Leadership in MENC: The female tradition

In the United States, women have been active in the Music Educators Nationa l Conference from its founding. This paper will explore the lives of the fe male presidents of MENC during the past ninety years. Who were these female presidents? What was their educational background and teaching experience? What did they accomplish during their terms of office? Frances Elliott Clark presided over a meeting of music supervisors in Iowa in 1907. This group became the Music Supervisors National Conference (MSNC) in 1910 and the Music Educators National Conference (MENC) in 1934. The or ganization held annual conferences from 1909-1926, and then began biennial conferences. Activities of the MSNC/MENC have been described in various per iodicals.