The Tennessee Performing Arts Center (TPAC) announces the appointment of Dr. Nola Jones to its 2014-15 Board of Directors, replacing the seat left vacant by Dr. Kathleen Airhart.
Dr. Jones is the Coordinator of Visual and Performing Arts for Metro Nashville Public Schools, where she provides instructional supervision of 400 professional arts education specialists, curriculum planning and implementation of “Music Makes Us,” the public/private partnership between MNPS, Nashville Mayor Karl Dean, and music industry and community leaders.
“This is a tremendous honor for me and for Metro Schools,” said Dr. Jones. “TPAC is an incredible education partner and resource for our schools. To be asked to lend our district voice to the leadership and guidance of this Tennessee institution is a great opportunity, and I am excited to get to work.”
Dr. Jones is appointed to the board by Tennessee Commissioner of Education Dr. Candice McQueen, who according to the organization’s bylaws, may serve on the board or appoint a designee.
“I’m pleased to have worked with the Tennessee Performing Arts Center to ensure its Board of Directors has strong, effective representation from the education commission,” said Commissioner McQueen. “With her experience and passion for arts education, Dr. Jones will be a strong addition to the board.”
“We are thrilled with Commissioner McQueen's appointment of Dr. Jones to our Board of Directors," said Kathleen O’Brien, TPAC president and chief executive officer. “Her leadership and passion in the areas of arts and music education are quite impressive, and we look forward to her involvement and guidance in the five TPAC Education programs that we deliver to school children and adults.”
Dr. Jones joins current directors Barbara T. Bovender, John E. Cody, Beth S. Courtney, Ansel L. Davis, Emanuel J. Eads, Donna G. Eskind, Rod Essig, Leslie Fram, Charles J. Hall, J. Reginald Hill, Martha R. Ingram, Christine Karbowiak, Beverly Keel, Bill Lynch, Melvin J. Malone, Marcus McKamey, Nathan Poss, Andrew Tavi, Rhonda Taylor, Dr. Philip Wenk, Gail Williams, Uzi Yemin, and board intern Chambre Malone.
The chairman of the board is C. Dale Allen, Partner at Adams and Reese, LLP. Other officers include Ron Corbin, Principal at RBBC Holdings, as vice chairman; Jim Schmitz, Middle Tennessee Area President for Regions Financial, as vice chairman and treasurer; Larry Stessel, Managing Partner at Revolver Marketing Group, as secretary, and Claire Tucker, President and Chief Executive Officer of Capstar Bank, as immediate past chairman.
The Tennessee Performing Arts Center Management Corporation is governed by a 27-member Board of Directors. Eight of these directors are appointed by the Tennessee Performing Arts Foundation, which led the efforts for TPAC and raised an endowment to support TPAC operations. Four directors are named by the Tennessee Arts Commission and four directors are named by the Governor of the State of Tennessee, with one of the Governor's appointees being the Commissioner of Education of the State of Tennessee or a designee. The TPAC Board may elect up to four members. Directors serve for a term of three years, and the board meets four times a year in Nashville.
About Dr. Nola Jones
Dr. Nola Jones is the Coordinator of Visual and Performing Arts for Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools in Nashville, Tennessee. Her duties include instructional supervision of four hundred professional arts education specialists, curriculum planning and implementation of Music Makes Us. Music Makes Us is a public/private partnership among Metro Nashville Public Schools, Nashville Mayor Karl Dean and music industry and community leaders in Nashville. Its purpose is to ensure Metro Nashville Public Schools is a worldwide leader in music education, bringing the resources of the Nashville music community together to enable participation and foster student success for all of its 82,000 students.
Prior to her appointment in Nashville, Dr. Jones served as Director of Bands and Associate Professor of Music Education at the University of Tennessee at Martin. Before joining the UT Martin faculty, Dr. Jones served as Assistant Director of Bands and Assistant Professor of Music Education at Northern Arizona University.
Dr. Jones maintains an active schedule as a guest conductor, adjudicator, arts education consultant and clinician. She has appeared nationally in 38 of the United States and internationally in Canada, Japan, the Netherlands and Singapore. At the request of the National Association for Music Education she served on its Blue Ribbon Committee to write National Standards for Marching Band. She has served as a panelist in presentations for Americans for the Arts, the National Association for Music Education, the National Association of Music Merchants and Leadership Nashville. Dr. Jones has been a featured presenter at professional development conferences in Arizona, California, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina. She held positions on the Executive Board of the Middle Tennessee State Band and Orchestra Association, serves as the Tennessee state chair for the National Band Association and is currently serving as Eta Chapter President of Phi Beta Mu International Bandmasters Fraternity. Professional affiliations include National Association for Music Education, Tennessee Music Educators Association, Tennessee Bandmasters Association, Middle Tennessee School Band and Orchestra Association, National Band Association, College Band Directors National Association, Phi Beta Mu, Sigma Alpha Iota, Tau Beta Sigma and Kappa Kappa Psi.
Dr. Jones received the Bachelor of Music Education degree from Mississippi State University and the Master of Music Education degree from Mississippi College. She received her Doctorate of Musical Arts from the University of South Carolina.