Carisa Niemeyer

Ms. Niemeyer is currently in her sixth year as the Head Director of Choirs at Forest Meadow Junior High in the Richardson ISD, serving previously as associate director for five years. In addition to directing choirs at Forest Meadow, Ms. Niemeyer works with colleagues and choirs at Lake Highlands High School, Lake Highlands Freshman Center, and the area elementary schools. On her campus, Ms. Niemeyer is the NJHS sponsor, a mentor teacher, and was selected as Teacher of the Month in 2009 and FMJH PTA’s Teacher Excellence for the 2012-2013 school year. In addition, Ms. Niemeyer was humbled and honored to be named a STARS teacher for RISD the 2014-2015 school year.

Ms. Niemeyer holds a BBA in Finance, Summa Cum Laude, and BA in Music, Summa Cum Laude, from Texas Tech University. While at Texas Tech, she was a member of University Choir as well as Madrigal Singers and was selected to be an Ambassador for the College of Visual and Performing Arts. Beyond her collegiate studies, Ms. Niemeyer has completed all four levels of coursework for her Kodály Certification at the West Texas Kodály Institute and is a member of TMEA and the Secretary/Treasurer of TCDA.

Kelsey Reinhart

Mrs. Reinhart graduated from Texas Tech University in December 2017 with a Bachelor’s Degree of Music, including a double major in composition and music education. This is her first year as the Assistant Director of Choirs at Forest Meadow Junior High. First published by TFS Music Publications in 2012 for her piece "Irish Blessing", Mrs. Reinhart has since published "If You Forget Me" (2014), "I Am Not Yours" (2016), "A Minute of Mozart's" (2017) and "I Am" (2018) with Hal Leonard Publications. Additionally, "If You Forget Me" was also included in the TCDA High School Reading Session in 2014. Mrs. Reinhart is tremendously grateful to have received the following prestigious awards: the 2017 Raymond W. Brock Student Composition Competition and the 2017 Ruth Boshkoff Composition Prize; where she was also commissioned to write a piece for the O.A.K.E. National Youth Choir entitled "A Minuet of Mozart’s".

A product of Lake Highlands, Mrs. Reinhart was active in choir and band throughout her junior high and high school careers and is excited to be back home!
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