Tom Mensch is the Artistic Director of the East Texas Youth Orchestra and Professor at Stephen F. Austin University. During his 30-year career, he has served as Director of Bands for numerous high schools, Tyler Junior College, and Whitehouse ISD, and as the Minister of Instrumental Music at Green Acres Baptist Church. He has performed with the East Texas Jazz Orchestra, the Shreveport Symphony, the Rose City Brass Quintet, and for 12 years as Principal Trombone with the Longview Symphony Orchestra. Tom has also recorded seven studio albums and toured in more than ten different countries. His many awards include the 2022 Whitehouse High School Teacher of the Year, and he is the T.M.E.A. Region 21 Band Chairman, and is in demand as a clinician across North Texas. Tom said, “I’ve always believed the job is to meet kids where they are, then train them to the highest level they’re capable of reaching, and build character that will last the rest of their lives.”