MONTREAT CONFERENCE CENTER
MONTREAT, NORTH CAROLINA
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2026 Worship & Music Conference
Faculty
Click on the class name at the bottom of each class leader's bio
to be directed to the class description.
Class Leaders are listed alphabetically by last name.
CCM denotes that a faculty member is a PAM Certified Church Musician.
Rodrigo Almeida
Seminar Leader
Rodrigo, a commissioned pastor through the Presbytery of West Virginia, is the pastor at Enslow Park Presbyterian Church in Huntington, West Virginia. He previously was the Outreach Coordinator at the same church. His music background allowed Rodrigo to reach the young generation by teaching guitar and ukulele during the Summer Camps at EPPC. The intention is to draw people to God through music, hymns, and contemporary Christian songs, using their talents given by God.
Katie owen Aumann
Liturgist
Katie serves as Senior Pastor at Morningside Presbyterian Church in Atlanta, Georgia. She is a graduate of Duke University and Columbia Theological Seminary. She has served as a liturgist, keynoter, and workshop leader at various conferences, including PAM Music & Worship Conference. She is equal parts pastor, partner, and parent and pours love into her family, husband Wait and kids Mollie and Jack. She enjoys college basketball, baking cookies, and time with family.
Brian Blount
Preacher
Brian is President Emeritus of Union Presbyterian Seminary, Richmond, Virginia, and Charlotte, North Carolina. He has a PhD in New Testament Studies and has taught New Testament courses at Princeton Theological Seminary and UPSem. His research and writing has concentrated in the Gospel of Mark, the book of Revelation, and cultural hermeneutics.
Mary Louise Bringle
Routley Lecturer
Mel is something of a repeat offender when it comes to Routley lectures, having given them at Montreat in 2005, 2008, 2011, and 2020 (and at Mo- Ranch in 2013). Her day job is teaching Philosophy and Religious Studies at Brevard College. Her avocation is writing and translating hymns. From 2008 to 2013, she chaired the Presbyterian Committee on Congregational Song (the notorious PCOCS), which created the hymnal Glory to God.
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Mark Britt
Instrumental Ensembles Director
Mark has taught at Furman University since 1995, served as Chair of the Music Department (2010–2020), and teaches orchestration, music history, and music education courses. He is principal trombonist of the Spartanburg Philharmonic and the Hendersonville Symphony and performs with the Greenville Symphony. He is a new member of the South Carolina Music Educators Hall of Fame and conducted in the International Honors Music Festival in Freiburg, Germany. The 2026 conference marks his 12th term as the Instrumental Ensembles Director.
Brian Childers
Handbell Choir Co-Director
Brian is an accomplished composer, conductor, and clinician. He is in demand as a featured clinician at music conferences and festivals across the nation. He currently serves as Director of Handbells and Children and Youth Music at Myers Park United Methodist Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, where he oversees a comprehensive handbell ministry to children, youth, and adults. In the spring of 2024, he was named Artistic Director of the Charlotte Bronze Handbell Ensemble.
Aaron Doll
Small Group Facilitator & Robert Stigall Seminar Leader
Aaron was ordained in 2000. He began ministry in a 1,400-member church in upstate New York but soon felt called to smaller congregations. Aaron served as a solo pastor for 10 years and, since 2014, has held multiple part-time stated supply roles in Wilmington, North Carolina, sometimes juggling three at once! He does not have all the answers, but he believes that when we share stories and dreams, the Spirit moves in surprising ways. Aaron loves the outdoors, good books with coffee, and imaginative conversations with friends.
Vicki Fey, CCM
Collaborative Pianist: Children/Middler Choirs (Week 2)
Vicki retired in 2023 from Central Presbyterian Atlanta, having previously served with husband Steve as organists/directors in three Presbyterian churches over 33 years. Vicki is a past president of the PAM Board and has accompanied numerous Montreat choirs. Upon Vicki’s retirement the Feys moved to DeLand, Florida, where Vicki keeps her fingers active by serving as the permanent substitute at First Presbyterian Church DeLand. Vicki and Steve are parents of Alan and Jordan and proud grandparents of Isaac and Viola.
