Livewire returns!

[Geoff]

DCP Livewire returns!

After a lengthy absence, DrumCorpsPlanet is proud to announce the return of Livewire, one of the most popular features in the history of DCP.

What is Livewire, you ask? Livewire is an interview segment with a well-known drum corps personality featuring questions asked by you, the members of DCP. In the past, Livewire has featured Jeff Fiedler, the director of the Cavaliers, as well as Dan Acheson, President of DCI.

DCP is proud to announce that George Hopkins, executive director of Youth Education in the Arts, will be responding to your questions and queries.

Questions may be submitted to me via email at livewire@drumcorpsplanet.com or via PM. Deadline for submissions is this Saturday, October 1st at midnight PST. The interview will be published on October 8th.

DCP reserves the right to edit submissions for spelling, grammar and brevity. Please note that not all submissions may be answered or featured on Livewire.

I look forward to receiving all your submissions!

About George Hopkins:

George Hopkins is the executive director of Youth Education in the Arts, a not-for-profit organization with headquarters in Allentown, Pa.

Youth Education in the Arts (YEA!) is a youth agency committed to supporting the development of young people to magnificent human beings, through their participation in the performing arts. Program offerings include, the 18 time national champion Cadets drum and bugle corps, the 20 time Drum Corps international finalist Crossmen Drum and Bugle Corps, and the US Scholastic Band Association. Over 40,000 young people across the country are involved in programs supported by YEA! with festivals, performances, and clinics scheduled each year from coast to coast. In 2005, YEA! expects to manage 140 festivals including 450 different high school programs, while associated ensembles perform 100 times in 29 different states.

Hopkins arrived at YEA! in 1979 (then only the Cadets), after one year of teaching social studies in Pennsylvania. With a staff that initially numbered one, Hopkins led the Cadets to 4 of five world championships from 1983-1987, the organization launched the USSBA in 1988, Youth Education in the Arts was developed in 1990, and in 1996, the Crossmen were acquired.

Current initiatives include the addition of a choral program, a youth symphony, a dance and personal development program for challenged youth, and cooperative efforts with numerous ensembles in the Mid-Atlantic Region.

The headquarters recently relocated to Allentown from Northern New Jersey as YEA! partnered with the Allentown Economic Development Association in the creation of the Musselman Arts Development Center in downtown Allentown. YEA! is now the managing tenant of this urban arts incubator, offering services and support for numerous Lehigh Valley Non-Profits. Current staffing for YEA! is now fifteen with a part time teaching staff of 60.

George Hopkins is a member of the Drum Corps International Hall of Fame and the Cadets Hall of Fame. He has been a member of the DCI Board of Directors since 1982, the DCI executive committee from 1983-1999, the NJ Music Educators Board of Directors from 2000-2003 and the president of the NJ Coalition for Music Educators, from 2001-2003.

Hopkins holds a BA in secondary education and an MA in Non Profit management.

He has a daughter Katie 17, and loves his Philadelphia Sports Teams, reading, running and learning.