2022 CVPA Outstanding Student Mentor, and 2016 JMU Woman of Distinction, Dr. Jo-Anne van der Vat-Chromy brings to JMU a rich and diverse career of international performance and teaching. As JMU Director of Choral Activities, Dr. van der Vat-Chromy directs The Madison Singers,the JMU Chorale, the UCSA: University Chorus Soprano/Alto Ensemble, and coordinates the VMRC Generations Choir, an intergenerational choral practicum here in Harrisonburg. A certified Kodály music educator, Dr. V. is a proud faculty member of Kodály Institutes at Midwestern State University in Wichita Falls, TX, and JMU. The 2012-2014 Interim Music Director for the Shenandoah Valley Children's Choir, currently Dr. V. is the JMU Vocal Arts Summer Camp director, has served for four years as Coordinator of the JMU Voice Area and is currently co-coordinator of the JMU Ensemble Area. An active adjudicator, clinician, and guest conductor, Dr. V’s research interests include the kinesthetic connections in conducting pedagogy, the integration of Kodály methodology into collegiate choral performance, and the sociological impact of choral cultures on student learning and the experience of flow. Recently dubbed by the renowned choral ensemble The King’s Singers ‘our collective fairy-godmother,’ Dr. van der Vat-Chromy was awarded the 2022 Shirley Hanson Roberts (’56) and Richard D. Roberts Endowment for Faculty Excellence, a university-wide endowed award for excellence in student engagement, collaborative learning, growth, and self-discovery.

THE FIELD OF DREAMS

Safety is the basis;

     amelioration is the strategy;

          competency is the knowledge;

               critical thinking is the tool;

                    transfer is the key;

                        behaviors are the power;

                              flow is the result.

Expression is the gift;

     love is the fuel;

          sharing is the opportunity;

               culture is the medium;

                    best practices are the power;

                         creativity is the manifestation;

                              consciousness is the transcendence.

Change is the constant;

     oneness is the knowing;

          mindfulness is the alignment;

               experience is the doing;

                    growth is the purpose;

                         wholeness is the container;

                              evolution is the journey.

Dreams are the field.

     You are the dream.

          You are the field.

               You are the Field of Dreams.