Welcome the 2026 Region Presidents

Welcome the 2026 ACDA Region Presidents! These leaders began their term on July 1, 2024 and will serve as their Region leader through June 30, 2026. Region Presidents are tasked with leading the 2026 Region conferences, as well as, serving as the Region representative as a voting member of the National Board. Additionally, Region Presidents are stewards of all the state chapters and state chapter leaders within their regions. We invite you to learn more about these ACDA leaders!

Eastern Region–Amanda Sprague Hanzlik

Amanda Sprague Hanzlik is President of the ACDA Eastern Region, Director of Choral Activities at Edwin O. Smith High School in Storrs, Connecticut, and the Director of Music at Immanuel Congregational Church UCC in Hartford, Connecticut. Twice a semifinalist for the GRAMMY Music Educator Award (2024 & 2022) she is also a recipient of the 2023 Connecticut State Department Hero of the Arts Award.

Hanzlik made her Carnegie Hall conducting debut in 2023 and frequently serves as a guest conductor for all-state and regional honor choirs. Under her direction, the E.O. Smith Chamber Singers are regularly featured at ACDA and NAfME festivals and conferences as a selected ensemble. 2024-25 marks her 26th year as a music educator and artist in K-12, faith-based, community and collegiate music education and choral spaces. Deeply passionate about creating new choral music with living composers,  she also strives to uplift and elevate the work of the artists of the choral art medium into all spaces of culture and society. 

Amanda Hanzlik holds a BA in Music/Vocal Performance and K-12 Education from the University of Iowa and an MA in Music and Music Education from Teachers College, Columbia University.

Northwest Region–Steven M. Zielke

Steven M. Zielke, director of choral studies at Oregon State University, is the Patricia Valian Reser professor of music. He directs the OSU Chamber Choir and teaches choral conducting and choral music pedagogy. Zielke earned his doctoral and master’s degrees in choral conducting from Florida State University where he studied with Andre Thomas and Rodney Eichenberger. This past year, Zielke was proud to be presented the Beaver Champion Award by President Ed Ray. Most recently, Steven served as the 2024 Northwest Region President.

Zielke is a frequent clinician and guest conductor, including the Academic Orchestra of the University of Stuttgart and the University of Tübingen Chamber Singers in Tübingen, Germany, as well as leading master classes and conducting at the Sichuan Conservatory of Music in Sichuan Province, China. Choirs under his direction have appeared at state, regional, and national conferences, including an invited 2015 performance at the National Collegiate Choral Association. 

He is the founder and music director of the Corvallis Repertory Singers, serves as the director of music at the First Congregational United Church of Christ in Corvallis and is proud to be the voice of the OSU Marching Band.

Due to Coreen Duffy moving to the Southwest Region, Steven Zielke continues to serve an additional year as the NW Region President to provide stability to the region. Bill Campbell begins his service as the Northwest Region President-elect and will transition into the Region Presidency over the course of the next year. Northwest Region is fortunate to both of these leaders working together over the course of the next two years.

Bill Campbell, NW Region President-elect, is in his 18th year as the choir director at Lakeridge High School in Lake Oswego, Oregon, where he directs the school’s six choral ensembles. He earned a Bachelor of Music degree from The University of Arizona and a Master of Arts degree from Oregon State University. In his 26 years of teaching, he has taught choir at both the middle and high school levels. Prior to his time in Lake Oswego, he taught at Crescent Valley High and Cheldelin Middle Schools in Corvallis, Oregon, and Molasky Junior High School in Las Vegas, Nevada. Bill has served as Oregon ACDA President (2017-2019), Oregon ACDA Treasurer (2012-2017), OMEA District 11 Chair (2005-2006), and is currently the Lakeridge High School fine and performing arts department chair. He is a graduate of Grant High School in Portland, where he lives with his wife Allison, kids Collin and Chloe, and their dog Elvis.

