2024 Election

The 2024 NFA Election

The 2024 NFA election opens July 1 and closes August 3 at 5pm CT. The following candidates are to be ratified. The Vice President/President will serve a four-year term (two as Vice President followed by two as President); the Assistant Secretary/Secretary will serve two-year term (one year as Assistant Secretary followed by one year as Secretary); board members will serve three-year terms. The announcement will be made during the Convention's closing ceremonies, between 4-6pm CT on Sunday, August 4th.

To Cast Your Vote:

Only current active, life, or lower-income member of the NFA are permitted to vote. Commercial members/student members/libraries/organizations are not permitted to vote.

Log into the NFA Member Portal (link opens in new window)
On the main menu, click Membership Benefits, then click VOTE | 2024 Elections
You will be redirected to an online ballot form where you can cast your vote.

Voting will end on Saturday, August 3rd, 2024 at 5pm Central US Time

Meet the 2024 Board Candidates

For Vice President/President

A four-year commitment; will serve two years as Vice President and the following two years as President

Francesca Arnone

"Thank you for the nomination to serve as vice-president and president of our professional organization, the NFA. Nothing truly prepared me for attending my first convention as a young student, for the wonder of like-minded and hearted people gathering to share the common bond of music through the flute. That first experience is something I will always treasure, renewed through our annual conventions and offerings throughout the year. I am excited to cultivate the interests and energy our community shares, to build on the work and innovations of our staff and board, and to seek ways to further invite everyone to our table. My service to the NFA includes Insurance Coordinator, Archives and Oral History Chair/member, Assistant Secretary/Secretary, 2018 Convention Program Chair, Editorial Advisory Board Member, Reviewer, Competition Adjudicator, and Flutist Quarterly contributor. This is an honor I will respect and value."

Francesca Arnone has held Principal Flute, Second Flute, and Piccolo positions in orchestras in the US and abroad and currently plays with the Palm Beach Opera and Sarasota Opera orchestras. She was a featured performer at the NY Philharmonic Biennial at National Sawdust and has been a concerto soloist on flute, alto flute, and piccolo, on repertoire ranging from Bach to Chen Yi. Currently on faculty at the University of South Florida School of Music and Honors College, she previously taught at Baylor, Boise State, West Virginia, and Idaho State universities. She is an Alexander Technique teacher trainee, and studied flute with Robert Willoughby, Julia Bogorad-Kogan, Tim Day, and Christine Nield.

For Assistant Secretary

A two-year commitment; will serve one year as assistant secretary and the following year as secretary.

Amy (I-Yun) Tu

"I am humbled and immensely honored to be nominated as a candidate for the Assistant Secretary position at the NFA. My journey as a flutist has been enriched by the support and camaraderie of the flute community. Having served as the High School Soloist Competition Coordinator from 2019-2023, I am deeply thankful for the opportunities it has afforded me. If elected, I am eager to give back and serve with dedication, working tirelessly to uphold the values of excellence and inclusivity that define our association. Together, let us continue to celebrate the flute in all its diversity and richness, ensuring that it remains a vibrant and cherished part of our cultural landscape."

Taiwanese flutist Amy I-Yun Tu is a dedicated soloist, chamber musician, and community advocate. She teaches at Rutgers Community Arts Summer Band Camp and Pocono Flute Camp and has directed the Bravura Youth Orchestra Flute Choir since 2015. Ms. Tu graduated from Interlochen Arts Academy, earned Bachelor's and Master's degrees from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, and completed doctoral coursework at Rutgers University under the tutelage of Bart Feller and Bradley Garner. Her performance career has taken her to venues and festivals in the United States, Italy, Austria, England, Japan, and Taiwan, with collaborations including the Park Avenue Chamber Symphony, World Civic Orchestra, and the Eastern Wind Symphony. Her most rewarding role is as an educator, where her students have received the National YoungArts Foundation award and the MTNA National Competition Prize but also performed with major orchestras such as the New Jersey Symphony and Manhattan School of Music PreCollege Philharmonic Orchestra. Ms. Tu serves as the New Jersey MTNA Student Performance Competition Chairperson. She has been invited to perform at conferences, including the Midwest Clinic (2015), the International Trumpet Conference (2017), and the NFA Conventions in Orlando (2018) and Salt Lake City (2019).

For the NFA Board of Directors

Primary duty is to participate in all meetings of the board and adopt the policies and the programs of the association.

