We are proud to welcome several new full-time faculty members for the 2025-26 academic year.
Department of Design
Haley McCarthy
Instructor of Interior Design
McCarthy is an accomplished professional who brings valuable industry insight and technical expertise to the interior design program. Having made a strong impact as an adjunct instructor, she now joins full-time. Passionate about mentoring the next generation of interior designers, McCarthy looks forward to sharing her professional experience and supporting the broader design community. She earned a Bachelor of Science in interior design from the University of Cincinnati.
School of Music
Christopher (Drew) Dickey
Assistant Professor of Professional Practice, Assistant Director of Bands/Director of the Horned Frog Marching Band
Dickey joins TCU from the University of Texas at Austin, where he served as associate director of the Longhorn Band and assistant director of bands at the Butler School of Music. He is also the music design coordinator for the Pacific Crest Drum and Bugle Corps and the brass educational lead for The Bluecoats Drum and Bugle Corps. He previously held positions at Anderson University and Southwood Academy of the Arts. Dickey holds a Doctor of Musical Arts in wind conducting from the University of Texas at Austin, master’s degrees from Ithaca College and Louisiana State University, and a Bachelor of Music in music education from the University of South Carolina.
Jeff Hodge
Instructor I in Percussion
Hodge has been a member of the TCU percussion faculty since 2007, directing Percussion Orchestra II, Percussion Ensemble II and Steel Band II, and teaching applied lessons and percussion techniques. An active performer, clinician, composer/arranger and adjudicator, Hodge has performed across the United States and internationally in Austria, France, Italy and other countries. He holds a master’s degree from the University of Arkansas and a bachelor’s degree from Texas A&M University–Commerce. He is a clinician and artist with Innovative Percussion.
Eric Laine
Assistant Professor of Voice
Laine is recognized as an innovative artist on stage and in recital, including his European debut as II Podestà in “La finata giardiniera” with the Hungarian State Opera in Budapest — a role he later reprised with Opera Neo in San Diego. Laine is a published author in the “Journal of Singing,” with research interests in Latin American art song, vocal agility, and the intersection of exercise science and vocal pedagogy. He earned a Doctor of Musical Arts in vocal performance and pedagogy from the University of Houston Moores School of Music. Before joining TCU, he taught at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, the University of Houston and Lone Star College-University Park.
Myles Pinder
Instructor I in Voice
Pinder is an accomplished tenor and educator whose performance credits span opera, concert and oratorio works. An award-winning researcher, Pinder earned national recognition for his project “Musician Eye Strain during COVID-19 as Related to Screen Exposure in Higher Education.” He previously taught at Midwestern State University, Texas Woman’s University and the University of North Texas. Pinder holds a Master of Music from Southern Methodist University and a Bachelor of Arts from Butler University. He takes pride in his students’ successes, from NBC’s “The Voice” semifinals to careers in education and performance.
Thomas Singletary
Assistant Professor of Professional Practice in Music Education
Singletary is an accomplished conductor, composer, clinician and music educator known for his custom wind arrangements for high school and collegiate marching bands across the country. A Georgia native, he holds degrees from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Florida State University, where he earned his Ph.D. in music education and wind conducting. Prior to his doctoral studies, Singletary spent 17 years at Eau Gallie High School in Florida, leading award-winning concert, marching and jazz bands. He has received numerous honors, including the Oliver Hobbs Award and the Citation of Excellence from the National Band Association.
Department of Theatre
Jeffery Cochran
Assistant Professor of Stage, Production & Event Management
Cochran joins TCU from Oklahoma City University, where he built a nationally recognized stage and production management program and received the 2020 Outstanding Faculty Award. His professional credits include stage management for WaterTower Theatre, Shakespeare Festival of Dallas, the Greater Tuna Corporation and Dallas Black Dance. He also served as director of the Murchison Performing Arts Center at the University of North Texas and worked as a lighting designer during the 1996 Centennial Olympic Games in Atlanta.
Philip Zielke
Assistant Professor of Professional Practice – Technical Direction
Zielke, a TCU alumnus, joined the Department of Theatre staff in 2006. He previously served as technical director for the Trinity Shakespeare Festival, earning the Outstanding Service Award from the Live Theatre League in 2017. A national member of the United States Institute for Theatre Technology, Zielke also lends his expertise to local theatres, supporting a range of technical production needs. Originally from Fort Worth, he now lives in Aledo with his wife, Jennifer, and their two children.