Virtual WCSMA Open House
October 4 & 5, 2021
NYSSMA Down-County Festival
March 4-5, 2022
Lisa Forte, Host
Scarsdale School District
NYSSMA Strings 1-4 Festival
March 25-26,2022
Pete Pauliks, Host
Byram Hills School District
NYSSMA Up-County Festival
April 1-2, 2022
Dr. John Banks, Host
Briarcliff School District
Dear colleagues,
I hope you all had a restful, rejuvenating summer and that your return to school is going well. I wanted to take this opportunity to inform you of some updates for the 2021-2022 school year in regard to festivals:
- Similar to most other zones across the state, the November Area All-State festival will not take place this year.
- At this time, All-State ensembles in Rochester are still scheduled to be in-person this December. However, there will be no bus offered from WCSMA this year and students/districts must provide their own transportation.
- Decisions about All-County festivals have not been made at this time.
- As of right now, our spring NYSSMA solo festivals are scheduled for in-person. Please note the dates/locations below:
Down-County Festival (no strings 1-4, no piano)
March 4-5, 2022
Lisa Forte, Host
Scarsdale School District
Strings 1-4 Festival (no 5-6 or All-State)
March 25-26, 2022
Pete Pauliks, Host
Byram Hills School District
Up-County Festival, including Jazz/Guitar/Harp (no strings 1-4, no piano)
April 1-2, 2022
Dr. John Banks, Host
Briarcliff School District
Piano Festival
June 3-4, 2022
Location TBD – please let me know if you are interested in hosting, as we do not have a location at this time.
Thank you for your patience and understanding as we try to navigate another year of uncertainty. I wish you all a wonderful school year.
Kimberly Dunkin
NYSSMA Zone 11 Representative
WCSMA Open House
Dear WCSMA Member:
On behalf of the Westchester County School Music Association, I would like to invite you to our 40th Annual Open House! This event will be a virtual meet-and-greet: an opportunity to meet the WCSMA Board and many of our colleagues from Westchester County.
The details are:
Monday, October 4th from 4:00 – 4:30: Elementary General and Choral Teachers
Monday, October 4th from 7:00 – 7:30: Elementary and Secondary Instrumental Teachers
Tuesday, October 5th from 4:00 – 4:30: Secondary Instrumental Teachers
Please use the link below to RSVP for this year’s Open House, which will be held virtually on Zoom
Feel free to attend the session that your current teaching role is most identifiable with or attend multiple sessions to get to know many others from throughout Westchester County.
Zoom links will be sent out prior to the event, and RSVP is highly encouraged. Please be on the lookout for more information in your inboxes.
Thank you for your membership and participation in the Westchester County School Music Association. We hope you have had a great start to the school year and we are looking forward to seeing you in the coming weeks!
Sincerely,
Jamie Stroffolino
President-elect, Westchester County School Music Association
Membership Renewal
Membership renewal information for the 2021-2022 school year can be found here.
Sincerely,
TJ Bastone
Kimberly Dunkin, NYSSMA Zone 11 Representative
Dear WCSMA members,
My name is Kimberly Dunkin and I am your new NYSSMA Zone 11 Representative. I have been teaching in the Hendrick Hudson school district since 2006, initially as a K-5 General/Choral teacher, and for the past seven years I have been teaching Chorus and General Music at the middle school level.
As a WCSMA member, I have been active on the Board of Directors as the Hospitality Chairperson for the past three years. In the spring of 2019, my colleagues and I hosted the Up County NYSSMA Festival at Hendrick Hudson. I’m sure we have seen one another at the All-County and Area All-State festival rehearsals and performances, as I’m often at the piano bench accompanying!
Former Zone Rep Nancy Torrente and I have been working closely this past school year and it is a sincere honor to fill her shoes in this position as your representative. She has been an incredible mentor and friend and I am humbled to follow in her footsteps. Please feel free to reach out to me with any NYSSMA concerns if needed. I can be reached at: zone11@nyssma.org.
I so look forward to working with all of you!
Kimberly