanist for local high school choirs. Judy was co-founder and vice president of the Dorthy A. Anderson International Piano Competition, held in conjunction with Seattle Pacific University and later with the University of Washington. Judy is happily married to her outdoor-enthusiast husband, Ted, and they have two sons.

"As an independent teacher, MTNA has been an important part of my professional life, providing opportunities for growth as a teacher, as well as networking and collegiality with my peers," she says. "I am excited and optimistic about the future of MTNA, its members and their students as we work with the music industry and other organizations to further the cause of music education in America. We can make a difference in our profession and our art as we move forward into the twenty-first century."

Paul Stewart, NCTM, is chair of the keyboard division at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG), where he teaches piano performance studies and pedagogy. He holds a, D.M. degree in piano performance from Florida State University, an M.M. degree from the University of Illinois and B.M. and B.M.E. degrees from Indiana University Paul is the MTNA treasurer. During 2000-2001, he served as chair of the National Convention Planning Committee for the Minneapolis and Washington, D.C., Conventions. As a member of the MTNA FOUNDATION Board of Trustees, 1996-1998 and 2001-2003, Paul has chaired both the MTNA FOUNDATION Teacher Enrichment Grant Committee and the MTNA Awards Committee. As a 1996-1998 and 2001-2003 member of the MTNA Board of Directors, Paul was a national representative to Wisconsin, Indiana and Nevada and chaired the MTNA Policies and Procedures Committee (1996-1998). Paul's service to the Southern Division began in 1986 as local chairman for the MTNA Southern Division Meeting/Auditions and continued as college audition chair, vice president for auditions and president. Paul's involvement with the North Carolina MTA goes back to 1973 when he chaired the state Baldwin competition and includes service four times as site chair for state conventions, vice president for conventions and state president, 1985-1987. Paul is a frequent adjudicator for MTNA-related competitions and has given a number of workshops for local Music Teachers Associations. His recent performances include Schubert's Trout Quintet (2002), solo piano recitals in North Carolina (2001) and a premier performance of Jupiter's Moons, a six-movement work by Judith Lang Zaimont that Paul commissioned for the 2000 UNCG Focus on Piano Literature. His article, "The Piano Music of George Rochberg and the New Romanticism," appeared in American Music Teacher in January 1989.

"MTNA has been, and continues to be, a significant part of both my personal and professional lives," Paul says. "It is a privilege to be a member of an association with such a long, distinguished record of service to the teaching profession. The challenge for our future leadership is to sustain and expand MTNA's many excellent programs. We need to be perceptive to the needs of our teachers and their students at all levels and work to support their pedagogical efforts through FOUNDATION grants, local workshops, distance learning, state and national conventions, publications, certification, and local, state, division and national competitions. As MTNA promotes the art of music, we should intensify our search for creative ways to attract even more of our colleagues to join us. Reasonable compensation, benefits and professional growth should be on our agenda as we identify and meet the challenges of the twenty-first century."

Vice President

Gail Berenson, NCTM, has been a member of MTNA since 1968, joining as a fledgling faculty member at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Since then, she has held a variety of Illinois State MTA, Ohio MTA (OMTA) and MTNA offices. After accepting a position on the piano faculty at Ohio University, she initiated the founding of the Southeast District of OMTA. She was OMTA president, co-chair of the 1980 and 1990 Ohio State Conventions, Collegiate Buckeye Competition chair, OMTA student chapters chair and OMTA historian. She holds the MTNA Master Certificate in piano and piano pedagogy and also was awarded the 1999 OMTA "Outstanding Teacher of the Year" award. Gail currently serves as OMTA Southeast District's vice chair for teacher activities. Her national involvement in MTNA began in 1995 as a member of the MTNA Pedagogy Committee. In addition, she has served as MTNA piano chair on the 1996 and 1997 Convention Committees and was a two-term member of the American Music Teacher Editorial Committee. She now is serving as 2002 and 2003 MTNA National Conference chair. Gall is professor of piano and chair of the keyboard division at Ohio University, Athens, where she was awarded the "Distinguished Teacher of the Year" Award for 2000. An active performer, as well as a noted expert on musician wellness issues, she is a coauthor of A Symposium for Pianists and Teachers: Strategies to Develop Mind and Body for Optimal Performance and a contributor to the new piano method Piano Discoveries as a member of the Lorenz Advisory Board. Holding degrees from Northwestern University, Gail has performed and lectured in more than twenty-five states, as well as Great Britain, Belgium, Switzerland, Israel and Canada. Her students are performing and teaching in private studios and on college faculties throughout the United States.