Emily Floyd, CCM
Professional Development Seminar Leader
Emily is Director of Traditional Music at Covenant Presbyterian Church of Charlotte, Co-Director of the Choristers Guild Institute, and Co-Director of the Blue Ridge Consort. Leadership positions include Repertoire and Standards Chair of Worship for ACDA and president of PAM. She is active as a guest conductor.
Jenny Hainen
Children's Music Leader
Jenny is a music specialist who wears many hats. Her drum workshops have been enjoyed around the US. She focuses on the art of deep listening to bring groups of all ages to new levels of musicianship by utilizing purposeful in-the-moment music making. She has crafted a unique experience that brings people from all walks of life together and invites them to embrace their artistic potential—musician or not! Jenny has a BM, BME, and MSE, and is Orff, World Music Drumming, Village Music Circles, and Rhythm2Recovery certified.
Jimmy Hoke
Adult Bible Leader
Jimmy writes and teaches about queer and trans folks in and around the Bible. They created "Queering the Lectionary," an online project that helps preachers and congregational leaders bring trans and queer perspectives into worship. They are the author of Feminism, Queerness, Affect, and Romans: Under God?, which centers queer wo/men in the conversation with Paul’s letter to Rome. Jimmy teaches courses in New Testament at United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities.
Katie Houts
Children's Choir Director, Robert Stigall Seminar Leader, & Reading Session Leader
Katie is a Midwest native and loves coffee and travel. She has served in ELCA, UCC, and UMC congregations as Director of Music, Worship Curator, Organist, and Children’s Choir Director. Katie is the sacred choral editor for Choristers Guild, curating its sacred catalog of choral anthems and resources and serving on the Choristers Guild Institute faculty. Katie is in her seventh season with Rise Up Children’s Choir and also directs fifth- and sixth-grade choirs at Wasatch Charter School in Holladay, Utah.
David V. Hufford
Co-Service Musician
David Hufford, Co-Service Musician, has a rich background as a church organist, choral singer, small-time composer of liturgical music, theater organist, and professional pipe organ technician. David completed Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Organ Performance at the University of Michigan. He is Co-Owner of the Renaissance Pipe Organ Company, Ann Arbor, Michigan. In June 2025, David celebrated 40 years as a church organist, presently serving the First Presbyterian Church of Ann Arbor.
Beth Judd
Handbell Co-Director
Beth is a past president of AGEHR and is recognized as a leader in the field of handbells, having served as conductor and clinician nationally and internationally for events for over 40 years. In addition, she was full-time Director of Music Ministries in a number of churches, retiring in 2013. Beth is the Interim Dean of the Chapel at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary for the 2025–26 academic year and is a member of the PAM Board. She also is honored to serve as a patient volunteer with Hospice Austin.
Phil Kent
Instrumental Ensembles Assistant Director
Phil is a dedicated music educator and conductor with more than 21 years of experience in string education and holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Instrumental Music Education and a Master’s in Music Education. He has taught strings for two decades and is currently the Director of Orchestras at Lafayette High School, the School for the Performing and Creative Arts in Lexington, Kentucky. For the past seven years, Phil has served as the Assistant Music Coordinator for the PAM Worship & Music Conference.
Amanda Exley Lower
Dance & Movement Leader
Amanda is a performer, choreographer, teacher, and community builder. She received a BA from Duke University in Theater and an MFA in Dance and Choreography from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, with additional studies at the University of Ghana in Accra. After 20 years as a college dance professor and nonprofit leader, Amanda transitioned to the K-12 setting. Amanda is honored to be a 2023 Ford Foundation Teacher Innovator Award Winner.
