To educate others, you must understand the material thoroughly and master it.

Believing that teaching practices — like instruments — require periodic tuning, Dr. Grant Peters, professor of music, took a sabbatical to learn new methods of educating.

In less than six months, he found new solo pieces for his students and teaching materials offering multimedia to help students.

He also attended the National Trumpet Competition. He watched performances by students worldwide and brought home pieces to share with his students.

“It was an enlightening experience, and I want to share that with my students,” said Peters. “I’m hoping my students will be motivated to maybe even compete next year.”

Leading in the field

On Oct. 1, Peters was elected to a six-year position in the International Trumpet Guild, an organization more than 5,000 strong in 64 countries. His term begins as vice president for two years, followed by two years as president and finally two years as immediate past president.

This service exemplifies Peters’ dedication to the art, and his desire to master his own talents to help him educate.

“If you want to be accomplished as an educator, you have to make sure that you put in the work to learn, because you can’t teach what you don’t know,” said Peters.