The Hastings College Choir is often referred to as our flagship ensemble by current students, alumni and faculty members alike. With this title comes the responsibility to represent the college at formal events, like HC Sunday and Baccalaureate, as well as traveling to represent the college. 

The choir has recently been bestowed with an honor that hasn’t graced the ensemble in over 20 years: Performing as a selected ensemble at the Nebraska Music Educators Association (NMEA) Conference on November 21st in Lincoln. Juniors Angie Amaya and Summer Postlewait, both long-time attendees of the conference and music education majors, shared their excitement about the choir’s selection. 

“NMEA is a great opportunity for current, future and even past music educators to get a statewide understanding of our mission as music teachers,” Postelwait said. The conference is widely attended as a professional development event by music teachers across the state as they hope to learn more about the latest technology in music education, as well as new pedagogy techniques and strategies for exposing students to different kinds of music. 

“It gives us strategies to use in our classrooms and makes us think about things we might not have thought about before like diversity, something you didn’t see a lot of in my small town,” Postlewait said. 

Amaya, from Hastings, agreed. “I see a ton of examples of what I can do as an educator, and a wide range of tips and tricks for me to use in my classroom,” she said. 

HC has long been renowned for its music department, but the department has been challenged in recent years with budget cuts, the pandemic and faculty changes. In recent years, the department seems to have found its feet again, reminding southern and central Nebraska what a fixture to postsecondary music education it is. 

The choir performing at this conference after more than two decades away from the stage is a major step towards the choir and the college getting more exposure to potential students, as well as future partnerships. 

“I think this is a historic moment for Hastings College. Being selected to perform at this conference is a huge honor,” Amaya said. “It means a lot to me to be able to be a part of this.” 

Director Brett Epperson also shares this sentiment, expressing great pride in his choir. “Being selected to perform at our state music education conference after two decades away is hopefully a demonstration of a resurgence in this excellence in our music program – excellence that we hope continues to grow and make Hastings College proud in the years to come.”