Highland Park Middle School Raider Orchestra

05/20/2026

Director’s Award Recipient, Whit McCoy, wrote a piece starting back in September titled “Unrest”. It was our joy to premiere his work last Wednesday. Enjoy!

05/20/2026

Congratulations to all of our Raider Orchestra students on a FABULOUS End of Year Concert last week! We recognized students that were awarded a seat in the TMEA Region 20 Honors Orchestra, Solo and Ensemble Best In Class Winners, Students that were voted Most Improved by their peers, Beginner Participation Awards, and finally our most prestigious award, the Director’s Award that was given to 8th grader, Whit McCoy. We are sad to see our 8th graders go, but we are excited for their bright futures! Thank you parents, private lesson instructors, administrators, STUDENTS, and HP Arts and our director, Shelby Dickey, for such an amazing year!

05/07/2026

It’s been a GREAT year for Fine Arts at MIS/HPMS! All 1’s for UIL, and trophies galore. Looking forward to continuing the tradition of excellence 🏆

05/04/2026

Mark your calendars! Hard to believe this is the final time “Raider” Orchestras will take the stage before they become Highlander Strings! We hope you will join us for a special night of music and celebrating all of our students accomplishments. 🏆

04/26/2026

Instrument Selection Day was a huge success! We are so excited to welcome the FIRST generation of Mis Highlander Strings students 💙💛 Welcome to the Orchestra family! A special thank you to , .orchestra, parent and student volunteers who made this event a huge success 🎻

04/25/2026

Instrument selection day is HERE! We can’t wait to see you! 🎻 ⭐️

04/14/2026

Congratulations, Mrs. Dickey! We are so fortunate to have you in the HPISD family! 💙💛

🔗 https://www.peoplenewspapers.com/living-well/2026/04/a-standing-ovation-for-the-arts-educators-and-advocates/

It’s just their first year as educators in Highland Park ISD. But Highlander Band director Marc Nichelson and middle school orchestra director Shelby Dickey have already elevated their programs to a new level of excellence.

“I think he’s made a huge difference,” Romi Segal, a junior brass captain in the Highlander Band said of Nichelson. “He does a really good job of motivating everyone and improves morale. The rehearsals he runs have a really good energy and vibe to them, and it makes everyone want to work a lot harder and have more fun.”

Dickey and Nichelson were recognized on Feb. 19 as fine arts teachers of the year by HP Arts, a nonprofit that was created nearly four decades ago to support arts education in HPISD schools. Dickey won the award for K-8 students, and Nichelson for high school. Both teachers were selected based on a community vote.

Continue reading: https://www.peoplenewspapers.com/living-well/2026/04/a-standing-ovation-for-the-arts-educators-and-advocates/

📷️ Sarah Hodges

04/11/2026

We had such a fun night with Women’s Auxiliary to Children’s Medical Center Plano at Six Flags Friends and Family Night! Shout out to our parent chaperones and Booster Club for making this night a blast! ❤️

03/31/2026

For students that selected Orchestra for their schedules next year, please mark your calendars to attend our Instrument selection day! A SignUp Genius link will be shared with families individually closer to the event. We can’t wait to see you!

03/27/2026

In order to help us prepare for UIL next year, HP Arts graciously provided us with the past 10 years of UIL sightreading. Sightreading is an integral part of becoming a stronger musician, and we look forward to using this music with our students for years to come! 🎶