John McClain
Reading Session Leader & Interest Session Presenter
John is the Director of Music and Worship at First Presbyterian Church in Lancaster, Ohio. A conductor, singer, and educator, he’s passionate about engaging congregations through intentional, creative worship planning that reflects the full rhythm of the liturgical year.
Ariel Merivil
Co-Service Musician
Ariel is the Minister of Music to Wilshire Baptist Church in Dallas, Texas, leading several choirs and the music ministry. He previously served in ministry at First-Plymouth Church in Nebraska. Known for his expressive singing and conducting, Ariel champions a diverse approach to worship across music genres, fostering transformative musical experiences that deepen spiritual connections and encourage meaningful worship. Ariel holds degrees in choral conducting and organ performance.
Eric Nelson
Adult Choir/ Chamber Choir Director & Reading Session Leader
Eric is Director of Choral Studies at Emory University and Artistic Director of Atlanta Master Chorale. He has also served as a church musician for more than 25 years. He appears regularly as clinician, lecturer, and guest conductor for honor choirs, conventions, symposiums, workshops, and all-state choral festivals. Dr. Nelson is also a prolific composer and arranger of both sacred and secular choral music.
José is Professor of Music and Conductor of the University Chorale at the University of North Carolina–Pembroke. He is an active clinician, adjudicator, and conductor of honor and all-state choirs across the United States and abroad, including Cantará, Latin-American honor choir featured at the ACDA Southern Region conference. He is past president of the NC-ACDA Chapter, co-founder of La Voz Music Publishing, and Director of Music at Laurinburg Presbyterian Church.
JoSe Rivera
Senior High Choir/ Chamber Choir Director
Joel Schoon-Tanis
Artist-in-Residence
Joel has been a working artist in Holland, Michigan, for more than 30 years. He has helped create a handful of books (recently 40: the Gospels and At Psalms School) and painted murals around the world (Kenya, Zambia, Germany, the Dominican Republic, Mozambique, Palestine). In 2016 one of his images was presented to the pope. In 2017 he joined international artists in Leipzig, Germany, to create art for the 500th anniversary of the Reformation.
Kevin Simons
Reading Session Leader
Kevin is the Owner/Editor of St. James Music Press and the Director of Music and Organist at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Saginaw, Michigan. Formerly an Associate Professor and Director of Choirs at Saginaw Valley State University, he holds degrees in vocal performance, choral conducting, and music education. He also directs the Sewanee Church Music Conference.
Brian Tanaka, CCM
Collaborative Pianist: Senior High Choir/ Senior High Chamber Choir & Interest Session Presenter
Brian is a versatile pastoral musician who brings a wide range of musical styles to worship, from traditional Western liturgy and global song to jazz combos and worship bands. A bi-vocational church musician, he currently serves on the PAM Board and supports the work of PAM Regions. Brian seeks to be known as someone who embodies kindness and compassion through his music and ministry.
Eric Wall
Collaborative Pianist: Adult Choir/ Adult Chamber Choir & Planning Team Member
Eric is the Director of Music at White Memorial Presbyterian Church in Raleigh, North Carolina, and Conference Center Musician for Montreat. He was the Gene Alice Sherman Associate Professor of Sacred Music and Dean of the Chapel at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary from 2016 to 2025; before that he was Director of Music at First Presbyterian Church, Asheville. He has served PAM as Board President.
Jennifer Weier
Collaborative Pianist: Children/ Middler Choirs (Week 1)
Jennifer is the Director of Music and Organist at Saint Luke’s Presbyterian Church in Dunwoody, Georgia. She holds a Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and a Master’s in Conflict, Displacement, and Human Security from the University of East London. Jen values creating spaces where music fosters healing through volunteering, performing, and teaching.
