General > President's Message

President's Message

ARJE

Dear Colleagues,
I would like to take a moment to thank the membership for allowing me the privilege of serving as president of ARJE for the last two years. It has been a tumultuous time, but I believe we have exited the turmoil of the IAJE collapse stronger and more empowered. I especially wish to thank Jackie Lamar, Warren Casey, Les Pack and Clay Hooten for their valuable help and contributions during this time.

The future for ARJE has much promise. My experience in the last two years has shown me a growing interest in jazz in the public schools. Every year the all state jazz groups get stronger and we have a much bigger role at ABA. I have had countless educators ask me questions about starting a jazz program. Belonging to ARJE can help educators get started and provide a knowledge resource for them in the future. I believe the lower dues and more local control will really allow us to fill out our membership and get a broader spectrum of educators and future educators engaged in our mission. So I urge all of you to ask your colleagues the simple question: “Have you joined ARJE?”

In addition we have to keep finding new and meaningful ways to increase the jazz abilities of our educators and students in Arkansas. The etude project and increased membership should put us in a better place to serve in this area. There are many projects on the table, and I am excited to see what will happen. The key to our success in this area is membership involvement and input. The expertise and talent of our membership is great and that is a major strength for ARJE. So I urge you to give us your ideas and use your talents help us make them a reality.

Finally, please welcome Larry Jones from UCA as our new president. I am sure he will do a great job and I hope you will give him the support he needs to reach our goals. I look forward to seeing all of you at ABA this summer.
Sincerely,
Tim Howe
President, ARJE