JONES NAMED DIRECTOR OF ARTS CONNECTION AT ABAC

Wayne Jones, an associate professor of music, was recently named the Director of the Abraham Baldwin College Arts Connection. He had served in the position on an interim basis since July 1.

Jones has an M.M. degree in voice performance and literature from the University of Cincinnati's College‑Conservatory of Music, and a B.M. degree in voice performance from Shorter College. He has served as the College Division Chair for the Georgia Music Educators’ Association (GMEA) as well as Organizing Chair for GMEA's All‑College Chorus. He has also served as a member of the Music Advisory Panel of the Georgia Council for the Arts. Jones has been a member of the ABAC faculty since 1989.

Jones said he gained a lot of experience while serving as the Interim Director of the Arts Connection.

“I accepted the interim position with the knowledge of where the ABAC Arts Connection was at as well as a vision for where we wanted to go,” Jones said. “Over the past several months, we have forged strong community partnerships, and we want to build upon these partnerships. We also want to create even more partnerships, both on and off campus. While serving in the interim position, I had the opportunity to get to know several talented people with a passion for what they do. The experience has been very rewarding.”

The Arts Connection has many projects and events planned for upcoming months.

“The Arts Connection has several exciting opportunities on the way,” Jones said. “We will be moving in new and exciting directions and offering even more opportunities for local and regional artists. One program that has been a great success for us in recent months is the First Tuesday Performance Series. Dr. Susan Roe has played a tremendous role in making this series so successful. We are also offering a Music Preparatory Program through a partnership with ABAC’s Public Service and Business Outreach Center. This program will provide opportunities for private music instruction for students. I am very exciting about all of the upcoming programs and am grateful to work with such a hard-working staff.”

Dr. Bobbie Robinson, Chair in ABAC’s Division of Humanities, said that in many ways, Jones has been in training for this position his entire career. 

“As a performer himself and as an events coordinator when he takes his choirs on the road, Wayne is well aware of the rigors of arranging and mounting performances, so he brought with him most of the skills required for the activities of the job,” Robinson said. “During his time in the interim position, he has worked tirelessly to involve the campus and our students more directly into the programming of the Arts Connection. He has forged a close working relationship with the Tifton-Tift County Arts Council, and he has increased funding for programming through intelligent and insightful grant writing projects. I am highly optimistic that the Arts Connection has only begun to soar to new heights under Wayne’s able leadership.”

Jones will continue his responsibilities as the Director of Choral and Vocal Music at ABAC.

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