Dena Byers currently teaches at Hillandale Elementary School and serves as the lead elementary music teacher.

She has taught for Durham Public Schools since 1997. She is a National Board Certified and has been honored by being a top four finalist for District Teacher of the Year and receiving the NC Symphony's Jackson Pankhurst Award for Special Achievement in music education. She is also the Artistic Director for the Durham Children's Choir (DCC), has been with the organization since its' founding in 2004. An active member of the American Choral Directors Association and the American Orff-Schulwerk Association, Mrs. Byers has been a guest conductor for a All-State Honors Choirs in MS and TN as well as District All-County Choirs in NC, GA, FL an AL. She has presented workshops for Orff-Schulwerk chapters throughout the US and at National AOSA Professional Development Conferences. Dena is an AOSA approved Teacher Educator and currently teaches Level lI Orff-Schulwerk at the University of Memphis. She received BA degrees in Music Education and Vocal Performance from the University of Connecticut, a Master of Music from the University of Minnesota and holds Level III and Master Level Orff-Schulwerk Certifications from the University of Nevada-Las Vegas and the University of Memphis, respectively.