The Wando High School Choirs have enjoyed a long tradition of excellence in choral music.
Composed of 240 singers from Wando High School, the choral program boasts five performance ensembles. They are Concert Choir, Advanced Concert Choir, Wando Singers, Ladies Honors Choir and Show Choir. The choruses tour both nationally and internationally and are well known in the state and the Southeast for their high level of performance.
Mr. Eric Wilkinson returns to Wando High School for his third year. The 2010-2011 school year will be Mr. Wilkinson's second year as Director of Wando's Chorus program. Mr. Wilkinson came to Wando from Sumter High School where he taught since 2001. In 2001, he earned a Master of Music Degree in Conducting from the University of South Carolina and in 1999 he earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Music-Pre Teaching from the University of New Hampshire.
In 1998, Wilkinson traveled to London, England to study music and conducting with Dr. Cleveland Howard at Regents College.
Mr. Wilkinson has been a conducting participant at the Conductor's Retreat at Medomak, in Medomak Maine, and in October of 2004 Wilkinson was selected to be a participant for the Conductors Guild workshop held at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. In 2006, Wilkinson was selected as the Sumter High School Teacher of the Year, and in 2007 he was awarded the National Educator Award by the Milliken Family Foundation, called the "Grammy of Teaching" and one of the nation's highest honors for educators. He is also a National Board Certified Teacher.
The chorus family is both proud and excited this year to welcome Ms. Lawrene All as Assistant Director. Ms. Rennie All has been teaching music in the Mount Pleasant area for 29 years.
Through her work as music teacher at James B. Edwards Elementary and her involvement with the music ministry at Mount Pleasant Presbyterian Church, Ms. All believes young people deserve arts education to help them discover their gifts and develop higher level processing skills.
As daughter and granddaughter of church choir directors, she knows the value and life directing impact of a quality performing arts education.
She teaches with a passion, believing that music lives within the soul and that when young people are connected with their inner self, the confidence that ensues will lead to productive life choices. With this philosophy, Rennie has focused her career on the individual potential of her students.