On Thursday, February 28, 2013, Mike Quilling, Fred Burrack and myself traveled to Topeka for Arts Day at the Capitol. It was a very busy "turn around" day for the legislators with many bills to address, but Senator Steve Abrams, Chair of the Senate Committee on Education, made time for a short visit with us outside the Senate Floor. We were very happy to share ideas with him. We were also able to have a short visit with Senate Minority Leader Anthony Hensley, and the office assistant of Senator Vicki Schmidt.

At noon in the Rotunda, the entire capitol building enjoyed some great music, provided by the Seaman School District in Topeka. Three separate groups positioned themselves around the Rotunda, and alternated selections over the lunch hour. Thanks to Mike Quilling for his assistance in making the performances happen.

A very special "Thank You" goes to:

• Rochester Elementary 6th Grade Choir, under the direction of Anna Reb
• Seaman High School Jazz Ensemble 1, under the direction of Cary Stahly
• Seaman High School Show Choir, under the direction of Andrew Huff

Across the street at the Kansas State Department of Education, we stopped in to visit with two of the folks who were going to present at the ISW about the KEEP "Kansas Educator Evaluation Protocol." We are currently trying to set up either a webinar or online version of what Scott Myers, Susan Helbert, and Bill Bagshaw were going to present to us about the evaluation process.

The rough weather we have had made it hard for folks to attend, but please keep this event in mind for next year. Our elected officials need to see the smiling faces of music educators who are passionate about teaching students to be ALL that they can be.