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About

Christian Academy of Performing Arts Austin is a 501(c)3 organization created in the spring of 2015 to serve as an umbrella entity over all of the former CCSA choirs, from Angel Choir through Concert Choir and Master’s Singers. The non-profit organization is overseen by a Board of Directors and is a religious and educational organization. CAPA Austin strives to carry forward the original vision and tradition of excellence in Christian choral instruction that so many homeschool students benefited from for over two decades through CCSA.

Anti-discrimination Policy: Christian Academy of Performing Arts Austin admits students of any race, color, national origin, and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to our students. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, and ethnic origin in administration of its educational policies, admission policies, scholarship and loan programs, and other organization-administered programs.

New students are welcome!

Please visit the registration page to register your student for a particular choir. Details about tuition, times, and locations can be found there. Descriptions of our choirs can be found on the Choir page.

Families who are new to CAPA may register their students on a trial basis. Students may attend and participate for their first two weeks without having to commit for the semester. After that time, students wanting to continue will need to pay the registration fee and either half or full payment for the semester. (Full payment by the third week is required to qualify for the discount.)

All of the choirs emphasize quality
Christian choral music education

Lora Maeurer is committed to teaching our children to sing quality, classical choral arrangements; to sight read, and to participate in challenging competitions.

Our vision includes not just weekly choir rehearsals, but a range of competitions and performances, including the TPSMEA Concert & Sight-Reading Contest, Solo and Ensemble Festival, the Capitol Rotunda and nursing home performances, and of course the Christmas and spring concerts. As the performing arts name implies, CAPA goes beyond choral performances each year by offering a summer musical each summer as well as a small cast musical during alternating school years.

While excellence in musical instruction is our goal, we also strive to provide a safe social environment for our homeschool and private school students. An active calendar of social events include dances, parties, and other opportunities for our students to enjoy fellowship while honoring God.

All Choirs meet one day each week
with our younger choirs offering up to
three time and location options

Choral Director

 

Lora Maeurer
Lora has a Bachelors of Music in Music Education from the Hartt School of Music at the University of Hartford and a Masters in Elementary Education from SUNY (State University of New York) New Paltz. She taught for several years in the public schools in New York State where she led the vocal and general music programs and directed several high school musical theatre productions. Lora, her husband Ted, and their girls moved to Austin in 2001. Lora has stayed active as a musician by performing or teaching through several homeschool, community, and church groups. Lora homeschooled her two daughters for 14 years, during which time both of her girls sang in each of the CCSA choirs from Angel to Master’s Singers. In January 2015, Lora became the CAPA Angel and Children’s Choir Director; she began directing the remaining CAPA choirs in September 2015.

 

Board of Directors

 

Melissa Kemp, Chair

Melissa Kemp has been involved with CAPA since the fall of 2016 when her two oldest children joined the choirs.  She currently has children in Angel, Children’s, and Treble Choir.  Melissa graduated with a bachelor’s degree in early childhood education from Baylor University.  After spending several years teaching elementary students in Austin, she left full-time teaching to stay home with her children.  Her love of teaching led her and her husband, John, to homeschool their children.  Melissa has continued to enjoy perfecting her craft as a Foundations and Essentials tutor in her Classical Conversations community in Hutto.  In her spare time, she works with preservice teachers for ACT Austin as an instructor and field supervisor as well as with Pearson, Inc. as an edTPA portfolio evaluator.  Her family is very active with their church, Great Hills Baptist Church, where Melissa serves in the preschool and children’s ministries.


Christi Covington, Secretary

Christi Covington joined the choir when it first started in the 1990s as a Children’s Choir student and continued through high school, finishing in Concert Choir and Master’s Singers. After graduating with a Bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor and working as a reporter and editor for news publications in the Austin-area, she and her husband, Jason, decided to homeschool their own three children. They rejoined the CCSA family again in 2011 with their oldest son and now have students in Children’s and Angel choirs. They’re active with their church, Redemption Hill, as well as with their Classical Conversations campus in Round Rock where Christi serves as Foundations-Essentials Director.

 

Sharon Gretencord, Treasurer

Sharon Gretencord is a homeschool mom of six. The Gretencord kids have been part of CCSA and CAPA since 2009. Sharon has a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics and a Master of Science in Computational and Applied Mathematics from the University of Texas. Before beginning her family, she was a lecturer in the Math Department at UT and spent several years in curriculum development in STEM. Sharon teaches science courses to middle and high school students and is currently taking an online classical teacher training to hone her skills in the homeschool journey. Sharon and her husband Adam have worked for the Austin Fertility Care ™ Center in Austin for 14 years, giving presentations to engaged couples to help prepare them for marriage in the Diocese of Austin. The Gretencord family has been active at their parish, St Louis King of France Catholic Church, since 2003.

 

Nina Estes, Member

Nina Estes is a proud mother of four and a second-generation homeschooler. She is a rare native Austinite. Her oldest daughter has participated in the CCSA and CAPA choirs at various times over the years and is currently active in the CAPA Concert Choir. Nina has an Associate Degree in English from Austin Community College and currently teaches grammar and writing to middle school students with a local homeschool group. She has been married to her husband Brad for over 20 years. They are active members at Grace Community Bible Church in Austin.

 

Dawn Roberts, Member

Dawn Roberts began homeschooling her five children in 2005. She and her husband Dave have been married for almost 30(!) years, and are active members of Hill Country Bible Church. The Roberts have been a part of CAPA since 2017, when their fourth child joined Treble Choir. Their daughter is now a part of Concert Choir and Masters Singers. She has also participated in two CAPA summer musicals. Dawn has a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Illinois and a Master of Business Administration degree from UC Berkeley Haas School of Business. She pursued a career in Silicon Valley’s semiconductor industry for many years before “retiring” to raise a family, and she considers homeschooling to be her second, and favorite, “career.” Dawn loves all things musical and is thrilled that one child has chosen to pursue choral music and musical theater, like Dawn did throughout junior high and high school! Dawn has served for many years as a volunteer with BSA, and more recently, with CYT. Dawn’s “other” job is coordinating the annual Christian Homeschool Formal of Austin.