Welcome back! I hope that you have returned from your summer break rested and excited to begin a fresh new school year. Summer is a wonderful time to rest and rejuvenate with friends and family. Some of you may have used summer to reinvest in your career with certification classes or graduate work. However you spent your summer, I hope that you have some new and exciting ideas for your classroom.

Your KMEA leadership has been busy this summer planning for our 2016 In-Service Workshop. We know that our Kansas educators have a wealth of information to share and we want to hear from you. If you have idea for session at our ISW, go to the clinic proposals page (www.ksmea.org/clinics) and fill out the online session proposal form. The deadline for clinic proposals is October 1, 2015.

We are excited to announce that the KMEA Board voted to approve a new opportunity for our elementary students. Our KMEA All-State Elementary Choir will hold its first performance at our 2016 In-Service Workshop and will be featured as part of the President's Concert. Students in grades 3-5 will be eligible for this choir through an audition process. I want to thank Holly Taylor for providing wonderful leadership as chair of this ensemble. We are so excited for an opportunity to showcase what our children are doing all over the state.

I'm so honored to serve as your Elementary Chair for 2016 & 2017. I wish you all the best as you begin making music with our little ones!