ACDA student chapters are active on dozens of campuses nationwide, and even in a few high schools and conservatories. Are you interested?
Is there an existing chapter? First look to see if the chapter at your school is active. Below is the list of active student chapters, current as of March 12, 2021. If your school is listed, find out when meetings are!
Was there once a chapter that you can reactive? If you don’t see your school listed as having a chapter, contact Trina Kopacka, ACDA membership & communications coordinator, to see if there ever was one. If yes, you can easily reactivate the chapter by submitting a Reactivation Form. Establish a chapter! If there is not and has not ever been, a student chapter at your institution, it’s a straight forward process to establish one. We offer you a variety of resources and suggestions:
If you want to establish a brand new student chapter, once you lay the groundwork on campus, please submit:
- a completed application form (see link above)
- a copy of your student chapter constitution
We require that your chapter adviser be a current ACDA member, as well as your student chapter president. Of course, we encourage all of the student chapter members to be ACDA members, and for the 2020-2021 school year, all new and renewing student memberships are $5.
Kudos!
Outstanding Student Chapter. University of Southern California (Dr. Cristian Grases, faculty advisor) was recently named the 2021 Outstanding Student Chapter. The Outstanding Student Chapter Award recognizes an ACDA student chapter that, through its activities, best supports the advancement of choral music. ACDA Student Activities Chair Dr. David Edmonds noted that “The USC chapter stood out in many ways, including how they have championed diversity and social justice by supporting and raising money for many local movements, in the valuable presentations and collaborations they hosted to enrich their student members, and in the wonderful opportunities — including their Choral Collective Choir — which they have provided to their campus community in order to prepare future teachers for their careers ahead.”
The Outstanding Student Chapter Award is made biennially at the national ACDA conference. The USC Student Chapter will have a representative at the virtual ACDA national conference (March 18-20, 2021), where the award will be officially made. Previous award winners include student chapters at Ithaca College, Northern Arizona University, and Michigan State.
Do you Lead an Active Chapter?
- Submit your annual report by May 15 in order to keep it active for the following school year, and help us stay in touch so that you receive news of student and chapter opportunities.
- Share news about your chapter! We want to highlight your success. Send photos of your group to Trina Kopacka so we can feature you on our Instagram Highlights (@acda_nation)! Additionally, Choral Journal regularly includes “Student Chapter Updates.” Email news updates and photos to Trina Kopacka. (Updates should be 250 words or fewer and include your institution’s name and your contact information.)
- Looking for ideas? Successful collegiate ACDA chapters tend to use the following guidelines in planning their year:
- Encourage and stimulate student membership and involvement in ACDA at the state, division, and national levels.
- Promote and recognize the involvement of ACDA student chapters on college campuses.
- Sponsor activities and sessions at the local level that engage the training and experience of student choral musicians.
- Encourage student attendance and involvement at ACDA region and national conferences through scholarship projects.
- Chapter activities can include events like the following:
- Student symposia and workshops
- Conducting masterclasses
- Reading sessions
- Sponsorship of activities and sessions at ACDA conferences that directly relate to the training and experience of student choral musicians
Ready for a bigger adventure? ChorTransform is a new program for chapters structured around the tenets of service-learning and takes students out of their usual settings into underserved choral programs and populations. More here.
For additional information and ideas for student chapters, please email David Edmonds, national repertoire and resources chair for student activities.
