The Virtual Academy

Ruth E. Dwyer is internationally recognized as a youth and children’s choir specialist and Kodály educator. She is a frequent guest conductor and clinician for national and international colleges, universities, honors choirs, and festivals. Dwyer has recently retired from the Indianapolis Children’s Choir after thirty-six years as a conductor and director of education and as artistic director of the Columbus Indiana Children’s Choir. Her ensembles have performed across North America, Spain, and central Europe. Her teaching experiences also include nineteen years as a public school music educator and as an adjunct professor with Butler University. Dwyer has authored several music education textbooks for Illinois Central College and is a frequent guest author for the Hal Leonard choral music text book series. She is an accomplished composer, arranger, and is the editor of the Ruth Dwyer Choral Series with Colla Voce Music, LLC.

William L. Lake, Jr. is the director of concert bands for the school of music at George Mason University where he conducts the George Mason University Wind Symphony and Symphonic Band. He also teaches conducting and wind literature classes. Previously, he served as associate director of bands and assistant professor of music education at the Crane School of Music for the State University of New York at Potsdam, where he was co-conductor of the Northern Symphonic Winds, principal conductor of the Crane Concert Band, and guest conductor of the Crane Wind Ensemble. Lake earned his doctorate in instrumental conducting from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro under the mentorship of John R. Locke and Kevin Geraldi.

Lake maintains an active performance and clinic schedule as a guest conductor and lecturer nationwide. In March 2024, he was named the music and artistic director of the Capital Wind Symphony. Recently, Lake served as a collaborating author for two books, Teaching Instrumental Music: Perspectives and Pedagogies for the 21st Century (Oxford University Press) and Music Education on the Verge: Stories of Pandemic Teaching and Transformative Change (Lexington Books). As a passionate advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion, Lake has presented numerous seminars across the United States on inclusive practices in music education and performance.

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William L. Lake, Jr. is the director of concert bands for the school of music at George Mason University where he conducts the George Mason University Wind Symphony and Symphonic Band. He also teaches conducting and wind literature classes. Previously, he served as associate director of bands and assistant professor of music education at the Crane School of Music for the State University of New York at Potsdam, where he was co-conductor of the Northern Symphonic Winds, principal conductor of the Crane Concert Band, and guest conductor of the Crane Wind Ensemble. Lake earned his doctorate in instrumental conducting from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro under the mentorship of John R. Locke and Kevin Geraldi.

Lake maintains an active performance and clinic schedule as a guest conductor and lecturer nationwide. In March 2024, he was named the music and artistic director of the Capital Wind Symphony. Recently, Lake served as a collaborating author for two books, Teaching Instrumental Music: Perspectives and Pedagogies for the 21st Century (Oxford University Press) and Music Education on the Verge: Stories of Pandemic Teaching and Transformative Change (Lexington Books). As a passionate advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion, Lake has presented numerous seminars across the United States on inclusive practices in music education and performance.

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Felicia Barber is an adjunct associate professor of choral conducting, and conductor of the Yale Camerata at Yale University. In addition to teaching graduate-level and undergraduate choral conductors, Barber is developing a new initiative designed to prepare Yale students to work with young musicians on choral music in both school and church settings. Her research interests include effective teaching strategies, fostering classroom diversity, incorporating equity and justice initiatives in choral curricula, and the linguistic performance practice of African American spirituals. Barber is regularly engaged as a guest conductor at All-State festivals and will conduct at the American Choral Directors Association eastern division conference in 2024 and the Carnegie Hall Festival in 2025. She holds a degree in vocal performance from Oral Roberts University, a master’s degree from Mansfield University, and a doctorate from Florida State University.

Felicia Barber is an adjunct associate professor of choral conducting, and conductor of the Yale Camerata at Yale University. In addition to teaching graduate-level and undergraduate choral conductors, Barber is developing a new initiative designed to prepare Yale students to work with young musicians on choral music in both school and church settings. Her research interests include effective teaching strategies, fostering classroom diversity, incorporating equity and justice initiatives in choral curricula, and the linguistic performance practice of African American spirituals. Barber is regularly engaged as a guest conductor at All-State festivals and will conduct at the American Choral Directors Association eastern division conference in 2024 and the Carnegie Hall Festival in 2025. She holds a degree in vocal performance from Oral Roberts University, a master’s degree from Mansfield University, and a doctorate from Florida State University.

