PRINCE FREDERICK, Md. — Twenty Calvert County Public Schools (CCPS) student musicians earned top honors following rigorous audition processes.
Seventeen Calvert County Public Schools student musicians were selected for the 2025 Maryland Music Educators Association All-State performance ensembles. Another three student musicians were selected for the National Association for Music Education All-Eastern Choral Ensembles and were chosen to perform with the All-Eastern Mixed Chorus and All-Eastern Treble Chorus.
Bryan Welker, supervisor of visual and performing arts in CCPS, described these achievements as “a wonderful accomplishment in something that many have attempted, but few have conquered.”
The 17 All-State students competed with 3,567 peers statewide and represented Calvert in the Junior All-State Band, Junior All-State Mixed Chorus, Senior All-State Band, Senior All-State Treble Chorus and the Senior All-State Mixed Chorus.
The three All-Eastern winners also faced a rigorous process and were selected to perform with the All-Eastern Mixed Chorus and All-Eastern Treble Chorus. Clarissa Callis of Northern High School, Harper Valadie of Northern High School and Julia Sigmon of Huntingtown High School were selected out of more than 600 applicants from 10 Eastern Division states.
Callis, Valadie and Sigmon are three of only 16 Maryland choral students selected. Two hundred students applied from the state.
Welker spoke in awe of the students during his remarks at the June 12 Board of Education meeting and shared more about the intensity of the process. Students audition in front of four judges and spend months preparing their auditions. Then, they are asked to perform new pieces on the spot to test their skills. He emphasized that a student musician’s accuracy matters, but it’s the quality of their accuracy that sets them apart — and having the ability to be expressive and demonstrate a real understanding of the piece showcases their individual musicianship.
With that in mind, having 20 students from CCPS earn these spots is “pretty exceptional.”
Welker praised the students’ dedication and shared the department’s belief that the arts are for everyone. His team aims to make their programs as comprehensive and inclusive as possible, a mission propped up by dedicated teachers and hard-working students.
“Our goal for performing arts in the community is to continue to find opportunities to make students’ growth visible through a variety of things they can get into. A lot of our system of values is built on [the idea] that arts are transformative for students’ identity. So in whatever shape that development takes place, our role is to continue to build visibility for students and to empower them through the things that they love.”
And the department shows no sign of slowing down, even for summer vacation — the CCPS Summer Arts Academy starts Monday.
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