As we gear up for the upcoming AMEA elections, it’s crucial to learn about the candidates nominated for the roles of President-elect and Recording Secretary. These positions play a significant role in guiding our organization’s path and ensuring the continued excellence of music education in Alabama. We invite our members to explore the candidate profiles to make informed decisions for our association’s bright future.
AMEA President-Elect Candidates
Dr. Becky Halliday is a professor of music at the University of Montevallo, where she teaches courses in music education with a specialty in general music. In addition, to her teaching responsibilities, she is the founding Director of the University of Montevallo Kodaly Institute (UMKI), a teacher training course that is in endorsed by the organization of American Kodaly, Educators (OAKE), and a co-Director of the University of Montevallo Young Musicians Camp. Prior to her appointment at UM, she taught elementary general music in Georgia and Mississippi for 17 years. Dr. Halliday is currently in her sixth year as a volunteer in Bibb County, teaching Pre-K – 6th grade elementary general music at Randolph Elementary School, giving her undergraduate music education majors the opportunity to observe and teach under her direct supervision. She has been the recipient of a notable award, including the distinguished teacher award for the university of Montevallo College of Fine Arts and the Lacey Powell Outstanding Music Educators Award for the Alabama Music Educators Association.
As a clinician, Dr. Halliday has led elementary music workshops related to curriculum and instruction framed in both the Kodaly concept and the Orff Schulwerk approach, arts integration, and basic conducting. Her presentations have been featured in state and national conferences, including the upcoming OAKE national conference in March 2024. She has also served as a conductor of children’s choir in Alabama, Florida, and Georgia, including the AMEA Elementary Honor Choir. As a scholar, she has publications in state and national journals, and has presented at conferences across the country, including the NAfME Research Symposium, the Mountain Lake Colloquium, and the American Educational Research Association Conference. Her work on the committee to revise the 2006 Alabama Course of Studies for fine arts has since let her to conduct presentations across the state to assist teachers in understanding and applying the 2017 state standards. Her current research initiatives include a comparison of song repertoire found in and across multiple general music textbook series from the 20th century to the present, as well as researching an analyzing children’s folk songs and singing games that originated in Alabama. In addition, she has served in leadership positions with the Sweet Home Alabama Kodaly Educators (SHAKE) chapter of OAKE and the Higher Education Division of AMEA. Currently, she serves as Southern Division Representative for NAfME’S’s council of General Music Education. She earned her PhD in music education from the University of Southern Mississippi, and both her MMEd and BMUS from the University of Georgia. She hold certifications in both the Orff-Schulwerk Approach through the University of Kentucky and the Kodaly Concepts through the University of Montevallo Kodaly Institute.
Dr. Travis Bender is the fine arts department chair and associate Director of bands at Oak Mountain High School. He currently serves as the ABA district for chairman. In 2019, Dr. Bender was named the Oak Mountains “Teacher of the Year. ” Prior to joining the OMHS faculty, he served as Director of Bands at Liberty Park Middle School, where he was named “Teacher of the Year” in 2011. His duties at OMHS include teaching the symphonic band, jazz band, marching band, chamber music, and band techniques. Dr. Bender has written the marching band drill and co-arrange the music for Oak Mountains “Spirit of Cahaba” Marching Band since 2014.
Dr. Bender is a graduate of the University of Alabama, where he received his bachelor’s and master’s degree in music education. While attending UA, he served as a drum major of the “Million Dollar Band” and as conductor of the Tuscaloosa Winds, a community band for the western Alabama region. In addition to his conducting capacities, Dr. Bender also performed extensively as the pianist for the Alabama Wind Ensemble for six years and as a trombonist for the symphonic band and various pep bands. His professional affiliations include NAfME, ABA, NBA, and the music honorary, Phi Kappa Lambda. Under his leadership, Dr. Bender’s bands have consistently received superior ratings at contests and festivals. His bands were invited to perform at the Alabama Music Educators Association Conference in 2012 and 2019. He has also conducted ensembles at the CBDNA Southern Conference (2014), Carnegie Hall (2015), and the Music for All National Band Festival (2016). Dr. Bender’s bands have received first place awards at the Dixie Classic Grand National Adjudicators Festival (2013), the Smoky Mountain Music Festival (2019), and Festival Disney (2012 and 2017). He has coordinated the Oak Mountain “Spirit of Cahaba” Marching Band performances in the National Cherry Blossom Parade (2018) as well as parades at Walt Disney World’s Epcot (2017) and Magic Kingdom (2020). Dr. Bender has presented sessions at the 2014 and 2016 AMEA Conference, the 2018 MSERA Conference, and the 2021 ABA Summer Conference. In addition to music instruction, Dr. Bender has a strong interest in student and teacher leadership as well as music advocacy. He holds a second Masters degree, an Educational Specialist degree, and a doctorate of education in Educational Leadership from Samford University. Beyond teaching, Dr. Bender is actively involved as an elder at Crossbridge Church and love serving as the VBS worship leader each year. He currently resides in Birmingham, Alabama with his wife, Krista, a fifth grade teacher at Oak Mountain intermediate school. They have one daughter, Madison, and one son, Matthew.
AMEA Recording Secretary Candidates
Heather Holmes serves as Director of Bands at Oak Mountain Middle School in Birmingham, AL. The OMMS Band program is the largest band program in Shelby County and has approximately 330 students. The bands consistently perform at a high level and receive regular superior ratings. During the school day, Mrs. Holmes teaches three Beginner Band classes, Concert Band, Symphonic Band, and Advanced Band.
Mrs. Holmes received her Bachelor of Science in Music Education from the University of Alabama. She achieved National Board Certification in Early and Middle Childhood Music in December 2022. Mrs. Holmes is currently pursuing a Master’s Degree in Instructional Leadership at the University of Montevallo. Prior to her appointment at Oak Mountain Middle School, she served as the band director at her alma mater, Brooks High School, for five years.
Outside of the classroom, Mrs. Holmes serves as Recording Secretary for the Alabama Music Educators Association and Secretary for the Shelby County Band Directors Association. She is a member of the OMMS School Leadership Team and was named Oak Mountain Middle School’s Teacher of the Year in 2016. Mrs. Holmes is active as a guest clinician and conductor for middle school bands throughout the region.
Her professional affiliations include the National Association for Music Education, American School Band Directors Association, Alabama Music Educators Association, Alabama Bandmasters Association, and Sigma Alpha Iota.
In addition to teaching, Mrs. Holmes sings with the First Baptist Pelham Church Choir and helps direct the Children’s Choir. She resides in Birmingham with her husband, Jason, and their two children, Ella and William.
Dr. Morgan Soja is the Director of Music Education at Samford University. She earned her PhD and MM in Music Education from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and her BM in Music Education from Bowling Green State University. She has certificates in Kodaly levels I and II, Orff Level I, II, and III, and GIML introductions to MLT and Elementary General Music Coursework. Soja has participated in initiatives with the Supporting Beginning Music Teachers area of strategic planning and action of SMTE. She has presented frequently at state and national NAfME conferences, and at workshops throughout Alabama and North Carolina.
