Following a distinguished thirty-three-year teaching career, Professor Paula A. Crider continues to share her passion for making music through an active schedule as guest conductor, lecturer, clinician, and adjudicator. She has enjoyed engagements in forty-six states, as well as Canada, Ireland, the United Kingdom, Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Taiwan, South Korea, France, Italy, and Australia. She is Professor Emerita at the University of Texas, where she was twice awarded the “Eyes of Texas” Award for distinguished teaching.

Professor Crider has taught in the public schools at all levels and holds the distinction of having been the first female in the state of Texas to serve as director of bands at a Class 5A high school. Her Crockett High School Bands in Austin, Texas, earned twelve consecutive University Interscholastic League “Sweepstakes Awards” for musical excellence, received national recognition on the concert stage, and were twice named Texas 5A State Marching Champions. Professor Crider was the recipient of the National Band Association’s “Citation of Excellence,” presented by Dr. William D. Revelli, for her band’s performance at the NBA National Convention.

During her tenure at the University of Texas, Professor Crider conducted the Symphony Band, the Longhorn Marching and Concert Bands, and served as Instructor for Undergraduate Conducting, Brass Methods, and Graduate Wind Literature. She supervised student teachers and served as administrator for the Longhorn Music Camps. The 380-member Longhorn Band enjoyed national acclaim under her leadership. She has also served as Interim Director of Bands at Columbus State University and the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. She continues to serve as visiting guest professor at universities throughout the country.

Professor Crider has written numerous articles for The Instrumentalist, The Band Director’s Guide, and the NBA Journal. She has published manuals on brass techniques, marching band methods, and instrumental conducting, and is co-author for the Hal Leonard “Masterwork Studies” series, a text for high school bands. She is editor of The Conductor’s Legacy, published by GIA Publications.

Professor Crider has presented professional teacher seminars throughout the United States and abroad. She has served as coordinator for the National Band Association Young Conductor/Mentor Program and is currently serving as Senior Educational Consultant for Conn-Selmer. Professor Crider is a Past President of both the National Band Association and the American Bandmasters Association.

Honors and awards include induction into the Phi Beta Mu International Hall of Fame, the National Band Association Hall of Fame, and the Women Band Directors International Hall of Fame. She was named Texas Bandmaster of the Year and was awarded the Midwest International Band and Orchestra Clinic Medal of Honor. She was honored with a Doctor of Music Education Honoris Causa by the VanderCook College of Music.