camp director

Ashby Goldstein has a long history with Penny’s Camp. In addition to attending both the Drum Major and Leadership camps for three years as a high school student, he was also on the Leadership Academy staff for ten years before becoming Penny’s Camp Director in 2013.

Ashby Goldstein is the Director of Music Education and Bands at Carson-Newman University, where he teaches music education courses. His responsibilities include supervising student teachers and conducting the Carson-Newman concert and marching bands. Before joining the faculty at Carson-Newman, Mr. Goldstein taught music education courses and conducted concert ensembles as a Graduate Teaching Associate at The Ohio State University.

Mr. Goldstein has experience as a music educator at middle, high, and collegiate levels. Under his direction, the Gifford Middle School bands performed at the Florida Music Educators Association Professional Development Conference, the University of Georgia’s Middle School Band Festival, the Music for All National Middle School Music Festival, and the National Band Association/College Band Directors National Association Southern Division Conference. During his tenure as the Director of Bands at Sebastian River High School, the Wind Symphony performed at the Western International Band Clinic, and the marching band was awarded eight grand championships at various competitions in Florida and Georgia.

Mr. Goldstein has been awarded two Citations of Excellence from the National Band Association and was recognized as the 2014 Gifford Middle School Teacher of the Year and the 2020 Sebastian River High School Teacher of the Year. More recently, he received The Virginia A. Bridges Music Education Award and was acknowledged as an Outstanding Graduate Associate in Music Education at Ohio State University. Mr. Goldstein has presented at music education association conferences in Florida, Texas, Georgia, Ohio, South Carolina, Virginia, and Indiana, and is published in Contributions to Music Education. He is a highly sought-after clinician, leading professional development workshops for music educators in various school districts across the Eastern United States, and has conducted honor bands in Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, and Montana. He is an active adjudicator for both concert and marching band festivals.

Mr. Goldstein is currently ABD (All But Dissertation) at The Ohio State University, where he is completing a Ph.D. in music education. He holds a bachelor’s degree in instrumental music education from Florida State University and a master’s degree in instrumental conducting from Southern Oregon University.