Session Proposals

Jason Finnels is currently in his 16th year of teaching and proud to serve as the first Director of Bands at Almeta Crawford High School in Fort Bend ISD. Prior to opening Crawford, Mr. Finnels was also the first Director of Bands at Ronald Thornton Middle School, Crawford’s main feeder program. He has enjoyed a rewarding career of teaching bands at both the middle and high school levels.
In 2022, and just four years after its inception, the Thornton Middle School Band was named a finalist in the North Texas Festival of Distinction, a Commended Winner in the National Wind Band Mark of Excellence Competition, and was selected as an Invited Band to perform in the 2023 Music for All National Concert Festival in Indianapolis, Indiana. Most recently, in their inaugural year, the Crawford High School Band advanced to the TMEA 4A Honor Band State Semi-Finals.
In 2022, Mr. Finnels was named the Ronald Thornton Middle School Teacher of the Year and also selected as one of five Finalists for Fort Bend ISD's overall Secondary Teacher of the Year.
Mr. Finnels also serves as the Co-Conductor of The American Festival for the Arts (AFA) Orchestra & Chamber Music Workshop Full Orchestra.
Mr. Finnels is a 2009 Cum Laude Graduate of Stephen F. Austin State University and a 2018 Summa Cum Laude Graduate of Southern Methodist University.
Mr. Finnels is an active member of the Texas Music Educators Association, Texas Bandmasters Association, Phi Beta Mu International Bandmasters Fraternity - Alpha Chapter, and the Pi Kappa Lambda National Music Honor Society. He is an active adjudicator, clinician/consultant and has presented clinics at the Texas Music Educators Association, Texas Bandmasters Association, the Utah Music Educators Association, and the Midwest Clinic.

Music educators across the country share a common reality: limited resources. Whether in rural communities with small enrollments and restricted instrumentation, or urban programs navigating large class sizes and high turnover, directors are tasked with building excellence amid constraints. Drawing from experience with establishing and maintaining successful band programs in both rural and urban areas of Texas, Finnels will share practical, real-world strategies that help music programs grow even when resources are limited. Attendees will leave with concrete curriculum and rehearsal templates, leadership frameworks, and advocacy strategies that can be implemented immediately in any setting.

• Band - Middle School
• Band - Secondary
• Choral - Middle School
• Choral - Secondary
• Orchestra - Middle School
• Orchestra - Secondary