In celebration of Music for All’s 40th Anniversary in 2015, we are featuring profiles of music educators who have made a difference in Music for All and in band and orchestra education. In this post we feature a Bands of America clinician and adjunctor who has led his band to many successes.
Dr. Jeremy Earnhart is Director of Fine Arts for the Arlington, TX Independent School District. From 2009-2013 he was Director of Fine Arts for the Irving ISD and director of L.D. Bell High School Band from 1998-2009. While attending the University of North Texas he studied trumpet with Dr. Leonard Candelaria and performed in top concert ensembles under Dennis Fisher and Eugene Corporon.
Earnhart has published several articles through Praxis, is an active clinician and presenter for staff developments/conferences such as Texas Bandmasters Association, Texas Music Administrators Conference, Conn-Selmer Institute, and The Midwest Clinic. Dr. Earnhart also serves as a consultant for groups including the 2011 National Champion Broken Arrow High School Band and as Music Coordinator for the Phantom Regiment Drum and Bugle Corps.
How long have you been teaching?
Twelve years as a band director, six years as a fine arts director. I’m currently Director of Fine Arts at Arlington (TX) ISD, which educates over 64,000 students, providing world-class musical, visual, and kinesthetic arts programs. I was Director of Fine Arts for the Irving ISD from 2009-2013.
Where do you teach now and where have you taught in the past?
I was the director of L.D. Bell High School Band from 1998-2009.
Where did you go to college? What degrees do you earn?
I graduated from the University of North Texas with a BM & MME, have certifications in International Baccalaureate Music, and am currently working on my treatise in the Ed.D program at Dallas Baptist University.
What would you say to a new band director who asks you “what is the one thing you wish someone had told you just starting out?”
It’s just band!
Tell us about your participation with Music for All and Bands of America.
I participated in several Music for All events with L.D. Bell from 1998 to 2009. I began adjudicating in 2005 and continue to be involved. I’ve been consulting with Broken Arrow, OK 2011 to present.
What would you like to see MFA focus on or accomplish in the next 40 years?
Provide access, and excellence through innovation so that every student experiences the aesthetic, cognitive, and relational benefits of music education.