For Vice Chair/Chair-Elect (an elected position)
A four-year commitment; will serve two years as Vice Chair, two years as Chair. One is elected.

Beth Chandler

I am honored to declare my candidacy for Vice Chair of the NFA. The NFA is a dynamic, thriving organization, and within our own membership are some of the best resources in the world. We have an enviable network of friends and colleagues who treat each other with dignity and respect, and I am proud to actively participate in perpetuating the strengths of our mission, while finding ways to make it an even better NFA. Through my involvement in various facets of the NFA, originally as a student member and competition winner, and then professionally as a competition adjudicator, board member, and committee member, I have learned much about the inner workings of the association. There are many exciting developments on the horizon, but there is still much to be done to ensure our future as a world premier organization, artistically, technologically, and beyond. I look forward to the opportunity to collaborate with the many diverse constituencies that make up our vibrant association.

Bio
Beth Chandler, associate professor of flute at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia, is a soloist, chamber musician, orchestral player, and teacher. She has been presented in recital at the Kennedy Center and has won numerous awards and honors, including a Fulbright grant and the top prizes in the Flute Talk and Myrna Brown Artist Competitions. A frequent guest artist and masterclass clinician, Chandler has performed at universities and festivals throughout the U.S., Europe, and Brazil. She has served as an NFA board member and on the NFA Strategic Planning Committee and Advisory Board. A native Texan, Chandler earned degrees in flute performance from Baylor University, New England Conservatory, and a D.M.A. from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, with an arts administration cognate. Her principal teachers include Helen Ann Shanley, Trevor Wye, Paula Robison, Jack Wellbaum, and Bradley Garner. Visit www.bethchandler.com.

Terri Sundberg

It is my honor to be nominated for Vice Chair of the National Flute Association. If elected, I intend to continue to promote the long-held, core NFA values of artistic excellence, pedagogy, integrity, and collegiality. I am committed to growing our repertoire and resources while encouraging local, national, and international collaboration. We need to continue to inspire excellence and artistry in all arenas and work to reach out to flutists of diverse backgrounds and cultures. We should continue to secure the NFA financial endowment while embracing new initiatives that bring fresh ideas and encourage global participation. I will draw upon my experience as NFA Life Member and committee member, Texas Flute Society Past President and Board Member, UNT Division Chair, and nonprofit board member to see that our resources are used wisely in the pursuit of these goals. The NFA has a truly distinguished past, and this will lead us to aspire to an exciting future.

Bio
Terri Sundberg is flute professor/chair at the University of North Texas. In 2010 she was guest artist and teacher in China as part of a State Department initiative. She has presented masterclasses and performed as soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral musician across the U.S. and abroad, including concerts in Europe, South America, Asia, and Africa. She has been a featured artist, teacher, and adjudicator at flute festivals throughout the country, including numerous NFA conventions. Recordings include the Klavier, Innova, and Capstone labels. Sundberg’s students have won numerous professional positions, fellowships, and competition prizes, including first prizes in the National Flute Association Orchestral and Artist Competitions. Sundberg’s teachers include Jeanne Baxtresser, Thomas Nyfenger, and Ernestine Whitman. She is on the board of the Shropshire Music Foundation, whose mission is to promote peace in war-torn countries through the establishment of ongoing music programs.

For Assistant Secretary/Secretary-Elect (an elected position)
A two-year commitment; will serve one year as Assistant Secretary and the following year as Secretary. One is elected.

Joanna Cowan White

I would be thrilled to serve as assistant secretary/secretary of the NFA. I would bring my organizational skills and particularly my love of professional writing to the job. At the university where I teach, I am frequently elected to represent my colleagues on the Music Council, the Academic Senate, and other committees because people know I will listen to their ideas, represent them well, and that I work well with people in formulating projects and making things happen. I also organize masterclasses and flute festivals. I am confident I could bring that same creativity and attention to detail to the National Flute Association. Assisting the NFA is a great way to work with people from all over the country and I would welcome the opportunity to help.

