Dr. Kelly Parkes is a tenured associate professor of education specializing in Music Education. She earned a Ph.D. in Music Education/Instrumental Pedagogy from the University of Miami, FL. To date she has authored or coauthored over 20 journal articles and refereed  proceedings publications. She has also contributed greatly to the field by presenting at more than 40 regional, national, and international conferences. Dr. Parkes’ current areas of research are focused in higher education pedagogy, assessment in applied music, and music teacher education.  She has been the PI on such grants as the NAfME SRME Research Project Grant 2012, and at her institution,  the CIDER Instructional Enhancement Grant, the Virginia Tech Assessment Education Grant, and two Core Competency Assessment Grants with the Office of Academic Assessment at Virginia Tech.  As program area leader for Music Teacher Certification within the Department of Teaching and Learning in the School of Education, she focuses her teaching efforts on the pedagogy of music educators. In addition to being actively involved in research and teaching, Dr. Parkes engages in professional service activities. She is the Chair of the Society for Research in Music Education's Assessment Special Research Interest Group and she is the permanent Chair of all competitions, as well as the Research Room, for the International Trumpet Guild.