Outstanding Teacher Award

Teresa Thomason

2024 Recipient

The Louisiana Music Teachers Association is pleased to announce the 2024 Outstanding Teacher Award winner – Teresa Thomason. She was recognized and presented with a plaque at the LMTA Conference banquet at Centenary College in Shreveport on October 10.

Outstanding Teacher Award chair Charles Jones read excerpts from her letters of recommendation. A parent described her as an “extraordinary leader and educator who has had a great impact on music education and its future.” A student said “she teaches us the importance of daily practice, and her methods help us grow into better players year after year. I also believe I have gained skills that have helped me in school, such as improving my concentration, time management, math, and confidence in public speaking and presenting.” Another student said, “she could see my potential long before I knew what I was capable of accomplishing.” An LMTA colleague summed up her letter by stating “LMTA has many teachers worthy of the honor of Outstanding Teacher, but I believe that Teresa shines above them all.”

Teresa is a native of Louisiana and has been teaching piano since she was a senior in high school. She has maintained an independent piano studio in Alexandria for over 40 years and is currently teaching piano at Alexandria Country Day School (since 1992) and at the Calvary Conservatory of Music (since 1995). She holds the LMTA and MTNA certificate of Professional Advancement and received her bachelor’s degree in Piano Performance from Louisiana College.

On the local level, Teresa is currently the District Rally Chair and has served as Vice-President, President, Secretary and Sonatina Festival Coordinator for the Central LA Music Teachers Association. She has participated with her students in the district rally since 1986 and her students have placed as winners and earned Outstanding Achievement in all levels every year. Her students have also participated in the CMTA All Boys Recital, Baroque Festival, Critique Festival and Monster Concerts at the Alexandria Mall. Her students have placed first in the LMTA Upper Elementary Auditions and the State Jr. Piano Competition and several have won LA’s Junior Miss Competition and have participated in America’s Junior Miss (with one placing in the Top 8).

As a pianist, Teresa has participated in Duo/Duet recitals with CMTA teachers, performed in a digital piano ensemble that performed during holidays at the Alexandria Mall and outdoors at Brown Bag Concerts for the City of Alexandria. She has also participated in the 5-Piano, 10-Player benefit concerts for Hope House and Alzheimer’s Association at LA College. She has served as church pianist/accompanist since the age of 15 and is currently serving at Calvary Baptist Church where she has served for 23 years. She has served as the accompanist for the LA Baptist Singing Women since 1998 and has served as pianist for the Southern Baptist Convention, the LA State Evangelism Conference, LA Singing Ministers, LA Baptist Children’s Honors Choir and the LA Baptist State Convention.

Professionally, Teresa served as the Keyboard Consultant for the LA Baptist Convention for 37 years where she established the Area Hymn Playing Festival Program by enlisting and training Keyboard Festival Coordinators to conduct over 24 festivals annually with over 1100 participants. She served as Editor of the Annual Keyboard Festival Guidelines and developed the Annual State Piano Festival which is a competition for high school students. In 2007, the Teresa Thomason Keyboard Scholarship was established in her honor and is a $1000 scholarship awarded annually to the winner of the State Piano Festival. She has taught piano clinics in churches all over the state of LA and has taught piano and basic music theory workshops at Lifeway’s national conference center in Glorieta, NM as well as in the state conventions of Michigan, Mississippi, Tennessee, Alabama and even Hong Kong. On the State level, Teresa served as the LMTA State Rally Chair for over 15 years and has served on the LMTA Executive Board as Treasurer, VP of Membership and Member-at-Large. She attends the LMTA State Conference annually and the MTNA conference also. Teresa enjoys volunteering in her community and has served on the Board of the LA International Piano Competition. She also served as hostess for the contestants. She also participated in a benefit for a former piano student who is awaiting a kidney transplant. She has served as collaborative pianist for theater productions for Alexandria Country Day School, Family Playhouse Theater and LA College. In 2023, she received state and national recognition by being named an MTNA Foundation Fellow.

Teresa and her husband Tim, an honorary LMTA member, have four adult children and six great grands. They enjoy traveling, spending time with their grands and celebrated their 50th Wedding Anniversary in June 2023.