Midwest Region–Derrick Fox

Dr. Derrick Fox is the Associate Dean of Graduate Studies, Research and Creative Endeavors and a Professor of Choral Conducting at Michigan State University. Prior to MSU, he was the Director of Choral Activities and Distinguished Professor of Music at the University of Nebraska-Omaha and Assistant Professor of Choral Music at Ithaca College.  Dr. Fox has taught at the middle school, high school and collegiate levels. His conducting experiences have included singers from upper elementary choirs through collegiate and community choirs. He was awarded the 2021 Bryan R. Johnson Service Award by the Nebraska Music Educators Association and the 2022 University of Nebraska Omaha Award for Distinguished Research/Creative Activity. His compositions and arrangements are published by Hal Leonard and Brilee Music. His book, Yes You Can: A Band Director’s Guide to Teaching Choirs is published by Carl Fischer. He launched The Derrick Fox Choral Series with Music Spoke. https://www.drderrickfox.com/

Southern Region–Jeffery Ames

Jeffery L. Ames serves as Director of Choral Activities and Full Professor at Belmont University.  

Dr. Ames has collaborated with well-known conductors, and celebrities that include Trisha Yearwood, Laura Bell Bundy, CeCe Winans, Connie Smith, Ricky Skaggs and The Whites, Denyce Graves, Michael W. Smith, Kathy Mattea, Sheryl Crow, Kane Brown, Mickey Guyton, Carrie Underwood, Amy Grant, and legendary rock band the Rolling Stones.

Professor Ames holds the Ph.D. in Choral Conducting/Choral Music Education and a Master of Choral Music Education degree from The Florida State University, and a Bachelor of Music degree, with a double major in Vocal Performance and Piano Accompanying from James Madison University. Dr. Ames’ service to ACDA includes former National R&R Chair for World Musics and Cultures, Past President of the Tennessee chapter, and currently serves as President for the Southern Region. He holds the honor of being the first recipient of the prestigious ACDA James Mulholland Choral Music Fellowship (2005), being the first African American ACDA International Conductors Exchange Program Fellow (2016) as well as being the first African American recipient of the Presidential Faculty Achievement Award (2023), the highest honor bestowed to a faculty member at Belmont University.

Southwest Region–Jonathan Owen

Jonathan Owen retired as choral director in May 2018 after 30 years as a Missouri public school music teacher. During his teaching tenure, his choirs gained recognition with eight performances at the Missouri Music Educators Association Conference (1992, 1998, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2011, 2013 and 2016) and a performance in Nashville for the 2002 Music Educators National Conference (NAfME).  

In his retirement, Mr. Owen serves as organist/accompanist at Trinity Lutheran Church in Chesterfield, MO and accompanist at Clayton (MO) High School.  In addition, during his retirement, he has been a studio/staff accompanist at Missouri Baptist University, taught preschool music at Trinity Preschool (ages 16 months – five years), and been a music adjunct at MBU.

Jonathan has an MM in Choral Conducting from Missouri State University, a BME voice emphasis (Certificate Recital) from Evangel University and an AA from Neosho County Community College (KS).

Jonathan is a member of AGO, NAfME, MMEA, ACDA, and MCDA. He has served Missouri MEA as Choral Vice President, MCDA as President and is currently the President for SWACDA. He and his wife Patty live in the St. Louis area and have three 20-something adult children.

Western Region–Julie Reyes Dana

Julie Reyes Dana spent 38 years as a choral educator at the high school and collegiate levels in California retiring in 2022 from Fresno City College after 23 years.

She has served ACDA as Western Region Conference Chair, California ACDA State President, Central and Southern Regional Representative and State CASMEC coordinator. Julie also served the Southern California Vocal Association as President-elect, Festival Coordinator and on regional and state honor choirs committees. She also taught vocal jazz in the Middle East with Jazz Education Abroad. She has conducted honor choirs and serves as a clinician throughout California. Julie currently is an Arts Education Specialist for the Fresno County Superintendent of Schools providing instructional coaching and program development support to local choral educators.  

Her honors include: The CCDA Howard Swan Award for Outstanding Achievement, the Silver Burdett Outstanding Choral Educator, the SCCCD Bill Stewart Award of Excellence and was inducted into the SCCCD Muro de Honor at Arte Américas in Fresno for outstanding contributions to the district by a Latino/Chicano individual. 

She holds degrees from San Diego State University and University of Northern Colorado. Julie is excited to begin her work as Western Region President and is looking forward to serving our membership and sharing her passion for choral music through experiences in ACDA.