Rachel Whaley Doll
Children's Bible Leader
Rachel is a certified biblical storyteller, author, and pastor at The Table in Wilmington, North Carolina, a 1001 New Worshipping Community, started by allies and members of the queer community. She is also a proud mom to two teens. With more than 15 years of storytelling experience, she serves on the board for the Network of Biblical Storytellers International. Rachel believes "deep connections are made when scripture is told in safe spaces, illuminating our paths in the Light of Christ."
Khalia Williams
Child of Blessing Leader
Khalia is the Associate Dean of Worship and Spiritual Formation at Candler School of Theology, where she leads the school’s spiritual life, as well as directs the Sacred Arts Collective, an initiative focused on nurturing children’s spirituality through the arts and worship. As a pastor, liturgical theologian, and artist, she’s passionate about worship that is creative, justice-centered, and rooted in community and beauty.
Khyle Wooten
Davis Flohr Middler Choir Director
Khyle is Assistant Professor of Music and Director of Choral Activities at Ithaca College in New York. In addition to his active roster of conducting, composing, consulting, and researching, he has served Empowering Word Ministries (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) as Director of Music for seventeen years. Wooten holds a PhD in Music Education from Florida State University, a Master of Music degree from Georgia State University, and a Bachelor of Science in Music Education from Lincoln University.
Click on the class name at the bottom of each Interest Session Presenter's bio
to be directed to the Interest Session's description.
Interest Session Presenters are listed alphabetically by last name.
Wade Burns
Interest Session Presenter
Wade began an urban renewal apprenticeship in the late 1960s after graduating from Virginia Tech. Two years into his work in the West End of Atlanta, an integrated neighborhood of aging homes that quickly shifted to majority Black, redlined by banks, and marked by poverty and crime, he purchased a house and chose to stay in this community, which shaped him over the next 30 years. His neighbors taught him resilience, faith, and hope for the Beloved Community. He will share the ways faith, love, and grace can transform lives and communities.
David Dunbar
Interest Session Presenter
David is the Director of Music and the Arts at First Presbyterian Church in Fort Collins, Colorado, where he directs the Sanctuary Choir and Bell Choir and leads the praise band, Xultation. In addition to his formal music education in conducting (MM, DMA) and composition (Scoring for Motion Pictures and Television Certificate), David has played piano professionally at the Gaslight Theater Company in Tucson, Arizona, performing in a wide range of musical styles, including pop, rock, and jazz.
Tom Granum
Interest Session Presenter
Tom is a lifelong Presbyterian and has served mostly Presbyterian churches and also other congregations in Georgia, Michigan, and Alaska. Returning to Athens, Georgia, in 2021, he planned to retire but has found rejuvenation serving First Baptist Church (CBF) as Director of Music Ministries and Organist, bringing both creativity and energy to worship and music. He and his daughter Meg Granum Gurtcheff served as co-directors of the 2021 PAM Worship & Music Conference.
James Klotz
Interest Session Presenter
James has been Pastor of First Presbyterian Church of Farmington, New Mexico, since 2023. James’s dissertation, “Let the Desert Bloom: A Close Reading of Isaiah 35 and a History of Consequences in the Development of the Colorado River Basin,” explores these passions for biblical poetry and American history, and it considers how Native attitudes toward human habitation in the desert resonate with those of the biblical prophet and offer timely wisdom for modern policy.
Margaret McGillivray
Interest Session Presenter
Margaret is a horn-wielding, piano-tickling musical warrior with a commitment to the highest levels of collaborative music making and learning. She is Director of Music Ministries at First Presbyterian Church of Howard County in Columbia, Maryland. She is an in-demand clinician and recitalist on modern and natural horns and in her spare time is learning to play the organ.
Jeremy Roberts
Interest Session Presenter
Jeremy is Associate Minister of Music at First Plymouth Church in Lincoln, Nebraska. He directs the Children’s Choirs, Youth Singers, and Te Deum (an adult ensemble), and assists with the leadership of the Plymouth Choir by both directing and accompanying. Jeremy previously was the Director of Music at First Presbyterian Church of Asheville, North Carolina.
