Directors Bios

Mrs. Walls

Alicia Ruth Walls teaches orchestra at Durham Middle School in Lewisville , Texas . Her maiden name was Alicia Little. She grew up in Abilene , Texas , where she was valedictorian of Abilene High School in 1987 and an All-State viola player.

After high school, Alicia did one year of mission work in Belgrade , Yugoslavia . She graduated from Abilene Christian University with an Bachelor's degree in Music, and a Texas teacher certificate for all-level music.

Her instrumental concentrations were viola and flute. During her time in Abilene , she played viola with the Abilene Philharmonic. She taught elementary music from 1992-1995 in Abilene , TX , then moved to Florence , Italy with her husband, Jay, to work at Florence Bible School .

Their children, Jonathan and Adrianna, were born in 1997 and 1999 in Italy . In 2002, the Walls family moved back to the USA and Mrs. Walls taught private violin lessons in Searcy , Arkansas and worked with the youth orchestra there and played viola in the Searcy String Quartet. The family moved again in 2004 to the Dallas-Fort Worth area, where Jay began work on his doctorate in Music Composition at the University of North Texas , and Alicia was the assistant orchestra director at Newman Smith High School in Carrollton . She taught string orchestra and beginning flute, saxophone and double reeds at Travis Middle School in Irving from 2005-2007.

Mrs. Walls is currently very happy to be teaching orchestra close to her home at Durham Middle School in Lewisville . She thinks the students are the best part about teaching. In addition to music, Mrs. Walls loves reading, sewing, eating Italian food and going on picnics with her husband and children. They are very involved in their church in Argyle, Texas .

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	Mrs. Walls Alicia Ruth Walls teaches orchestra at Durham Middle School in Lewisville , Texas . Her maiden name was Alicia Little. She grew up in Abilene , Texas , where she was valedictorian of Abilene High School in 1987 and an All-State viola player. After high school, Alicia did one year of mission work in Belgrade , Yugoslavia . She graduated from Abilene Christian University with an Bachelor's degree in Music, and a Texas teacher certificate for all-level music. Her instrumental concentrations were viola and flute. During her time in Abilene , she played viola with the Abilene Philharmonic. She taught elementary music from 1992-1995 in Abilene , TX , then moved to Florence , Italy with her husband, Jay, to work at Florence Bible School . Their children, Jonathan and Adrianna, were born in 1997 and 1999 in Italy . In 2002, the Walls family moved back to the USA and Mrs. Walls taught private violin lessons in Searcy , Arkansas and worked with the youth orchestra there and played viola in the Searcy String Quartet. The family moved again in 2004 to the Dallas-Fort Worth area, where Jay began work on his doctorate in Music Composition at the University of North Texas , and Alicia was the assistant orchestra director at Newman Smith High School in Carrollton . She taught string orchestra and beginning flute, saxophone and double reeds at Travis Middle School in Irving from 2005-2007. Mrs. Walls is currently very happy to be teaching orchestra close to her home at Durham Middle School in Lewisville . She thinks the students are the best part about teaching. In addition to music, Mrs. Walls loves reading, sewing, eating Italian food and going on picnics with her husband and children. They are very involved in their church in Argyle, Texas .	Mr. Sluder Kevin Ray Sluder teaches orchestra at Durham Middle School in Lewisville , TX . He grew up in Mansfield , TX (just southeast of Ft.Worth). Mr. Sluder started playing the electric bass on his own in the 7 th grade. In high school, he joined the marching band and the jazz band. Here, he began to play in the drumline and eventually took on the string bass. Mr. Sluder attended the University of North Texas in Denton and spent his first year studying jazz. He then switched to Music Education and followed that through to receive his bachelor's degree in orchestral education. While at UNT, he sang in the Men's Chorus group and was a part of the prestigious UNT Indoor Drumline in 2005. Mr. Sluder did his student teaching in Denton in the fall of 2006. Since his graduation, he has taught privately in Denton and Lewisville and long-term subbed at Durham at the end of the 2006-07 school year. In addition to working at Durham , Kevin also works as the music director at Faith United Methodist Church in the Denton/Corinth area where he plays drums on Sunday mornings. Mr. Sluder enjoys playing the guitar and is an active songwriter. He has an adorable dog named Butters that is part English Springer Spaniel and part Jack Russell Terrier. Butters enjoys walks, tennis balls, and food. In his spare time, he takes naps and is learning the banjo.

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