Jonathan Bernstein’s plays and musicals have been produced all over the country. Under the auspices of the Jerome Robbins Foundation, he is currently developing a new project with actress and choreographer Susan Misner entitled Here in the Bright Colorado Sun. His directing credits include work at the Atlantic Theater Company, Signature Theater, the Kennedy Center, Ensemble Studio Theater, and many others. He has worked at New York’s City Center, Manhattan Theatre Club, Second Stage Theater, Roundabout Theatre Company, and the 52nd Street Project. Supervising director credits include the still-running revival of Chicago, overseeing both the Broadway production and the many national and international productions it has spawned. He is a professor of playwriting and script analysis at New York University and he serves as the artistic director of the Performing Arts Project, an international arts training nonprofit organization designed to serve people from ages fifteen to twenty-five.

Lynn Hoare is a facilitator, educator, and director working in the field of applied theatre and arts education with regional, national, and international partners. She was the senior director of school-based programs at Creative Action, the largest arts and education nonprofit in central Texas. She is an adjunct faculty member at the University of Texas at Austin, a co-founder of the Center for Imagining and Performing Justice, and the co-director of the Performing Justice Project which devises original theatre with young people about gender and racial justice. Her co-authored book, Devising Critically Engaged Theatre with Youth: The Performing Justice Project, won the distinguished book award from the American Alliance of Theatre and Education in 2021. Hoare collaborates with others to use theatre as a tool for imagining justice, building connection and community, and fostering critical dialogue.

Lynn Hoare is a facilitator, educator, and director working in the field of applied theatre and arts education with regional, national, and international partners. She was the senior director of school-based programs at Creative Action, the largest arts and education nonprofit in central Texas. She is an adjunct faculty member at the University of Texas at Austin, a co-founder of the Center for Imagining and Performing Justice, and the co-director of the Performing Justice Project which devises original theatre with young people about gender and racial justice. Her co-authored book, Devising Critically Engaged Theatre with Youth: The Performing Justice Project, won the distinguished book award from the American Alliance of Theatre and Education in 2021. Hoare collaborates with others to use theatre as a tool for imagining justice, building connection and community, and fostering critical dialogue.

Don Masse is an artist and educator who has been based in San Diego since 2001. At the San Diego School of Creative and Performing Arts, he teaches mulitmedia design to students in grades six through eight, and foundations of visual art and design to ninth grade students. Masse earned a degree in studio art from Tyler School of Art and Architecture in Philadelphia and his master's degree in studio art from Louisiana State University. He works in a variety of materials and approaches as a professional artist, including charcoal drawing, digital illustration, large scale public chalk drawings, and public artworks on walls of buildings around San Diego. Masse presents at art education conferences locally, regionally, and nationally. He has served as the keynote speaker and guest artist at teacher conferences in Los Angeles, Cincinnati, Wisconsin, and Tennessee. He incorporates the work of a diverse range of contemporary artists in his curriculum because he wants all students to feel seen and loved in his curriculum. Masse regularly seeks out student exhibit opportunities beyond school spaces and into physical spaces and publications, as he believes these experiences in the real world lift students up in meaningful, lasting ways.

Larissa Brown is a versatile artist with a tapestry of creative endeavors spanning diverse industries. Formerly an animation artist for Nickelodeon’s iconic show Rugrats, Brown has also illustrated nearly a dozen books within Nickelodeon’s licensed universe, including Avatar: The Last Airbender. Her debut graphic novel, Blake Laser, will be released in December 2024. As the founder of OC Art Studios, her educational initiatives have touched lives globally. During the pandemic she pioneered an online community for BIPOC art students, granting more than five hundred full scholarships to aspiring animation and illustration artists. Brown expertly juggles her role as a Disney fine artist with her commitment to teaching at colleges and universities in Orange County. Her artwork in the galleries of both Walt Disney World and Disneyland Resorts seamlessly blends her traditional and digital painting skills. She has a special affinity for celebrating characters of color within the Disney universe.

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