Bio
Joanna Cowan White, professor of flute at Central Michigan University, is principal flutist with the Saginaw Bay Orchestra, Midland Symphony, and performs with the Powers Quintet, Eclectic Trio, and Crescent Duo. She can be heard on Centaur Records and White Pine Music and has written articles for Flute Talk, Flutist Quarterly, Instrumentalist, the MSBOA Journal, and the National Association of Wind and Percussion Instructors Journal. White also conducts the Central Michigan University Flute Choir, judges for the Michigan State Band and Orchestra Association, and taught for the Interlochen All-State orchestra program. She received degrees from the University of Southern California, Northwestern University, and a D.M.A. from the University of Michigan. Her flute teachers include Walfrid Kujala, Janet Woodhams, Patricia Garside, Roger Stevens, Thomas Nyfenger, Judith Bentley, Clement Barone, and Leone Buyse.

For Assistant  Secretary/Secretary-Elect (an elected position)
A two-year commitment; will serve one year as Assistant Secretary and the following year as Secretary. One is elected.

Sean Owen

For more than a decade, I have had the pleasure of working frequently with the NFA’s highly professional staff and enthusiastic membership. Whether performing, judging competitions, or volunteering my time in a convention coordinator role, I’ve been able to witness the richness of the NFA’s membership as it continues to grow. Having served on the executive boards of many organizations, including the Rochester Flute Association, the Ohio Music Teachers Association Central East District, and the New York State Music Teachers Association District 12, and also as editor for the Central Ohio Flute Association and a member of the NFA’s Online Technology Committee, I have developed a deep understanding of the important role such organizations, particularly the NFA, have in our lives and the music world. With the help of your vote, I will vigorously serve the NFA, strengthening its momentum to carry it confidently through the 21st century.

Bio
Sean Owen is flute professor at Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Michigan, and has toured extensively, performing in Carnegie Hall, Kennedy Center, Severance Hall, and other venues throughout the United States and Europe. He has won prizes in numerous competitions including the NFA Young Artist Competition. Before joining the faculty at Grand Valley State University, Owen was a member of the U.S. Army Field Band in Washington, D.C., where he had performed as principal flute. Owen has served on the executive boards of numerous flute and music organizations and also as editor for the Central Ohio Flute Association. Additionally, he was a member of NFA’s Online Technology Committee. Owen received a bachelor of music from the Eastman School of Music, a master of music from Ohio State University, and a doctor of musical arts from Eastman. His primary teachers include Bonita Boyd, Katherine Borst Jones, Heidi Ruby-Kushious, and Beth Owen.

Sarah Jackson

The National Flute Association has a great diversity among its members. There are teachers, students, those who play for the love of it (amateurs), band players, orchestral players, piccolo players, and flute players playing instruments of all shapes, sizes, and materials just to name a few. I bring my own unique set of interests to the board, and working as a team with the rest of the board, I hope to represent all interests of our members. I am truly honored to be a board member of the unparalleled National Flute Association.

Bio
Sarah Jackson has held the position of Piccolo for the Los Angeles Philharmonic since 2003.  Prior to this, in 1993, she joined the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra (British Columbia, Canada) as Second Flute. Ms. Jackson then moved on to take the position of Assistant Principal Flute and Piccolo with the same orchestra. Ms. Jackson also taught flute and piccolo at the University of British Columbia, insisting that her students tackle the piccolo as well as the flute in their studies. Sarah Jackson is a much sought after piccolo and flute teacher, and she attracts students from across North America. Sarah is also an active chamber musician, soloist, clinician, and freelance artist, and has played for numerous films, CD recordings, and TV and radio broadcasts. In addition to orchestral playing and teaching, Sarah Jackson has frequently been engaged as soloist on both flute and piccolo in Japan, the Czech Republic, Canada, and the U.S.