Dr. Robert Gifford honored by arts council

Longtime music educator Dr. Robert Gifford of Cape Girardeau was recently recognized for his commitment to fine arts education by the Missouri Arts Council by receiving the 2010 Missouri Arts Award for Arts Education. Throughout his career, Gifford has worked to create quality arts education opportunities for students in all grade levels. Currently Gifford serves on the boards of the Missouri Citizens for the Arts and the Missouri Alliance for Arts Education. He also is a member of the Arts Council of Southeast Missouri's board of directors. Gifford recently retired from Southeast Missouri State University, where he served for 24 years in many capacities. Under his leadership the Southeast band program grew from two groups to seven different bands and the school's Summer Music Camps expanded to five sessions serving more than 2,000 students.