The North Carolina Elementary Honors Chorus is a group of approximately 195 students who are chosen from across North Carolina to perform at the NCMEA Conference each year. The purpose of this Honors Chorus is to provide students with the opportunity to develop their abilities to the greatest possible extent. Teachers who are members of NCMEA are permitted to send in auditions from six of their students. Adjudicators are hired to select the members of the Honors Chorus. Teachers then work with their students in preparation for the concert and students spend the day before the concert working with the clinician. Participating in the North Carolina Elementary Honors Chorus is very rewarding for teachers, students and their families.
Eligibility requirements for NCMEA Elementary Honors Chorus is set by the Honors Chorus committee. NCMEA supports each member section’s autonomy when setting criteria for participation in student events.
Greetings From The 2019 NCEHC Chair
Hello wonderful elementary music teachers! My name is Kathy Smith and I will be serving as the NCEHC Chair for 2019. I have taught K-8 General Music, Chorus and Theatre Arts in the NC Public School System for 28 years. Currently, I teach in Pitt County. It is my pleasure to serve as a clinical teacher, Pitt County Elementary Honors Chorus Chair, Pitt County Middle School Honors Chorus Co-chair and currently to serve as the North Carolina Elementary Honors Chorus Chairperson.
Christy White will serve as the NCEHC co-chair for 2019. She has taught in Lenoir County for the past 22 years. White holds bachelor’s degrees in music education and music therapy and a master’s degree in music education from East Carolina University. She is a National Board Certified Teacher in early and middle childhood music. She has recently received a master’s degree in school administration from East Carolina University.
If I can be of any assistance, please feel free to contact me at [email protected].
2019 NC Elementary Honors Chorus Conductor
Dr. Andrea Ramsey enjoys an international presence as a composer, conductor, scholar and music educator. Her teaching experiences range from work with adolescent and children’s voices to high school and collegiate voices. She enjoys regular opportunities to conduct all-state and divisional level honor choirs, festival events at Carnegie Hall and serves as a principal conductor for the Pacific International Young Women’s Choral Festival in Eugene, Oregon. Before leaping into full time composing and guest conducting, Andrea held positions in music education and conducting at The Ohio State University and the University of Colorado, respectively.
An ASCAPlus award-winning composer, Andrea believes strongly in the creation of new works. Her compositions are available with traditional publishers and also through MusicSpoke, a digital sheetmusic marketplace. She enjoys residency collaborations with ensembles and festival choirs, some of which have included: the Allegro Choirs of Kansas City, Ithaca College and the Crescent City Choral Festival in New Orleans.
As a scholar, she has presented for state, divisional and national conventions of the American Choral Directors Association, the 6th Annual Symposium on Sociology in Music Education, as well as The Phenomenon Singing Symposium in St. Johns, Newfoundland, Canada. She has co-authored articles published in the Choral Journal, as well as the Journal of Research in Music Education. A native of Arkansas, she has experienced in her own life the power of music to provide a sense of community, better understanding of our humanity and rich opportunities for self-discovery.