Mitch Rorick
Interest Session Presenter
Mitch serves as Director of Music and Organist at First Presbyterian Church of Gainesville, Florida; Artistic Director of the Gainesville Youth Chorus; and Co-Director of the Santa Fe Singers at Santa Fe College. He holds degrees from Wheaton College, Franklin University, Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, and Florida State University. Mitch has completed three levels of Kodaly training and is certified in children’s church music (K-12) by Choristers Guild.
Enoch Smith Jr.
Interest Session Presenter
Enoch is a pianist, composer, and worship leader known for blending gospel, jazz, and classical traditions. He serves as Vice President of the Heart of Jazz Foundation and is an active church musician and educator. His latest album, The Book of Enoch, Vol. 1, reflects his deep commitment to music as ministry and spiritual formation. Enoch brings decades of experience improvising and arranging in worship contexts.
Dillon Swanson
Interest Session Presenter
Dillon is a rising figure in liturgical music, awarded for his innovation in sacred music, liturgical theology, and worship practices. He is currently Director of Music Ministries at Raleigh Court Presbyterian Church (Roanoke, Virginia) and Chorus Master for Opera Roanoke. As a composer and scholar, Dillon has published in CrossAccent, The American Organist, Sundays and Seasons, and Call to Worship, and received commissions for notable events in multiple states.
Sara Terrell
Interest Session Presenter
Sara is the Director of Worship and Music at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Charlotte, North Carolina. She received her Bachelor of Music in composition from Florida State University and her Master of Music in choral conducting from the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. As a lover of convergence worship, Sara is fluent in diverse musical styles and comfortable in multilingual spaces. She is passionate about engaging the whole of the gathered body in worship and singing.
Christopher Titko
Interest Session Presenter
Christopher believes in sharing his faith through the transformative power of music. He studied handbells with Donald Allured at Westminster Choir College and attended Indiana University and the University of Oklahoma. Christopher musically served various denominations and spent five years as Church Music Editor for J. W. Pepper. He is the Director of Music at Monumental UMC in Portsmouth, Virginia, and Artistic Director of the James River Ringers in Richmond, Virginia.
Kim Vitray
Interest Session Presenter
Kim holds a Bachelor of Music Degree from the University of South Carolina and a Master of Music Degree from the University of Texas. She served as Assistant Director of Music at University Presbyterian Church in Austin, Texas, from 1991 to 2003. In 2005, Kim joined Genesis Presbyterian Church in Austin as its Choir Director. After serving there for eight years, she returned to UPC in 2013, serving again as Assistant Director of Music until her promotion to Director in October 2022.
William Whittington
Interest Session Presenter
William holds an MM in Choral Conducting from the University of Arizona and BM in Sacred Music from East Carolina University. His interests include jazz in worship, with a particular focus on the sacred choral works of Duke Ellington and Kurt Weill. He serves as Director of Music Ministries at Immanuel Presbyterian Church in Tucson, Arizona, and Artistic Director of the Tucson Summer Chorus, and maintains an active performance calendar with the Gaslight Theatre.
Austen Wilson
Interest Session Presenter
Austen is the Director of Music Ministries at St. Andrew Presbyterian Church in Iowa City, Iowa, where he oversees a comprehensive and expanding music ministry of choral, handbell, and instrumental ensembles, and works collaboratively with staff. He believes that music builds community, preaches the gospel, helps us find belonging, and strengthens our faith.
Miatta Wilson
Interest Session Presenter
Miatta is a certified Christian educator and 2025 APCE Educator of the Year, with 30+ years of experience in faith formation. She serves as Mission Associate for Christian Formation with the PC(USA), supporting leaders nationwide. Known for her warmth and creativity, Miatta equips communities with practical tools for lifelong spiritual growth through workshops, resource development, and deep connections across generations.