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DIVISION OF FINE ARTS
11/28/00 DRAFT
A. DESCRIPTION AND FUNCTION
Mission. The Fine Arts mission statement is published in the VCSU Bulletin,
Department of Art and Music Fact Sheets, and the Music Student Handbook.
The Division of Fine Arts provides opportunities for all students to develop aesthetic
responsiveness, cultural and global awareness, and historical and contemporary
perspective. Students pursuing a comprehensive education in art or music develop a
deeper understanding of these fundamental abilities. The Fine Arts Division:
(1) encourages individual expression through nonverbal communication and active
collaboration in creative endeavor;
(2) provides elementary and secondary art and music education students with the
essential knowledge and skills to become successful classroom teachers; and
(3) prepares the student for professional study in Fine Arts. The Division supports
the institutional mission in instructional technology while recognizing the
divisional role in enriching human experience and cultivating a sense of
community.
The Division of Fine Arts is comprised of the Department of Art and the Department of
Music. Information about Fine Arts degree programs and courses appears in the 20002002 VCSU Bulletin, pages 57-62, 72-74, and 91-93.
DEPARTMENT OF ART
Goals. The primary functions of the Department of Art are: (1) providing superior
training for public school art teachers; (2) providing excellent studio training for artists;
and (3) contributing to the cultural environment of the campus and the community. The
Department supports the institutional mission in instructional technology while
recognizing the departmental role in encouraging individual expression, enriching the
human experience, and cultivating an artistic community.
Description and Function. The Department of Art and its instructional programs
provide an essential ingredient in the environment, academic offerings, and abilities of a
liberal arts institution. Specifically, programs and activities in the arts help to fulfill the
stated purposes of the University by imparting society’s cultural heritage (global
awareness) and, through creative activity (visual communication), opening the students’
minds to alternative ways of creative thinking (problem solving) and living. The
Department supports the teacher preparation mission of the University by providing
aspiring teachers with an understanding of the importance of the arts in education at all
age levels, and with ideas and techniques for the use of Art in classroom instruction. In
combination with the Department of Music, the Art Department supports the General
Education course, HUM 203, Fine Arts and Aesthetics, required of all students pursuing
the bachelor’s degree.
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The Department of Art offers major and minor curricula in Art both for teaching and nonteaching degrees. In the past the composite major in Art was deleted to enable students
to broaden their educational backgrounds with less exclusive concentration in the single
area. However, today more of our students are seeking graduate school in studio arts.
Those that wish to continue their education find that the B.A. in Art and the B.S. in Art
Education are shallow degrees. Perhaps the composite major in Art should be re-visited.
All of the programs are modern and rigorous, and are periodically evaluated by the
students and the Department and Divisional faculty. The Department maintains the
currency of its courses and curricular structures using the guidelines of such professional
associations as the College Art Association, NASAD, and the National Art Education
Association.
The primary means of instructional delivery are presentation, guided discovery, mastery
of technique, and individual inquiry. Other instructional methods include use of digital
equipment, laptop computers, and the Title III computer stations and the use of the multimedia stations for visual presentations and videotapes in the Humanities, Art History, and
studio art courses. The Interactive Television Laboratory has also been used in courses
for Art teaching methods.
Student Enrollment. Table #__ following displays the numbers of students graduating
with a major or minor in Art from 1992 through 2000.
TABLE #__
Graduates with Art Majors and Minors
1992-2000
1992
Major
Art
0
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
1
1
4
2
3
3
1
4
(3)
Minor 0
Art
0
0
1
1
0
2
2
1
(1)
The number of students pursuing curricula in Art decreased during the 1985 to 1994 time
period. A major factor in that decrease was the elimination of Art from the curricula of
the smaller North Dakota school districts. This circumstance has a dual effect. Only
those students graduating from the larger high schools have had the opportunity for Art
instruction prior to their enrollment in institutions of higher education. Their interest in
Art is limited accordingly. In the second place, the demand for Art teachers in the
schools had severely limited employment opportunities for teachers especially prepared
in Art. In the past five years the number of art students has rebounded slightly. This
trend could be connected to the recent stability in the Department, the laptop initiative,
and the increased demand for quality art educators.
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Administration. At present, the Division of Fine Arts chair also serves as Chair of the
Department of Music; the Department of Art is chaired by a member of the art faculty.
