Officer: 9d Newsletter Editor
Starlet Smith,
Newsletter Editor
Starlet Smith,
Newsletter Editor
Ms. Starlet Smith is the Director of Orchestras at McLean High School in McLean, Virginia. The 2022-2023 school year marks Ms. Smith’s 11th year teaching in Fairfax County Public Schools. Ms. Smith received her Bachelor of Music degree with a concentration in Music Education from the School of Music at James Madison University in 2011, studying cello under Dr. Carl Donakowski and Virginia Gardener. Ms. Smith is also a graduate of FCPS, notably under the baton of former McLean High School orchestra director Gretta Sandberg. As a student at McLean High School, she was a highly active member of the MHS Orchestra program, participating in all of the competition trips, organizing string quartets to play at community events, and enjoyed both hosting exchange students for the orchestra's German Exchange Program, as well as visiting Detmold as part of the program’s annual orchestra exchange. It is with great honor and pride that Ms. Smith now teaches orchestra at her alma mater!
Ms. Smith graciously received the Outstanding New String/Orchestra Teacher award from the Virginia Chapter of the American String Teachers Association (VASTA) at the 2015 Virginia Music Educators Association conference in Norfolk, VA. In November 2019, Ms. Smith was honored to take the McLean HS Philharmonic Orchestra to perform at the annual Virginia Music Educators Association Conferee in Hot Strings, VA. Ms. Smith is a lifelong sister of Sigma Alpha Iota, an International Music Fraternity, as well as an active member of both the American String Teachers Association (ASTA) and the National Association for Music Education (NAfME). Ms. Smith currently edits and distributes the monthly VASTA E-News letter and is currently the treasurer for the Fairfax Orchestra Directors Association. Ms. Smith is also the former Fingerboard newsletter editor for VASTA and a former Member at Large for The Youth Orchestras of Fairfax, having taught cello sectionals to orchestra members for several seasons.
As a graduate of James Madison University, she returns to campus each May to teach and be a camp counselor at the university's notable Spring String Thing weekend strings camp for school aged children from around the state of Virginia. Every summer, Ms. Smith has enjoyed teaching orchestra and music theory at the Franklin Band & Strings Summer Camp. Summer 2019 marked her 9th year teaching at the Franklin Band & Strings Camp.
Outside of her time at McLean HS, Ms. Smith enjoys rehearsing and performing cello with her string quartet, performing as both a cellist and violinist with the Fairfax Chamber Players, teaching her ever-growing private cello/violin studio, serving as a guest sectional coach for youth orchestras throughout northern Virginia, organizing string quartets to perform at local weddings and other events, and doing freelance solo cello and string ensemble work in the DC Metropolitan area.
