“To me, a human comes first.”

-Josef Gingold

Every student has a place to belong in my classroom. I strive to create a student-centered environment that encourages musical excellence through high expectations, hard work, compassion, support, and friendship. Each student is fostered by positive relationships with their peers, staff, and community members who are actively involved in developing the whole child. Effective learning happens when students feel safe, so building a collaborative environment and caring culture where students are free to be themselves and free to make mistakes in order to grow is crucial. Belonging to a team encourages them to learn from each other and take accountability and ownership of their learning. With this backbone, I desire for students to develop the ability to think critically, feel sensitively, and act courageously. 

Belonging begins with student-centered instruction through a culturally responsive lens. Students feel more seen, valued, and develop a heightened sense of self-esteem when teachers include their culture and invite them to be an integral part of the instructional process. By learning what is important to students, we put them, including their culture, experiences, and musical identity, at the center of our instruction. As a commitment to student-centered instruction, recognizing that music technology is playing an increasingly important role in modern music education promotes access to relevant and robust artistic experiences for students who do not participate in ensembles or have prior experience in music literacy classes. Through a thoughtful integration of technology, pedagogy, and musical content (TPACK), I will guide students to access opportunities that do not require prior music reading skills or experience in a music class. With digital composition tools, beat-making software, and practice-support apps, students can compose and engage with music that reflects their own cultural identities and experiences, and receive personalized, asynchronous feedback about their work. By exploring, applying, and integrating genres such as hip hop, rhythm and blues, rock, blues, pop, jazz, electronic dance music, and other contemporary styles into the curriculum, technology helps bridge the gap between popular music and traditional music education with student-centered instruction and new avenues for musical collaboration and production.

Every day, over 200 of our students show up as a team to collectively refine their technique and build upon their previous rehearsal skills with an eagerness and enthusiasm to grow. Our students complete practice videos by applying their knowledge from rehearsals and developing processes for self-evaluation for musically sensitive and artistic improvement. Friendships blossom and leaders bloom as our students teach each other in student-led sectionals, collaborating with their friends while demonstrating positive leadership and self-awareness. 

Every month, our breakfast socials bring the hottest topics up for debate over coffee and donuts– chocolate vs. glazed, or coffee with a splash of creamer vs. creamer with a splash of coffee. Our rotation of professional musicians steps in to enrich and inspire all of our students, giving them a refreshing perspective on how to strengthen their craft. Our officer and booster meetings alike plan new ideas to elevate our program experience pedagogically, socially, and emotionally. 

Every quarter, our students have a front-row seat to the music industry by learning from the world’s largest record label, Universal Music Group, from songwriting with touring bands, to understanding the day-in-a-life with industry professionals in Artist & Repertoire and Creator & Strategic Partnerships. Our students refine their team building in chamber music, demonstrating who is quick to step up and lead their small group and who follows commands. 

Every year, I get to cheer on our musicians-by-day and athletes-by-night at their soccer, football, softball, and volleyball games, celebrating every one of their wins with loud shouts of praise and applause from the stands. Our field trip to Six Flags reveals who is a daredevil and who loves the thrill of funnel cake itself. Our concerts bring in a wave of faithful parents, guardians, friends, and community members, both new and old, all dedicated to building up these lifelong musicians. 

It takes a village to support and strengthen these students to be future-ready learners who are empathetic, sensitive, and critical thinkers. Ultimately, I am dedicated to producing lifelong consumers of music and the arts by fostering a welcoming, artistic, and educational environment where students of all abilities and backgrounds belong, and feel mentally, physically, and emotionally safe in my classroom.