The College of Arts & Humanities has named Jeff Moore, chair of the music department, as the first director of the School of Performing Arts.
Moore will be responsible for overseeing the music and theatre departments and advancing the development of a new Performing Arts Center on the main Orlando campus. Moore was appointed after a national search.
“Jeff Moore is a visionary leader who brings dedication and a strong sense of mission to the School of Performing Arts,” said Jose B. Fernandez, dean of the College of Arts & Humanities. “His leadership style fosters a sense of stability while also encouraging people to think outside the box.”
Moore is tasked with completing the merger of the two departments into one school, which includes creating a unified governance structure for more than 50 faculty and staff members. His responsibilities also include identifying opportunities for integration and innovation in program delivery and curricular design. He is collaborating with the UCF Foundation to continue to secure the funding for the new performing arts center, which is currently designed to have four performance venues, costume and scenic shops, as well as rehearsal spaces. As a campus arts leader, he is charged with building awareness of the arts and relationships with the UCF partners and within the UCF and Orlando communities.
“I am honored to have the opportunity to lead the UCF School of Performing Arts. Throughout my career, I have always enjoyed collaborating with faculty, students and our partners,” said Moore. “This new position affords me the ability to expand on those activities while continuing to enhance our presence in the community and beyond. When you add the construction of Phase II of the UCF Performing Arts Center to this environment, it is a very exciting time for the performing arts at UCF.”
Moore received his master of music performance degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and holds a bachelor of music from the University of North Texas. He joined the UCF music faculty in 1994 where he taught and served as percussion coordinator. Active in all facets of percussion, he is an international lecturer, clinician and soloist. He is a contributing author to the third edition of Teaching Percussion and has published more than 30 arrangements and compositions including a method book and CD package.
Involved in national and international societies, he served as an associate editor of Percussive Notes, the Percussive Arts Society’s scholarly journal. and was recently elected to the board of directors of that organization. A recognized expert in marching percussion, Moore has served as the percussion director of the internationally acclaimed Madison Scouts Drum and Bugle Corps, and as program consultant/percussion arranger with several European, Japanese, Thai and Indonesian drum corps and bands. He serves as a consultant and artist endorser with several companies including Yamaha and has designed signature products with Pro-Mark.