Member of the Year
2006-2007

Darice taught private piano initially after completing Bachelor and Master Degrees in Piano
Performance at Eastern Illinois University in 1975, 1976. She became an active member of the
GAE Chapter in the Metro-East area a few years after the organization was chartered. During
her membership she served as president, vice president and program chair and adjudicator.
She also served as chair and adjudicator of the National Guild of Piano Teachers for 20 years.
She has many fond memories of good times and inspiration from her fellow GAE members.

Darice was an adjunct, then full-time faculty in the Music Department at SWIC from 1978-2010.
In addition to teaching a variety of courses and private applied, she was department chair from
2006-2010 and Coordinator of Applied Music from 1983-2010. She received the honor of
Faculty Member of the Year at SWIC in 2009.

In 2010, Darice retired from full-time teaching and in 2012 she and her husband Rick and their
cat, Gypsy, moved to Las Cruces, New Mexico where they currently reside. After getting settled,
Darice contacted the Music Department at New Mexico State University to inquire about
accompanying applied music students. This resulted in a second mini-career in accompanying
from 2013 to the present 2022. Darice has worked mostly with the voice, low brass, and strings
department and has performed in well over 100 recitals over the past nine years including
junior, senior and graduate recitals. She also served as accompanist for a student organization,
“Operation Spread the Music”, where students performed once or twice a month at area
assisted/independent and skilled nursing centers in the Las Cruces area. Having the opportunity
to develop relationships with a whole new family of musicians, learn an extensive amount of
repertoire and support many of the area students and musical organizations has been a joy.