"I have such respect for MTNA, the support it offers its membership and the contributions it makes to the musical community," Gail says. "It would be my privilege to serve this organization, helping to continue and enhance this organization's distinguished tradition."

Christine Kefferstan, NCTM, maintains an active performing career as soloist, chamber musician and concerto soloist. A graduate of the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, Christine studied with Israeli pianist David Bar-Illan and has had additional coaching with Russian pianists Sedmara Rutstein and Viachaslov Gabrielov. Named Outstanding Teacher of the Year by the West Virginia MTA (WVMTA), she has spent many years devoted to the nurturing of young pianists. Christine is professor of piano at West Virginia University (WVU), Morgantown, where she teaches graduate and undergraduate piano majors and a number of precollege students. In 2001, the WVU Division of Music recognized her for her excellence in teaching. Christine has had prize-winning students in the Greensboro, North Carolina, Music Academy Competition, Bartok-Kabalevsky Competition in Radford, Virginia, the Stravinsky competition in Illinois, the Fite Family Piano competition in Missouri, the Pittsburgh Young Artists competition, and in the state and division levels of the MTNA competitions. Christine served as WVMTA president, as Eastern Division president, a member of the 1998-2000 MTNA Board of Directors and now serves on the MTNA FOUNDATION Board of Trustees. She chaired the committee that developed the Studio Fellowship Award Program for young teachers and participated in naming her teacher Anna McGrosso as the third MTNA FOUNDATION Fellow.

"MTNA has been a significant factor in my professional life for over thirty years," she says. "The members, the programs and the opportunities serve to remind us that what we do every day, on a one-to-one basis, does matter. I have been so fortunate to have been in contact with those who inspire so many to work consistently, to realize their potential and to keep it all in balance."

Secretary/Treasurer

Benjamin D. Caton, NCTM, holds a Ph.D. degree from The Ohio State University and a pedagogy and musicianship certificate in Kodaly. He is professor of music at East Tennessee State University (ETSU), where he teaches aural skills and piano, and coordinates the graduate program. His teaching experiences range from first-grade public school music classes to graduate music courses. Ben has served as president of his local Music Teachers Association for two bienniums; Tennessee state MTA president; Southern Division collegiate competitions chair, secretary, president-elect and president; and a member of the MTNA Board of Directors and FOUNDATION Board of Trustees (2000-2002). Honors include the Ohio Federation of Music Clubs Foundation Award for Excellence, the John Phillip Sousa Award while playing trombone in high school band and being named an MTNA FOUNDATION Fellow. His most memorable performance was accompanying the ETSU Men's Ensemble in the Chicago Symphony's Orchestra Hall at the 1999 American Choral Directors Association national convention. His articles have appeared in Clavier, Music Educators Journal, American Music Teacher and The Tennessee Musician.

"I am so grateful to the thousands of MTNA members who give so much of themselves to their teaching," he says. "Their students and our society are indebted to them more than we can ever imagine. It is indeed an honor to be a candidate for this office and if elected, I promise my very best as MTNA continues to advance the cause of music and music education in America."

Thomas Ediger, NCTM, is director of choral activities and professor of music at Peru State College in Peru, Nebraska. He directs three college choirs and teaches courses in music theory, music history and music education. Tom is the founder and director of the Peru State College Piano Extravaganza. In addition, he maintains a small private piano studio in Nebraska City, having been an independent piano teacher since his high school years. He holds a doctorate in music theory and composition and a master's degree in piano performance from the University of Northern Colorado.

Tom serves as chair of the MTNA Composer Commissioning Program. Previously, he has served as the West Central Division composition contest chair and has served on the MTNA Composer Commissioning Advisory Committee. Tom has been active in the Nebraska MTA, having served as composition chair, vice president, president-elect and president. He is the immediate past president of that group.

"I joined MTNA so that my students could participate in the performance and composition competitions," he says. "Since then, I have greatly benefited from my involvement with MTNA programs and my association with its members. Through all of its student activities, certification, publications, Composer Commissioning Program, conferences and many other programs MTNA ably serves the music profession. I am honored to be nominated for this office and look forward to continuing MTNA programs and in helping to fashion MTNA programs to even better meet the needs of students and teachers in the twenty-first century."