John Pollard is a career educator who serves on the Board of Directors for Music for All and as Master of Ceremonies for the Bands of America Fall Championships, the Texas UIL State Marching Championships, and the Music for All National Percussion Festival, presented by Yamaha. From 1997 to 2005, John was a band director at L.D. Bell High School in Texas. A two-time winner of the district’s Education Foundation Award of Excellence, he instructed two- time Texas UIL State Marching Champions, PAS National Drumline Champions, Sudler Shield of Honor recipients, and 25-time medalists at BOA Regional, Super-Regional, and Grand Nationals. John’s percussion ensembles performed at PASIC, Midwest, and TMEA and TBA conventions. He instructed at Music for All Summer Camps, National Festivals, Honor Bands, and the inaugural BOA Tournament of Roses Band in 2005. He chaired the UIL Percussion Music Committee, was a TMEA All-State Music Selector, a PASIC 2000 organizer, and assisted with MTV’s Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show.
In 2005, John pursued a career as a professional gemologist. He is now Senior Director of Education for the International Gemological Institute, expanding the institute’s educational initiatives and diploma programs taught in seven countries around the world and providing seminars, workshops, and master classes for clients in all industry sectors, including leading luxury brands. He has presented seminars at the American Gem Society Conclave in Washington, D.C., JCK Las Vegas, the Women’s Jewelry Association, the Gemological Institute of America Alumni Association, and international conferences in Antwerp, Beijing, Shanghai, Mumbai, Dubai, and Hong Kong. He is published in The Journal of Gemmology (Gem-A).