2026 BTAA Music Education Conference, University of Illinois October 21-23, 2026

CONFERENCE SCHEDULE:

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Wednesday, October 21

5:00 - 6:00pm: Check-in/Badge pick up in lobby of the Crown Plaza Hotel, near registration desk

6:00pm+: Informal Gathering at Crown Plaza hotel bar, The Visibility Bar [food and drink on your own]. Casual dress; you are encouraged to wear your school colors and spirit gear!

PLACES TO EAT, DRINK, AND BE MERRY…CLICK HERE FOR AREA DETAILS

Thursday, October 22

8:00 - 9:00am: Breakfast provided at the Big Ten Conference Center, Dining Room.

9:00 - 9:30am: Welcome & Introductions, room 202/203/205

9:30 - 10:30am: Graduate Research Presentations #1 [SCHEDULE HERE]

10:30 - 11:00am: Networking Break and Snack, Big Ten CC Dining Room

11:00 - 12:30pm: University of Illinois Panel on Community Engagement with Rebecca MacLeod, Angie D. Howell, Jess Mullen, Eric Brown, Adam Kruse, Pete Shungu, Donna Gallo, and Mike Vecchio, room 202/203/205

12:30 - 1:45pm: Lunch provided at the Big Ten Conference Center, Dining Room

1:45 - 2:45pm: Graduate Research Presentations #2

2:45 - 3:45pm: Graduate Research Presentations #3

3:45 - 4:45pm: Interest Groups Breakout Sessions [GROUPS ORGANIZED HERE]

  • Community Engagement 1 with Lauren Ryals meeting on the far side of room 202/203/205

  • Community Engagement 2 with Adrian Davis meeting in room 245

  • Equity with Adam Harry, Lauren Richerme, and Bob Woody meeting in room 246

  • Interdisciplinary Partnerships 1 with Steve Morrison, Mary Cohen, and Amanda Draper meeting on the near side of room 202/203/205

  • Interdisciplinary Partnerships 2 with Jeremy Manternach and Stephanie Cronenberg meeting in the BTCC Dining Room

  • Preservice Teacher Supervision with Clayton Dahm and Catherine Grimm meeting in room 206

4:45pm: Depart the Big Ten Conference Center [we need to be cleared out by 5:00pm.]

5:00pm+: Your time to go and do whatever you would like! Kings Dining & Entertainment (Pool, Bowling, Arcade – right across from Big Ten CC) will be the gathering hub for those looking to pursue the traditional games of skill and competition! AREA DETAILS HERE!

Friday, October 23

8:00 - 9:00am: Breakfast provided at the Big Ten Conference Center, Dining Room.

9:00a - 10:30am: Stage of Career Breakout Sessions:

Graduate Students with Jess Mullen, Marjoris Regus, Danni Gilbert, and Francisco Reyes in room 202/203/205

Early Career/Assistant Professor with Donna Gallo and Mike Vecchio in room 206

Post-Tenure to Full Professor and Beyond… with Bridget Sweet-Manternach in room 245

10:30 - 11:00am: Networking Break and Snack, Big Ten CC Dining Room

11:00 - 12:30pm: Institutional Reports, room 202/203/205, 4 minutes maximum per institution

 

Graduate Research Presentations: Instead of a traditional poster session, BTAA will feature "research elevator talks.” We will form small roundtable groups and each presenter/group will have 5 minutes for sharing their elevator talk, followed by 5 minutes for discussion. Presentations may be: (a) reports of completed research; (b) research in progress; (c) literature reviews; (d) position papers on critical issues in music education; or (e) presentations of “promising” music education practices. Each presenter/group will be grouped with several others and will present their 5-minute talk in a roundtable format. Presenters should consider using printed handouts and/or a QR code that directs users to slides readable on smart phones or smaller devices. 

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