The Texas Tech University School of Music is excited to welcome eight new educators to our faculty this fall! Coming from diverse backgrounds across the country, they bring great knowledge and experience to share with our students. Keep reading to learn about their qualifications, research interests, and even a few fun facts to get to know these incredible people a little better!
Dr. Julia Bell – Visiting Assistant Professor of Trumpet
Dr. Bell received her doctorate from Florida State University where she conducted research on 21st Century Works for Solo Trumpet by Women. Prior to her current appointment, she taught at Tarleton State University and the University of South Alabama and was a member of the trumpet section of the Tallahassee Symphony Orchestra.
Dr. Elizabeth Chappell – Assistant Professor of Music Education
Dr. Chappell's name is pronounced like the church, not the comedian. She earned both her Master's and her PhD from UT Austin. Dr. Chappell taught orchestra in Austin for 17 years before transitioning to higher ed. She comes to Lubbock from Denton where she taught at UNT. Her youngest of three children just started college so she and her husband Chris are new empty nesters!
Dr. Alan E. Hicks – Assistant Professor and Director of Opera
Dr. Hicks received his DMA from the University of Texas at Austin, his MMus from Rice University, and his BME from Mississippi State University. His professional contracts have included Lyric Opera of Chicago, Michigan Opera Theatre, New York City Opera, Seattle Opera, Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, San Diego Opera, Minnesota Opera, et al. Dr. Hicks was a former marching member of the Cavaliers Drum & Bugle Corps as well as a former instructor for Carolina Crown Drum & Bugle Corps. He has a dog named Orson Wells.
Dr. Jose (Joey) Holland-Garcia – Assistant Professor of Practice in Voice – Musical Theatre & Commercial Music
Dr. Holland-Garcia received doctorate in Vocal Performance from the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor. While in school he most notably studied with renowned soprano, Shirley Verrett. Outside of performing Dr. Holland-Garcia has been a career mail carrier for the USPS as well as a licensed real estate agent.
Dr. Lucy Y. Liu – Assistant Professor of Music Theory
Dr. Liu is a music theorist whose research interests include Brahms, Stravinsky's neoclassical music, and tonal techniques including form studies, Schenkerian analysis, and schemas in 17th- and 18th-cantury music. She is very excited to be joining the faculty here in Lubbock and appreciates the chance to teach some interesting classes. When not teaching, Dr. Liu looks forward to planting trees and shrubs and flowers native to west Texas and exploring the natural canyons in the area.
Dr. Shauna Pickens – Assistant Professor of Music Education
Dr. Pickens earned her Ph.D. in Music Education from Texas Tech University in 2019. Prior to this she taught middle school band for 8 years in Pflugerville, TX. When not at school, she enjoys spending time with her husband, Chris, and two dogs, Bella and Boosh.
Susetta Dunn Rockett – Instructor of Oboe
Ms. Rockett holds the second oboe/English horn Janeen Holmes Gilliam Chair with the Lubbock Symphony Orchestra and performs frequently throughout Texas and the United States as an orchestral, chamber, and solo musician. When she's not performing or making reeds, Susie enjoys cooking, taking long walks, and snuggling with her cat, Pippin. She resides in Abilene, TX with her husband and two daughters and considers Lubbock her second home.
Dr. Corey Sullivan – Assistant Professor of Choral Music Education / Associate Director of Choral Activities
Dr. Sullivan is a three-time graduate of the Florida State University College of Music, with all three degrees in music education. His research interests include music cognition and perception, the intersections of technology and equity in the music classroom, and singer identity development in choral settings. He is an avid singer and occasional soloist, most recently in the Florida State University Chamber Choir performance of Craig Hella Johnson's Considering Matthew Shepard.