HIGH POINT, N.C., Aug. 3, 2009 – The halls of High Point University will be filled with lots of music, thanks to the adoption of a new curriculum that will add an innovative and progressive Bachelor of Arts degree in music in the university?s new Department of Music. The degree program will begin in 2010.
The new program, which will include an integrative learning style that creates real connections between theoretical and practical experience, will enable music majors to understand how and why their class work is informed by their performance – and how and why their performance is informed by their class work.
The new curriculum will also allow each student to tailor his or her degree to specific areas of interest with the implementation of free credit hours.
“Students will be able to select courses that address their individual areas of interest, beyond the primary area of interests, such as voice, piano or instrumental,” explains Dr. Marc Foster, Department of Music chair and director of University Choirs. “For those students who will move from the undergraduate level to graduate school in music, they will have the opportunity to take courses designed specifically for preparing them for advanced studies in music.”
Foster adds that other students may opt to go directly to the stage after their HPU degrees and others may want to cover secondary areas of interest.
“Our integrative learning style approach and flexibility of free credit hours will set the Bachelor of Arts in music degree apart from other schools around the country,” says Foster. “Our students will leave HPU with a comprehensive bachelor in music, prepared to achieve success in a variety of areas within the music industry.”
Foster explains the importance of the many options for students, too.
“In any culture – modern or primitive – arts have historically been used as a barometer for the health and vitality of a society,” he says. “If you want to discover how vibrant and healthy a society is, look at the status of their arts. … An excellent choral and instrumental program will reflect the excellence of the university.”
Students who earn a degree in music will also have numerous career opportunities – performing, teaching, church music ministry, the music business and advanced studies are all possibilities upon graduation.
Student success following graduation also reflects well on the experienced faculty members in the department, including:
– Dr. Marc Foster, Department of Music chair and director of University Choirs, who will teach beginning conducting.
– Marcia Dills, director of keyboard studies, who will teach piano lessons, music theory and music in the elementary school, in addition to accompanying all choral ensembles, chapel services and student performances.
– Dr. Evelyn Fair-Baker, instructor of music, who will teach human dimensions of music, music literature and voice lessons.
– Dr. Danny Frye, director of University Bands, who will teach human dimensions of music, music history and percussion lessons.
– Dr. Alexa Schlimmer, director of vocal studies, who will teach voice lessons, cabaret and human dimensions of music.
“With excellent faculty, excellent facilities and students eager to achieve their best through music, the Department of Music at HPU is poised to become one of the best in the country,” Foster says.
At High Point University, every student receives an extraordinary education in a fun environment with caring people. HPU, located in the Piedmont Triad region of North Carolina, is a liberal arts institution with 3,700 undergraduate and graduate students from 50 countries and 44 states at campuses in High Point and Winston-Salem. It is ranked by US News and World Report No. 5 among comprehensive universities in the South and No. 1 in its category among up-and-coming schools. Forbes.com ranks HPU in the top 6 percent among “America’s Best Colleges.” HPU was included in The Chronicle of Higher Education’s “Great Colleges to Work For” 2009 listings. The university offers 68 undergraduate majors, 40 undergraduate minors and seven graduate degree programs. It is accredited by the Commission of Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, and is a member of the NCAA, Division I and the Big South Conference. Visit High Point University on the Web at www.highpoint.edu. Chris DudleyVice President for [email protected]