Colleen Riddle has founded and directed award-winning Elementary Honor Choirs since 1996.  Her Honor Choirs have performed at TMEA, TASB, and have taken top honors at music festivals throughout Texas.  Her individual choir students have been selected to be in the TCDA State Honor Choir for the past twenty years.  She served as the TMEA Elementary Vice-President and State Division Chair from 2014-2015.  Mrs. Riddle has forty-seven years of experience in music education with sixteen of those years serving as the Director of Music Education in Aldine ISD.  She founded the Southeast Texas Kodály Certification Program for music teachers in 2006 and is currently a clinician for the program.  Recently she served as a clinician at the TMEA 2020 Convention. Colleen is currently employed by the University of Houston as a University Supervisor of Student Teachers.

Colleen received her Bachelor of Arts Degree from Louisiana State University in 1975, her Kodály Music Certification in 1986, and her Master's Degree in Educational Leadership, Mid-Management, and Principal’s Certification from Sam Houston State University in 2000.  She founded and directed the Children’s Music Festival from 2002-2019. In 2020, the festival was renamed the Children's Music Invitational for Elementary Choral and Orff Ensembles. She is a member of TMEA, TCDA, and OAKE.  

Shelley Harrington grew up in a musical family and has been singing in or directing choirs since the age of three. Her first instruments included the violin, piano, and flute but musical theater and singing are her first loves. Shelley graduated from the University of Houston with a Bachelor of Music Education degree and began teaching in Spring ISD in 1992. Her choirs and ensembles have been recognized by TMEA, at the Children’s Music Festival of Houston, and with straight First Division ratings at the UIL Concert and Sight-Reading Contest.

Shelley was a clinician at the TMEA 2020 Convention.  She currently teaches at Timber Creek in Tomball ISD. Her husband, Tom, is a recently retired band director and they have three adult children and one adorable granddaughter. Shelley is thrilled to work with the many talented singers that will participate in the North Houston Children’s Choir! 

Samantha Mansour is a native of Dallas, TX. who found an early love of music alongside her mother at the piano. She began singing in choir at a young age and continued through college as a member of the SHSU Chorale. She is a graduate of Sam Houston State University where she received her bachelor’s degree in Music Education.

Samantha is starting her 14th year of teaching elementary music in Klein ISD at Hassler Elementary. Here she has directed the Hassler Elementary Choir and Orff Ensemble. Prior to Klein, Samantha taught music and choir in Aldine ISD for 10 years. There she served as co-director for the Aldine Children’s Honor Choir from 2014-2018. Her choirs have received top honors including “Most Outstanding Choral Piece” at the Children’s Music Festival of Houston for five consecutive years and were an invited performance group at the 2015 and 2017 TMEA Conventions. Sam directed the NHCC choir for a Nashville record producer on the recording of "Shiloh".  She lives in Spring, TX. with her husband, Bobby and two children. Sam cannot wait to share her love of music with the North Houston Children’s Choir this year!

Originally from Indiana, Andrea Brown comes from a musical family and has been singing or performing since she can remember.  Andrea graduated from the University of Evansville with a Vocal Music Education degree where she had many opportunities to travel, perform, and learn from amazing teachers.  She spent a semester abroad at Harlaxton College in Grantham, England, and attended the summer Opera festival di Roma in Rome, Italy as part of her college studies as well.  

After moving to Texas with her sister (Tamara Fleming), she began teaching and singing professionally in the area. She sang with the First Methodist Houston Church for 7 years and directed their youth choir for 5 years. She also sang, recorded and traveled with the Moses Hogan Singers (3 Seasons) and the Houston Chamber Choir (6 seasons). Andrea began her teaching career in Aldine ISD and spent 16 years as a 6th grade choir director before moving to Klein ISD to teach elementary music for 8 years.  In 2023, she graduated with a Master’s Degree in Professional School Counseling and is currently a school counselor at Klein Forest High school.  Andrea is beginning her 26th year in education and couldn't be more thrilled to be directing the incredible North Houston Children’s Choir!  She loves to travel the world, cook, and hang out with her amazing husband and three daughters.  

A native Texan, Terri Nelli embarked on her teaching career at Aldine ISD in 1997. She recently retired from public school education after 29 years as a dedicated music educator in the greater Houston area.

Terri earned her Bachelor's Degree in Music Education for K-12 from East Texas Baptist University (ETBU) in Marshall, Texas, in 1996. During her time at ETBU, she honed her vocal skills and was an active member of the University Singers, Concert Choir, and Chapel Choir. These formative experiences laid the groundwork for a highly successful 22-year tenure at Aldine ISD as a 5th-grade music teacher and 7 years as a K-4 music specialist with Tomball ISD.  Terri's performing groups have garnered numerous accolades annually at the Children's Music Festival of Houston and the Children's Music Invitational. A testament to her talent, her Orffestra was invited to perform at the prestigious Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA) Convention in 2009.

Terri is a proud member of both the Texas Music Educators Association and the Organization of American Kodály Educators, holding certifications in Kodály and Level I Orff. Her commitment to education extends beyond the classroom; she has served as a mentor teacher, co-authored the 5th-grade music curriculum for Aldine ISD, and has both hosted and presented numerous clinics and in-services for the district.

Currently, Terri resides in Tomball, Texas, with her husband, Mike, and their beloved four-legged companions. She continues to inspire young minds as one of the directors of North Houston Children’s Choir. Beyond her professional life, Terri is actively involved in her church and enjoys pursuing her passions for cooking, baking, and maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

Jeanna Villanueva, North Houston Children’s Choir accompanist and vocal director, is actively involved in collaborative work with choirs, as well as vocal and instrumental soloists in Houston. She teaches Lower School Music and Choir at St. John's School.

Jeanna graduated from the University of the Philippines with a Bachelor of Music in Musicology. She moved to the U.S. to serve as worship and music director at Willow River Church. She is now staff pianist at St. Cuthbert Episcopal Church. She has performed as an alto chorister with the San Miguel Master Chorale, Houston Cecilia, Houston Choral Society, and Houston Symphony Chorus. Jeanna currently sings with the Casulana Women's Choir of Houston.

Originally from Indiana, Tamara Fleming has been singing and writing since she can remember.  She grew up in a musical family who was always singing, acting or playing instruments together.  She wrote and directed her first play at the age of 8, where she had her friends perform it in her backyard in front of friends and family. Tamara went on to graduate from the University of Evansville with a bachelor's degree in Mass Communications and a minor in Graphic Design.  While at UE, she attended Harlaxton College, their sister college in Grantham, England, where her love for traveling developed. 

After moving to Texas, she began teaching Spanish in Aldine ISD.  After a few years of teaching basic Spanish, she switched to teaching Theatre Arts.  While a Theatre teacher, she directed many whole school musicals and plays as well as sang with First Methodist Houston church choir and co-directed their youth choir. Tamara wrote and directed her first full-length musical in 2014 and has since had it performed in Aldine ISD, Tomball ISD, and Klein ISD.  In 2018, Tamara received her Master’s Degree in Information and Library Science from the University of North Texas and became an elementary school library media specialist in Klein ISD.  Today, she is the Library Media Specialist at Timber Creek Elementary in Tomball ISD.  She is in her 26th year in public education, loves to read, travel, and hang out with her amazing sister (Andrea Brown) and three nieces.