From the
NC Symphony:
Jackson Parkhurst Award
for Special Achievement
The
Jackson Parkhurst Award for Special Achievement is named for the Symphony’s
former director of education in recognition of his longstanding service and
commitment to young people in the state of North Carolina.
2019/20 Honoree: Matt Fry
Matt Fry, currently in his 32nd year
of teaching, is the Chorus Director at Jordan-Matthews High School in Siler
City, North Carolina, where he was named Teacher of the Year for 2006/07 and
again for 2017/18. He is a graduate of Missouri Western State College in St.
Joseph, Missouri, where he received a bachelor’s degree in education, with
honors, and was named the Outstanding Graduate in Vocal Music in 1988. He is a
member of the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA), National
Association for Music Education (NAfME), and North Carolina Music Educators
Association (NCMEA).
Mr. Fry taught for 12 years in Caruthersville, Missouri,
where his choirs and soloists consistently received “Superior” and “Excellent”
ratings at district and state music festivals. He taught for one year at
Eaton-Johnson Middle School in Henderson, North Carolina, before finding his
home at Jordan-Matthews. His choirs have achieved “Superior” and “Excellent”
ratings in the annual North Carolina Music Performance Adjudication. Several of
his students have participated in NCMEA’s High School Honors Chorus and
All-State Choral Festival.
In addition to his teaching, Mr. Fry is also the director
of the Fearrington Village Singers and the choir at Rocky River Baptist Church
in Siler City. He sang for nine years with the Duke Chapel Choir and for
several seasons with the Vocal Arts Ensemble of Durham, both under the baton of
Dr. Rodney Wynkoop.
Mr. Fry is a founding board member of the Jordan-Matthews
Arts Foundation, an organization promoting the student artists at
Jordan-Matthews. His philosophy of education is inspired the name of his
school’s mascot, the Jets: Just do your job. Expect
excellence from yourself and others, Teach others what you
know, and Show up!
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