Paula Gudmundson

"I am grateful and honored to be nominated to serve on the Board of Directors for the National Flute Association. I am currently Co-Chair of the Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Accessibility (IDEA) Committee. The NFA has helped to inspire my own work in the field of music beyond the flute. My ongoing work focuses on centers around collaboration, community engagement and bringing voice to the absent narratives in our fields. It was the words of flutist, Nicole Mitchell at the 2020 Flute Convention which continue to inspire me:

'It's our ability to imagine new worlds that we want to live in that will get humanity closer to manifesting positive change. Music and art are key to sparking inspiration in human consciousness.'

"I want to continue to inspire and drive the future of the National Flute Association to imagine those new worlds."

Paula Gudmundson is Associate Professor of Flute and Department Head at the University of Minnesota Duluth. Recipient of the 2022-2023 McKnight Fellowship for Performing Musicians, Gudmundson’s work focuses on centering her work around collaboration, community engagement and bringing voice to the absent narratives in the arts. This includes creating recordings, editions, commissions and collaborations which push our field beyond the concert stage. Her recent projects include commissioning and premiering Paula’s Song by Icelandic composer Berglind Tómasdóttir, co-premiering Valerie Coleman's Amazonia and video and audio recording works by Black Composers made possible by a grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board. Recordings include La Flauta of Buenos Aires (2014), Breaking Waves (2019) and Melodies of the Forest (2022) Gudmundson has performed at numerous music festivals and events, including regional and national conferences of the College Music Society, National Flute Association conventions, Minnesota Public Radio’s Class Notes Artist, International Flute Festival of Costa Rica, and La Côte Flûte Festival. Dr. Gudmundson is a graduate of Lawrence University (B.M), University of North Texas (M.M), and University of Minnesota (DMA). www.paulagudmundson.com

Delandria Mills

"The energy and inspiration I get due to being around other flutists is second to none, and to be considered for the Board of Directors is an honor. I first attended the annual NFA convention when I was just out of high school. I was beyond thrilled to have access to Julius Baker, Hubert Laws, Jeanne Baxtresser and so many other monumental figures that influenced my flute studies. In the past I have served as an NFA competitor, performer, and adjudicator - adding Board Member to this list is a beautiful plus! Truly, being a musician is so life-giving, and having a community to share it with is an added bonus. I am grateful for this opportunity and I look forward to learning and contributing along the way."

Multi-genre flutist, educator, and author, Delandria Mills is a native of Houston, Texas. She is a graduate of Houston's High School for the Performing & Visual Arts, Prairie View A&M University, and earned both her Masters in Classical Flute and Graduate Performance Diploma in Jazz Studies from the Peabody Conservatory of Music in Baltimore where she now teaches in the Preparatory Department. In addition to the Peabody Institute, she teaches for Baltimore City Schools and is associate flute professor at Morgan State University. Mills is the founder of Kingdom Flute Works, an intensive summer program, which is held annually since 2009. She has won national, as well as international, competitions and has nine recordings of her own. Mills’ literary works are two book series: Demi’s Flute: Discovering Notes and Sounds (picture books for young readers), and a young adult fiction novel series entitled Demi’s Flute: Entering the Realm of Sound.

Lea Pearson

"I am honored to be nominated for a position on the Board of Directors for the National Flute Association. I have attended the convention for years and have recently served as an adjudicator, presenter, and committee member for the organization. I vividly remember attending my first NFA convention. I was star struck after meeting Nestor Torres. I am not sure if I would have had the opportunity to meet him anywhere else. Today, the NFA convention is where I go to reconnect with old friends and students, recharge my creativity as an audience member and presenter and transform my teaching via workshops and meet up groups. I am thankful to be considered for a position on the Board of directors and look forward to the potential of working with a great think tank to ensure that the magic of the NFA convention continues to celebrate and inspire a global community of flutists."

Master Teacher Dr. Lea Pearson has been training students, performers, and teachers in innovative techniques for over 30 years. With a DMA in flute performance, an MA in performance practice from Stanford University, and a BA in music and psychology from Hampshire College, she was a Fulbright Scholar at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki and studied at the Dalcroze Institute in Switzerland. Founder of Music Minus Pain and author of “Body Mapping for Flutists: What Every Flute Teacher Needs to Know About the Body,” Lea has helped thousands of musicians recover from tension, pain and injury. An active performer, college teacher, and Kennedy Center Teaching Artist, Dr. Pearson applies her vast experience, practical knowledge and pedagogical expertise to help teachers give their students lifelong strategies to play with joy and ease and to resolving the pain and anxiety caused by traditional methods of instruction.