Matt Strauser elected Oregon ACDA President
November 9, 2009
Dr. Matthew Strauser, Corban’s Director of Choral Activities and Music Education, has been elected the next president of Oregon’s American Choral Directors Association (ACDA). This commitment to the professional organization includes two years as president elect and two years presidency (in 2011–2013), followed by two years as past-president, for the goal of continuity of leadership. Strauser was peer-elected for the 6-year term.
“Since coming to Corban in the fall of 1999,” said Strauser, “it has been one of my goals to create positive peer recognition of Corban’s collegiate choral music program. I am hopeful that my election, by popular vote, reflects progress toward this goal.”
Celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, ACDA is a music-education nonprofit whose central purpose, according to its website, “is to promote excellence in choral music through performance, composition, publication, research, and teaching. In addition, ACDA strives through arts advocacy to elevate choral music’s position in American society.”
ACDA is organized nationally, regionally, and by state. Prior to election as president, Strauser has already served the Oregon board as Church Music Representative and as Student Activities Representative. He has also been the Northwest board’s Church Music Representative.
As president-elect, Strauser’s responsibilities beyond board meetings include helping to plan and organize a summer workshop for Oregon directors and another workshop (in January) on sacred music, writing regular columns for the journal Oregon ACDA Choral Focus, and helping facilitate the every-other-year Northwest ACDA conference. The next Northwest conference will be held in Seattle in 2010.
In addition to his formal ACDA responsibilities, Strauser has been very active in the area’s choral community this last decade. In the springs of 2006 and 2007, Corban hosted Oregon’s ACDA Collegiate Festival, an annual event that showcases college choirs from all over the state. More recently, Strauser directed three choral sight-singing workshops on campus, which he has done for 10 years.
Next Saturday Corban will host the ACDA Adjudicator Certification Workshop. Strauser explains, “ACDA is responsible to oversee choral festival judging in Oregon. For the last several years, Corban has hosted this event for Oregon choral directors who need to apply for or renew their certification. Candidates adjudicate the performing choir—this year the choir is Western Mennonite—and these adjudications are then examined to determine judge qualifications.”
Another of Strauser’s privileges, he says, is to advise Corban’s collegiate chapters of Oregon Music Educators Association (OMEA) and the newly instated chapter of ACDA on campus. “This is part of our on-going effort to give our music education students professional opportunities. Attending conferences, reading and writing for the publications, and rubbing shoulders with recognized experts connect Corban’s music educators to invaluable resources for their professional development.”
Click here for more information on music or music education at Corban. For ACDA members interested in attending the Adjudicator Certification Workshop, contact Strauser at mstrauser@corban.edu or at the Music Department at 503-375-7019.
By Jenny Hirschfelder, Staff Writer, Office of Marketing & Communications
503-375-7005 | jhirschfelder@corban.edu