Division chairs receive a one-quarter reduction in load for administrative duties. Since
the NASM evaluation of 1997, the music department chair has received a one-quarter
load reduction. The art department chair receives no release time.
Faculty. There are two full-time faculty members in the Department of Art. Both hold
the M.F.A. degree, one is female the other is male, one holds the academic rank of
Associate Professor the other holds the rank of Assistant Professor, and one is tenured.
Their average age is 42 years. The average number of years of experience in the
University is 5.5, and their average annual salary is $31,748.
The faculty has developed their knowledge and skills in the application of computer
graphics and drawing software packages. The chair of the Art Department serves on the
Visual Art Standards Writing Team for the North Dakota Department of Public
Instruction, and serves as a liaison with the Community School of the Arts and the
Bridges Arts Council. The chair also directs the Art Camp Session at International Music
Camp located at the International Peace Gardens. She also received recognition with the
1999 North Dakota Governor’s Awards for the Arts for work with her work with
children. Both faculty members have exhibited their work in area, regional, and national
galleries and have worked with Music and Theatre productions as set design consultants.
One member has led a number of cultural tours to Fargo, Grand Forks, Minneapolis, and
Washington, D.C.
A review of faculty loads from fall semester 1992 shows the following average loads for
full-time faculty:
Year
Fall Semester
Spring Semester
1992-1993
12
13.6
1993-1994
13.7
12.8
1994-1995
13.3
13.9
1995-1996
12.8
12.9
1996-1997
13.5
13.8
1997-1998
15
14.6
1998-1999
13.8
14.8
1999-2000
14
15
2000-2001
11.8
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Support Staff. The Art Department shares the half-time divisional secretary with the
Department of Music. The secretary’s workstation is in the Music building across the
campus from the Art Department. The Art Department is assigned one Work-Study
student and a Student Assistant who work between eight and ten hours each per week.
Both students help prepare materials, maintain supplies and equipment, and assists with
various projects connected with the all of the studios in the department. A major support
inadequacy is the inconvenience of access to the divisional secretary. One former student
has been hired part time to work in the ceramics studio. He monitors the kiln and assists
in mixing clay and maintaining equipment.
Facilities and Equipment. The Department has reasonably well-equipped classrooms,
offices, and studios. The spaces are located on the third floor of McCarthy Hall, and they
are accessible to physically handicapped persons. The Ceramics studio is located in its
own separate building. The studios are well equipped and adequate in size.
The books, journals, and publications in the University library are adequate for the
programs. Other learning resources such as videotapes, slides etc. are also adequate.
Budget resources allocated to the Department have been satisfactory, but increased
funding will be required to bring the Department up to standard with respect to the
institutional mission emphasis in the application of computer technology in instruction.
Shouldn’t the budgets go back to 1992, the year of the last comprehensive evaluation??
TABLE #__
Department of Art Budget
Compared with the Total Instructional Budget, 1995-2001
Salaries and Wages
Art
Total Instructional Budget
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
61,205
59,160
59,160
3,011,339
61,432
3,034,016
63,053
3,096,342
63,053
3,127,575
6,650
10,150
10,150
394,936
6,650
230,699
7,320
316,445
7,320
290,897
2001
63,497
3,247,628
Operating
Art
Total Instructional Budget
7,320
286,326
Equipment
Art
Total Instructional Budget
0
0
0
27,818
84,655
84,510
84,510
3,434,093
0
9,278
0
14,373
0
19,000
0
37,400
88,253
3,427,160
88,253
3,437,472
92,717
3,571,354
Totals
Art
Total Instructional Budget
85,962
3,273,993
Assessment. Program quality is measured by internal evaluation at the department level
and by comparison with state program standards. The Department meets all requirements
in teacher preparation established the State Department of Public Instruction and
NCATE.
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The Art Department has developed a portfolio review process. A small minority of
students entering the art program has fairly developed art-making skills. Those students
enter the program through an entrance portfolio review. The faculty members use this
review to assess the student’s development and place them in the appropriate classes.
The majority of the students entering the Department have limited verbal communication
skills. Those students take a foundations course in order that the faculty can better assess
the student’s skills and guide their development. The students, generally, follow a direct
path of studio skill building courses. