State Presidents
State Presidents
President – Arkansas Choral Directors Association
Dr. Nick Farr serves as Artistic Director of Una Voce at Wildwood in Little rock, AR. He performs in local professional theatre and serves as Principal of Maumelle High School in Maumelle, AR. Having served on the SWACDA and Arkansas ACDA boards, he enjoys serving the choral community.
He has served as clinician and adjudicator throughout Arkansas, as well as a presenter for All State, SWACDA, and Nafme Conferences. His groups have performed nationally and internationally in places such as Carnegie Hall, New York; Cadogan Hall, London; and Haydn Hall, Austria.
His hobbies include running, singing, and developing talent. He has two daughters, Kennedy and Rhyan Farr.
President – Colorado Choral Directors Association
Julia Dale is the Director of Vocal Music at Rock Canyon High School, where she conducts five choirs, teaches A.P. Music Theory, and vocal directs the school musical each year. She is also the advisor for the Tri-M Music Honors Society and serves as the department chair. Under her direction, RCHS choirs have received top ratings at CHSAA competitions and performed at CMEA. Her students are often selected for the Colorado All-State Choirs.
Before joining Rock Canyon in 2009, Ms. Dale was the Director of Choirs at Palmyra-Macedon High School from 2004-2007. She then studied at Westminster Choir College, where she was the graduate assistant conductor for the Westminster Chapel and Symphonic Choirs, performing with the New York Philharmonic and other renowned orchestras. She was also a member of the Westminster Choir and Westminster Symphonic Choir, performing under esteemed conductors such as Kurt Masur, Pierre Boulez, and Neemi Jarvi.
Ms. Dale is a graduate of the Eastman School of Music, with a B.M. in Music Education, and earned an M.M. in Choral Conducting from Westminster Choir College. She was Rock Canyon’s Apple Award recipient in 2011 and has served in various leadership roles in Colorado ACDA and CHSAA.
Ms. Dale lives in Highlands Ranch with her husband, Ben, and children, Charlie and Ellie.
President – Kansas Choral Directors Association
Brandon Wade is in his 15th year of teaching and is the choral director at Pratt High School and Liberty Middle School in Pratt, KS. His groups consistently receive top ratings at District and State Festivals and are well represented in the KMEA Honor Choirs. He has had the privilege of conducting his groups at the KMEA State Convention and Carnegie Hall in New York City. During the summer, Brandon enjoys teaching classes on musical theater, vocal percussion, and arranging contemporary a cappella music. He also serves as the music director for the Pratt High musicals, which have had the honor of winning multiple regional awards.
Brandon has been an active member of the Kansas Music Educators Association, has served as the SW District High School Choir Chair, and the SW District President, and currently is the All-State Mixed Honor Choir Chair. Previously serving as the SW District Representative for KCDA, he is now the President-Elect. He also served as the Kansas Representative for the A Cappella Education Association. Brandon has had the honor and privilege of being a guest clinician for honor groups all around the state of Kansas.
Brandon received his Bachelors in Music Education from Pittsburg State University in 2009 and his Masters degree from Kansas State University in 2020.
In addition to teaching, Brandon enjoys being an active musician, but most of all, he enjoys spending time with his wife, Amanda, and their two sons, Naise and Asher.
President – Missouri Choral Directors Association
Christy Elsea is a graduate of the University of Missouri and Michigan State University. She recently retired from teaching vocal music for grades 6-8 at Smithton Middle School in Columbia, Missouri. Christy has served in various positions with the Missouri Choral Directors Association, Missouri Music Educators Association and the Missouri State Teachers Association.
Some honors include recognition as a Fulbright Memorial Fund Scholar, Teacher of the Year for the middle level Columbia Public Schools and membership in Phi Delta Kappa. She also earned the John Phillip Sousa award, National School Choral Award and was a member of the Missouri All-State Choir and Band while a student at Poplar Bluff High School.
Christy’s previous teaching positions have included Lebanon High School, Lebanon Junior High School, Santa Fe Elementary and High School, Poplar Bluff public schools and Rolla public schools.
Christy is married to Ed Elsea and they have three children, Madison, Emily and her husband, Isaac.
President – New Mexico Choral Directors Association
Emery Edwards is currently the Director of Choirs and Guitar at Eldorado High School and the Director of the Albuquerque Girl Choir in Albuquerque, NM. She has been in music education for 12 years and is a NM Level III Educator. Across New Mexico, she has made music with students of all levels, including K-5 general music, 6-12 choir, 9-12 piano and guitar. And she will never forget that one year of 2nd grade general education.
Emery received her Bachelors of Choral Music Education from Eastern New Mexico University and her Masters of Curriculum and Instruction in Mathematics from the University of Texas-Arlington.
President – Oklahoma Choral Directors Association
Dr. Karsten Longhurst is Chair of Vocal Music Education at the Wanda L. Bass School of Music at Oklahoma City University and the Artistic Director of the Canterbury Youth Voices. He holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Choral Music from the University of Southern California with emphases in music education, arts leadership, and vocal performance. Previous degrees include a Master in Music in Choral Conducting from the University of Utah and a Bachelor of Music in Education and German from Weber State University.
Prior to joining OCU and Canterbury Youth Voices, Dr. Longhurst served as the Director of Choral Music and the Assistant Director of Music Education at Northwestern Oklahoma State University. In 2022, the NWOSU Singers were a featured Honor Choir at the OkMEA State Music Educators Convention. He also taught high school and middle school for six years in Ogden, Utah, and was honored with the Teaching in Excellence award.
Dr. Longhurst is active as a guest conductor, presenter, adjudicator, and performer. He currently serves as the President-Elect of the Oklahoma Choral Director’s Association and is a member of the National Association of Teachers of Singing and the National Association for Music Educators. He enjoys performing as a professional solo and ensemble tenor, having collaborated with artists such as the Rolling Stones, Barry Manilow, and Elton John, and as a guest soloist in the Salt Lake City Tabernacle. He has performed with ensembles including the Salt Lake Vocal Artists, Brevitas, and the Enid Symphony.
President – Texas Choral Directors Association
Leigh Ann McClure, currently President of the Texas Choral Directors Association, also served the Texas Music Educators Association Vocal Division as High School Region and Area Chair, Middle School Region Chair, All-State Treble Choir organizer, and Convention Ballroom Chair. She was also the Texas Music Adjudicators’ Association Vocal Vice-President. Honored by The University Interscholastic League as a recipient of the “Sponsor of Excellence” award (2013), McClure is an active adjudicator and clinician and section leader at several summer all-state preparatory camps.
McClure received the BME degree from Baylor University and MME from The University of North Texas. In 2024, she completed a 37-year public school teaching career, having spent the last 18 years as Head Director of Keller ISD’s Central High School Choir Department. While at CHS, McClure conducted the campus’ varsity concert choirs and was co-director of the Voices of Central Show Choir. The school’s Chamber Women were honored to be an invited choir at the TMEA Convention in 2024. The ensemble was also Reserve Grand Champion and Outstanding Treble Choir at the prestigious Festival di Voce choral competition (2023) and a National Winner in the Foundation for Music Education’s Mark of Excellence competition. McClure previously taught in the Arlington, Cleburne, and Alvarado ISDs. Choirs under her direction have received consistent UIL sweepstakes awards and has had many all-state choir members.
McClure recently became a professor at Dallas Baptist University and is director of the university’s inaugural treble choir (Liberty Singers) and teaches secondary choral music education.
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