21. Interview with Lisa (Hopko) Loucks, Maitland Middle School, Maitland, Florida

Lisa (Hopko) Loucks is in her twenty-third year as Orchestra Director at Maitland Middle School in the Orange County Public Schools centered in Orlando, Florida. Her orchestras have consistently earned superior ratings in the Florida Orchestra Association Music Performance Assessments, and have performed in Atlanta, Chicago, and New York.Originally from Chicago, Lisa grew up on the west coast of the Florida and is a graduate Manatee High School under the direction of Jim Palmer. She then earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education from UCF, where her teachers included John Whitney, Lee Eubank, and Dr. Ayako Yonetani. She has served as FOA 7-8 All State Orchestra Chair, District Chair for Orange County, and is a certified adjudicator of Music Performance Assessments. She had the honor of conducting All-County Orchestras throughout the state, and has served on the Board of Directors for the Florida Symphony Youth Orchestra. She has been a summer faculty member for both the Florida West Coast Symphony and UCF String Workshop. She has also been an adjunct professor at Stetson University, as instructor of their Secondary String Methods course.Mrs. Loucks is a violist with the Brevard Symphony, and has performed for the Florida Lakes Symphony Orchestra, 4 Divo, Fernando Varela’s PBS special “Coming Home” and with her #1 favorite artist-Harry Connick, Jr. Her professional memberships include the Florida Orchestra Association/ Florida Music Educators Association, American String Teachers Association (ASTA) and Sigma Alpha Iota. Most recently she was selected as the 2017-18 Florida School Teacher of the Year by ASTA.Outside of the classroom, Lisa is mom to 2-year old Logan. She spends many weekends exploring the theme parks with her family and is an avid Disney Pin Trader.Ms. Loucks can be reached at [email protected]