The goal extends beyond defining best practices. Faculty need meaningful benchmarks they can take to administrators when advocating for appropriate funding, resources, curricular support, and recognition of the substantial labor required to produce opera in higher education. When much of that work is difficult to quantify—or varies dramatically from institution to institution—it can also be difficult to demonstrate what a healthy, sustainable opera program actually requires.

NOA Board member Patrick Hansen will chair a new multi-year initiative examining national standards for opera training in higher education. The scope is substantial: from curricular and organizational models to professional preparation, faculty workload, and safe and supportive rehearsal practices. Just as importantly, the process is intended to draw on voices from across the field as NOA works toward adaptable standards that can serve programs of different sizes and structures. What might those standards look like, and how can you be part of developing them? Read Hansen’s full call to action, “Towards National Standards for Opera Training in Higher Education,” in the Fall issue of NOA Now.

- Jourdan Laine Howell for NOA