Our Directors

Gary Bernice is the director of Springfield’s High School of Science and Technology Concert Band, Jazz Band, Wind Ensemble, Symphonic Band, and Stomp Percussion Ensemble. As co-founder and co-director of Springfield’s Mentoring Through Music Program (MTM) and IGNITE Mentoring Program, he also coaches chamber ensembles (small music ensembles) and teaches group and individual music lessons after school.   

Mr. Bernice graduated Summa Cum Laude from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst with a Bachelor of Music degree in Music Education and holds a Master of Music degree in Music Education, also from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. In 2006, Mr. Bernice completed an honors thesis through the Commonwealth Honors College at the University of Massachusetts titled Students’ Beliefs About Relevant Curriculum in the Secondary Urban Music Classroom.  

In 2008, Mr. Bernice received the Pioneer Valley Distinguished Teaching Award. In 2011, he was selected to receive the Yale Distinguished Music Educator Award and in 2012 he was the recipient of the New England Public Radio Arts and Humanities Award. In 2013, he was the subject of a University of Massachusetts research study on transformative teaching. He was also chosen as a quarterfinalist for the first annual Grammy Music Educator Award in 2013 and again in 2019, 2020, and 2021. In 2015, he was honored with the University of Massachusetts Distinguished Young Alumni Award and the William Pynchon Award for distinguished service to the Springfield community. In 2018, Mr. Bernice was honored with a distinguished membership to the Sigma Alpha Iota International Music Fraternity as a "Friend of the Arts." In 2019, he was honored with the Business West Award for Civic Leadership in Western Massachusetts.  In 2022, Mr. Bernice was inducted as an Honorary Member of the of the Epsilon Nu Chapter of the Kappa Kappa Psi National Band Fraternity at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.  In 2023, Mr. Bernice was nominated for National Life Group's Life Changer of the Year Award.    

He is a member of the National Association for Music Education, the Massachusetts Music Educators Association, the Massachusetts Instrumental and Choral Conductors Association, and served on the Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education Arts Education Advisory Council. He resides in Springfield with his wife Elise and their three children—Lily, Hannah, and Isaac. He remains an active musician and an active advocate for the Springfield community. 

Ms. Walsh graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of Massachusetts Amherst with a Bachelor of Music degree in Music Education and Clarinet Performance. As a UMass student, Ms. Walsh performed with the UMass Wind Ensemble, the UMass Symphony Orchestra, and the UMass Symphony Band. Ms. Ouellette also played in the UMass Marching Band and was a member of the clarinet field staff. She has also performed with the Windham Chamber Orchestra and regularly plays clarinet with the Valley Winds.

Ms. Walsh completed her senior thesis through the UMass Commonwealth Honors College titled “The Role of Classical Music in the Face of Social and Political Injustice,” a research project inspired by Ms. Walsh’s experience serving with a humanitarian-aid organization in Southeast Asia that fights human trafficking. The main component of her project was her senior recital which featured musical works relating to issues of social and political injustice.

At the Springfield High School of Science and Technology, Ms. Walsh co-directs the Concert Band, the Jazz Band, the Wind Ensemble, the Symphonic Band, and the Mentoring Through Music Program (MTM). When she’s not teaching, Ms. Walsh can be found hiking, cooking, playing music, and drinking lots of coffee.