Introductions

[Cathy Swift]

Please introduce yourself and tell us a little about your background, including what areas you can review for MERLOT.  If you hit Reply below, you will keep your introduction in the Discussion area, so people can reply back to you.  And don't forget to save it!)  :-)

[Heidi Upton]

Hello everyone. I'm very happy to be part of this group. Here is a little about me, and my background.

I am a classical pianist, with piano performance B.M. and M.M. degrees from Juilliard and D.M.A. from Manhattan School of Music.For many years I have  been a teaching artist for Lincoln Center Institute for the Arts in Education (LCI)- was full time for a while, til I moved over to St. John's University full time, where I'm in last year of tenure track in the Institute for Core Studies. At St. John's I teach a freshman transition course called Discover New York, mandatory for all entering freshmen. Each who teaches it does so through their particular lens of expertise.

In the Dept of Fine Arts I teach two courses: The Creative Process and Introduction to Music. The Intro2Music course takes students from an experiential understanding of the very basic elements of music to an understanding of its place in history. I teach using a pedagogy known as "aesthetic education" as developed at LCI. It is a methodology that involves students in experiencial activities surrounding particular topics, concepts, works of art, so for example, students in Intro2Music might explore the notion of rhythm by making their own music based on particular cycles - no prior musical skills required!!! I am very interested in learning more about the l materials housed in Merlot, always looking for new ideas and ways to engage students in musical matters.

[Cathy Swift]

Well, I hope you learn a lot about MERLOT materials, too, Heidi.  With your background it sounds as if you can be of great assistance to the Editorial Board.  We're glad to have you.

[Marie Fetzner]

I am Marie Fetzner from Monroe Community College (MCC) in Rochester, NY. I retired from an administrative position in the Educational Technology Division at MCC after 25 years of service, and now I am an adjunct Assistant Professor in MCC's Transtional Studies department where I teach online. 

I earned a B.M. from the Eastman School of Music, earned a Master's in Public Administration degree from SUNY Brockport, and I earned my Doctorate in Education (Ed.D.) from the University of Rochester where my research focused on the retention of first time online students.

I taught woodwinds in K-12 many years ago, and developed a college-level online Music Appreciation Course. My interests lie in online student retention. I have been involved with online learning since 1997 when I first coordinated professional development for new online instructors at MCC. 

I participated (somewhat infrequently--I think I owe Cathy a review from several years ago...) in the Music discipline in MERLOT when Dave was the co-editor with his brother. 

I am a new panel reviewer for JOLT, I serve on the Access Advisory Panel for JALN (Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks), and I am a certified Quality Matters Peer Reviewer. I serve as a Mentor for faculty who are enrolled in the Sloan-C Online Teaching Certificate, and I facilitate a workshop on online student retention for Sloan.

I have experience with Music Appreciation, Woodwind teaching and performance (Clarinet, and Saxophone and Flute), and I dabble in Music History.

I am thrilled to have this opportunity to gear back up and become a Peer Reviewer in Music, and I look forward to working with all of you!

[Cathy Swift]

We're thrilled to have you back reviewing, Marie.  For the rest of the folks, I was able to meet Marie at one of our conferences, so at least I can place a name with a face.  Welcome back.