Music ed students see hard work pay off at conference

An unusual three years as the host school at a state music education conference have given Augustana students some extra opportunities to learn about leadership and make connections.

Last month, the Augustana College Music Education (ACME) student group organized collegiate events at the Illinois Music Education Conference in Peoria.

The Augie chapter of the state organization was elected host chapter in 2019 and also hosted in-person events in 2020, an online workshop in 2021 and the return to in-person events this year.

"Our term was meant for two years, but we took on three due to the complexities of the pandemic," said Dr. Jesse Rathgeber, assistant professor of music at Augustana. "The student leadership had spent all fall and J-term planning for the events."

Ainslie Lounsbury, a senior from Libertyville, Ill., worked with ACME all three years, and was president last year.

"Honestly, it feels like the entirety of my Augie experience prepared me for the conference," she said. "ACME has been a significant part of my experience since the day I stepped foot on campus. I have grown so much through the opportunities that were provided in the organization, and I know it has helped my peers to grow as people and professionals, too."

The Augustana students organized a two-hour professional development session featuring a keynote on social-emotional learning; round-robin presentations on early career teaching led by Christine Rogers '20 and Ariane Omerza '21 Call; eclectic teaching methods, led by Abigail Brekke '04 Blair; and post-pandemic teaching. 

"When you’re the collegiate host chapter, you have a responsibility to uphold, and I felt that everyone in our organization made sure to put their best foot forward," said Casey Cromp, a junior from Braidwood, Ill., and current president of ACME. "This was impactful for me because I got to help lead our organization through a hard event that was being presented through an even harder time."

Lounsbury said the support of her advisors, Dr. Dawn Farmer and Dr. Rathgeber, was essential to ACME's good showing at the conference.

"Both of them care deeply about the success of each music education student, and it shows in the way that we were able to collaborate to create a successful and engaging collegiate program," she said. "They have not only been so helpful from an ACME standpoint, but also helping push me to become an even better music educator and person.

"That type of support is what I hoped for when I came to Augustana, and they both truly embody the engagement, passion and dedication that drew me to the college."

Cromp said planning and presenting the conference events had an added bonus: a place for students to develop social and communication skills, and professional rapport.

"When you attend IMEC as a future music educator, it feels like you’re attending an interview every single day," he said. "You have no clue who you could meet that might shape the future of your career, so you need to make a lasting impression.”