Vice President, NASM Board of Directors
Elected November 2024; term ends November 2027
JAMES B. FORGER is Professor and Dean of the College of Music at Michigan State University (MSU). Prior to his current appointment, he was a member of the faculty of East Carolina University. He joined the MSU faculty in 1979 and became director of the School of Music in 1990. During his tenure, the College has grown in quality, size, and diversity becoming MSU’s 16th College in 2007 and adding programs in jazz studies, ethnomusicology, collaborative piano, music theory pedagogy, piano pedagogy, early childhood music, and electronic media. Additional programmatic emphasis has been placed on an expanded chamber music program, entrepreneurial musicianship, curricular and programmatic support for diversity, equity, and inclusion, and initiatives in support of health and wellbeing. The College outreach dimension expanded with the founding of Community Music Schools in East Lansing (1993) and Detroit (2009) that currently serve more than 2,500 adults and children weekly. An increased focus on advancement significantly increased annual and endowment giving growing the number of endowments from 6 to 163. Dean Forger led several successful facility expansion and renovation projects, including the opening of the new Billman Music Pavilion (2020), renovations of Fairchild Theatre (2013), and Cook Recital Hall (2012), as well as the installation of a new organ in the MSU Alumni Chapel (2020). A newly announced capital campaign for the College has a goal of an additional $100M. The University has recognized his work with the Robert F. Banks Award for Institutional Leadership. He has been active in university governance, currently co-chairing MSU’s Provost search.
Dean Forger has maintained an active role as a saxophone performer and for more than 28 years, he has performed annually with the Grand Teton Music Festival. More recent performances include those in Havana, Shanghai, India, and Uzbekistan.
Dean Forger serves NASM as a visiting evaluator. He has served as a member of the Commission on Accreditation, the Commission on Non-Degree-Granting Accreditation, and as Chair of ACCPAS.
Dean Forger earned his undergraduate and graduate degrees in music at the University of Michigan.
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Posted January 2025