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Background: A native of Galena Park, TX, a Houston suburb, Dr. Chambers has two brothers and a sister. His father was an oil field mechanic, building and repairing diesel engines. With his older sister and two brothers he grew up involved in athletics and activities at the First Baptist Church. It was there he was baptized shortly after his eleventh birthday. He graduated from Galena Park High School in 1967.
Personal Information: Born March 12, 1949, he married the former Cheryl Ann Sharbutt in 1973. Cheryl serves as a special education teacher for the Blount County Schools. They have two children: Micah, who is married to Danay and lives in Richardson, TX, where he works for Geico Insurance Company; and Emily, who is currently pursuing a Master’s Degree in Public Health at Boston University and works part time as consultant on HIV/AIDS education for Samaritan’s Purse.
Education: Dr. Chambers received Bachelor and Master of Music Education Degrees from Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, TX (1971, 1973) with a major in vocal music education. He was awarded the Doctor of Musical Arts Degree and the Academic Achievement Award from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, TX in 1984. His major was music history and his performance area was conducting. His minor was systematic theology. In 2001, he received the Certificate of Vocology (the science and practice of voice habilitation) from the University of Iowa and the Denver Center for the Performing Arts.
Ministry Experience: He served twenty-three years as a full-time minister of music and youth, minister of music, associate pastor/music, and minister of music and worship in churches in Kentucky, Virginia, Texas, and Tennessee. Before joining the faculty of Johnson Bible College, he was the minister of music at Maryville (TN) First Baptist Church for ten years.
Teaching Experience: He taught junior high and high school choral music for the Jacksonville, TX public schools in 1971-72 and then seventh through ninth grade choir for the Midland (TX) Independent School District, 1973-74. From 1974-76, he served as Instructor of Music at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff where he taught voice, music education, and directed the Madrigal Singers. As a seminary student, he served as grader and substitute teacher for Dr. Scotty W. Gray, assistant director of Opera Workshop, and taught choral diction one semester. Dr. Chambers returned to college teaching in 2001 at Johnson Bible College. He has also taught at Walters State Community College in Morristown. From 2003-2005, he taught voice and was choral conductor at Walters State Community College in Morristown. Beginning fall 2005 Dr. Chambers teaches voice, worship leadership, music ministry, conducting, and conducts the Campus Choir and Tintinnabulation (handbell choir) at Johnson Bible College.
Academic Interests and Experience: Dr. Chambers specializes in choral conducting, especially the church music of Mendelssohn, and in vocal techniques for developing vocal tone. He recently presented a recital of sacred art song and is working to develop a repertoire of these songs for use in the voice studio. He spends a great deal of time studying worship in the early church and current trends in worship. He is also interested in the effects of aging on the voice.
Interests and Hobbies: Dr. Chambers’ interests include golf, theology, music, college sports (particularly football and basketball), and keeping up the house and yard. He roots for the TCU Horned Frogs, his wife’s alma mater, Texas Tech, and, after seventeen years in East Tennessee, the University of Tennessee. |
