Return to Headlines

EASTIN HONORED WITH BAND FRATERNITY MEMBERSHIP

February 15, 2016
 
Mark Eastin  
 
Granbury High School band director Mark Eastin has been elected to Phi Beta Mu International Bandmaster Fraternity, marking the highest honor for band directors in the state of Texas.
 
Eastin was inducted at the Alpha Chapter’s annual new member breakfast on February 13, 2016, during the Texas Music Educators Association convention in San Antonio. He was sponsored by Burleson High School band director Joe McGee, retired Weatherford High School band director Joe Dolkos, and Aledo High School band director Joey Paul.
 
Mark Eastin Mark Eastin
 
New inductees to the honorary organization must have at least ten years of successful teaching experience and have produced and maintained outstanding band programs with the highest level of performance standards. Honorees must also have shown a history of promoting the craft of music education as well as willingness to give back to the profession in various ways.
 
Also at the TMEA 2016 convention, Eastin was elected as interim president of the newly-formed TMEA Music Region 30 to oversee its organization following state-wide realignment of music regions for both TMEA and the University Interscholastic League. He has been serving as vice president for the current TMEA Region 7.
 
Under Eastin’s leadership for the last six years, the GHS band won sweepstakes honors every year, receiving first division ratings in UIL marching, concert, and sightreading performances.  The Wind Ensemble twice has placed third in regional Honor Band competition and received the National Commended Award for concert performance. The Pride of Granbury marching band is a consistent class winner and finalist in regional and area marching competitions and has qualified for the UIL area marching contest every year of eligibility.
 
Prior to his coming to Granbury in 2010, Eastin led successful programs in Fort Worth, Malakoff, Garland, McKinney, and Mesquite school districts.  He began his career teaching in the Oklahoma communities of Weatherford and Collinsville before moving to Texas.
 
Established in 1938, Phi Beta Mu is a fraternity organized to promote fellowship among its members, to encourage the building of better bands and the development of better musicians in schools throughout the world, to foster a deeper appreciation for quality wind literature, and to encourage widespread interest in band performance.  There are approximately 350 active and retired members in Texas, with chapters in most of the fifty states as well as Canada, Japan, and Europe.