McKinney, Texas – McKinney native and longtime MISD educator Dr. Jared Critchfield will move from his assistant principal position at McKinney High School to Central Administration where he will serve as the district’s new director of fine arts. Critchfield brings 7 years of administrative experience and 14 years in education to his new position.

It’s a fitting move for Critchfield, who spent his classroom years as a choir teacher before transferring to campus administration. The MISD director of fine arts job became available with the recent retirement announcement of Dr. Dan White, who has served as the district’s director since 2015.

Critchfield inherits an MISD fine arts program that boasts a lengthy tradition of excellence, with individuals and ensembles earning state and national honors on a yearly basis. In fact, the district has been named one of NAMM’s Best Communities for Music Education for the past 5 years, and the district has received notification that MISD has earned the recognition again this year.

“Jared is a product of McKinney ISD and the McKinney ISD Fine Arts programs,” said Shawn Pratt, MISD Assistant Superintendent of Student Activities, Health and Safety. “After college, he returned to McKinney ISD as the choir director at Faubion Middle School and has served in various administrative roles in our high schools. Jared’s passion for our fine arts programs is evident in the testimony of his personal and professional life. He possesses outstanding character and will be a great asset to McKinney ISD as the fine arts director.”

During his tenure at Faubion, Critchfield was chosen as the 2011 MISD Secondary Teacher of the Year and went on to serve as the associate choir director at McKinney High School before moving into an assistant principal position at McKinney Boyd High School.

After four years at Boyd, Critchfield left MISD temporarily to serve as a teaching fellow at the University of North Texas where he taught teacher preparation courses in music education while completing his doctoral studies. He returned to MISD in 2020 to serve as an assistant principal at McKinney High School.

Now, he moves into a new leadership role.

“I feel both honored and humbled to serve as director of fine arts for our incredible district,” said Critchfield. “McKinney ISD has an established record of excellence in fine arts, and I look forward to continuing that tradition. A strong education in fine arts not only molds young people’s minds, but it also shapes their hearts and encourages participation in something bigger than themselves. In this way, I look forward to actively supporting our students, teachers and schools in preparing our students to more positively contribute to society.”

Critchfield earned his bachelor’s degree from Brigham Young University, his master’s degree from Southern Methodist University and his doctorate from the University of North Texas. He has been published in several professional publications including Music Educators Journal, Choral Journal and the Journal of Music Teacher Education. He is the proud father of four daughters who attend school in McKinney ISD.

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