The College Music Society: Advancing Music
The College Music Society's mission is to advance music in education by supporting innovative practices across all disciplines.
Welcome back to school! To those in the semester system, I hope the first couple of weeks are going smoothly for you, and your year is off to a good start. To my colleagues on trimesters, enjoy the next couple of weeks, and we’ll be thinking of you in May!
I’m overjoyed to report that the CMS Board of Directors has approved and adopted new and freshly updated mission, vision, and values statements. This process began three years ago when the CMS Board of Directors hired an external consultant to conduct a 360° review of our organization and operations systems. From our report delivered to the Board at the 2023 CMS National Conference in Miami, the item we identified as our top priority was the necessity to clarify and re-author the words we use to describe and inspire those in our organization. It became clear that, while our previous words were complete and accurate, they were also verbose and unspecific. Anecdotally, most of us would agree that if we were to ask our colleagues what CMS does and why one should become a member, we would get as many different responses as we have members!
In January 2024, as a newly minted President, I formed a task force to reevaluate the CMS mission, vision, and values statements and to provide a recommendation to the CMS Board of Directors. It was essential to create this task force to represent the organization's various stakeholders, and I invited the following outstanding members to serve. I am most grateful to CMS Past President Dr. Betty Anne Younker for serving as the Chair of this task force, herding all of the cats, and bringing this work to fruition.
- Kate Hamori (Student Representative)
- Imani Mosley (Board Representative)
- Alisha Nypaver (Regional Leadership President)
- Leila Pertl (CMS Committee Chair)
- Jennifer Snow (External Partnerships)
- Betty Anne Younker, Chair (CMS Past President)
The task force produced a comprehensive survey, which was distributed to the membership during the summer and fall of 2024 in advance of a CMS Board workshop, held during the 2024 CMS National Conference in Washington, D.C. Over the six subsequent months, the task force reflected and compiled the thoughts of our members into what has emerged as beautifully concise and inspiring words to bring us into the next era as The College Music Society.
As President of The College Music Society, I’m especially energized by our new mission statement. This is the kind of message that can unite and inspire all of us in music higher education to make CMS our first professional home. I believe CMS is uniquely positioned to connect across all of our disciplines and help bring us together in creativity, belonging, technology, and advocacy. This organization is capable of fearless conversations about who we want to become in the future. I invite you to join us in this conversation at the upcoming National Conference in Spokane and CMS Summit in Houston this January!
Mission
The College Music Society's mission is to advance music in education by supporting innovative practices across all disciplines.
Vision
CMS aims to inspire and cultivate innovation in music learning across the globe. We are a hub for shared wisdom, brave conversations, and collective creativity for the benefit of all.
Values
The College Music Society’s values:
- A lifelong journey of enriching the artistic experience.
- An expanding body of scholarship that is innovative and impactful.
- An engaging and diverse community that is inclusive and respectful while working collaboratively to remove barriers through reconciliatory conversations.
- A creative leadership that reflects the integrity of The CMS’s engagement and work.
Description
The College Music Society is dedicated to the advancement of music teaching, learning, scholarship, performance, and creative activity. Rooted in higher education, CMS serves as an inclusive forum for dialogue and collaboration among music professionals across all disciplines and career paths. We support faculty, students, independent scholars, and industry partners by fostering innovation, promoting diversity, and encouraging the exchange of ideas to shape the future of music in society. Through advocacy, professional development, and community engagement, CMS empowers its members to lead and inspire in academic, artistic, and entrepreneurial contexts.
BC
Brian Kai Chin
President, College Music Society
