Words of thanks from the 2021 Summer Dialogue Student Conductor scholarship recipients:

Rhonda Card
University of Minnesota-Duluth
I would like to thank the FMC Endowment Fund Committee for allowing me the opportunity to attend the ACDA Summer Dialogue as a Student Conductor. I was lucky enough to hear great speakers, attend dialogues, and interact with current music teachers. I learned so much from my peers and our conducting clinician, Dr. Axel Theimer, about what it means to be a conductor. It was also incredible getting to be in front of a group of singers after not experiencing much of that with the Covid-19 pandemic. I will never forget this experience and am excited to continue attending ACDA conferences as I near my career as a music educator.

Maria Schneider
College of St. Benedict
I would like to thank you for providing me with a scholarship to attend the annual Student Conductor Workshop this past August. The experience was very helpful and informational to me and my future as a music educator. I enjoyed the opportunity to network with other educators, both present and future. Since I have never attended a workshop like this before, I found it very interesting, and I learned quite a lot. I truly appreciate your generosity and I thank you again!

Huy Tran
University of Minnesota-Morris
I would like to thank the FMC Endowment Fund Committee for providing me a scholarship to attend the ACDA Summer Dialogue and participate in the Student Conductor Workshop. Being part of ACDA-MN is such a fulfilling experience. Being able to work with Dr. Theimer was an enlightening experience that I will never forget. I enjoyed making connections with my future colleagues and obtaining knowledge that will help me in my own classroom one day!

Micah Reynolds
University of Northwestern-St. Paul
Thank you so much for providing the scholarship to attend the 2021 Summer Dialogue as a student conductor. It was such an amazing opportunity to participate in the annual Student Conductor Workshop. I had a great experience and hope to attend more ACDA-MN events in the future.
Words of thanks from 2021 State Conference Transportation Grant Recipients

Richard Schrom
Fertile-Beltrami High School
I would like to thank the members of the F. Melius Christiansen Endowment fund for their contribution to our performance at the 2021 ACDA State Conference at St. Andrew’s Lutheran Church. Fertile is located over four hours away from Mahtomedi, and the grant provided by the FMC Endowment made our means of transportation to the event worry free. The Fertile-Beltrami School District is thankful for the opportunity that our choir had to perform at such a tremendous venue. We were honored to represent the Northwest district of Minnesota ACDA. It is a performance that was cherished by the choir members, school administration, community members, and all others in attendance.

Seana Graber
Luverne High School
I want to thank you for supporting the choral arts in Minnesota and for establishing the State Conference Transportation Grant. The Luverne High School Concert Choir was a recipient of this grant and I am so grateful for this gift. To have one of my choirs perform at the conference was a thrill for me! The singers in my choir thoroughly enjoyed their conference experience as well. I was grateful they were able to participate in one of the concerts and were able to observe both the Fertile-Beltrami High School and Bethel University choirs. The students could not stop talking about their experience when we returned to school on Monday. It was a great learning opportunity and I am so thankful you helped make this possible. Thank you for honoring us with the transportation grant.

Nicole Thietje
Northfield Youth Choirs
We are so grateful for the transportation grant from the FMC Endowment Fund. After the financial toll of the pandemic, this grant was a wonderful gift that allowed us to work towards stabilizing our budget. This grant directly impacted our singers by providing a way to make their appearance possible. Thank you to the FMC Endowment Committee and all those who have contributed to the fund. Your generosity continues to make an impact on our choral community.