Mary Jane Thornton is a Dallas native and has been directing choirs in the DFW area since 1982. Currently she is teaching in the Garland ISD, where she has taught music at every level, since 1995. She spent 10 years as a director of the Garland All-City Choirs and helped lead their TMEA performance in 2003. Choirs under her direction consistently achieve superior ratings at local UIL contests as well as choir festivals in east Texas and San Antonio. Active also as an adjudicator and accompanist, she earned bachelors and masters degrees in organ performance, music education, sacred music and choral conducting from SMU, where she studied under Lloyd Pfautsch. Professional affiliations include TMEA, TCDA and ACDA. Mary Jane lives in Garland with husband Chuck and the “girls”, Phoebe the Basset, Lucy the Beagle and Molly the Mutt. In her limited spare time, she loves to read, travel, cook, eat, ski and spend time with her grown children, Bryan , Jenny and Emily.
All three of her children are GHS graduates and products of the GISD Gifted/Talented program: Bryan Kettlewell, class of 2002, Jenny Kettlewell, 2005, and Emily Kettlewell, 2011. All 3 of them were active members of the GHS Choirs while they were at Garland High.
Mary Jane Thornton is a Dallas native and has been directing choirs in the DFW area since 1982. Currently she is teaching in the Garland ISD, where she has taught music at every level, since 1995. She spent 10 years as a director of the Garland All-City Choirs and helped lead their TMEA performance in 2003. Choirs under her direction consistently achieve superior ratings at local UIL contests as well as choir festivals in east Texas and San Antonio. Active also as an adjudicator and accompanist, she earned bachelors and masters degrees in organ performance, music education, sacred music and choral conducting from SMU, where she studied under Lloyd Pfautsch. Professional affiliations include TMEA, TCDA and ACDA. Mary Jane lives in Garland with husband Chuck and the “girls”, Phoebe the Basset, Lucy the Beagle and Molly the Mutt. In her limited spare time, she loves to read, travel, cook, eat, ski and spend time with her grown children, Bryan , Jenny and Emily.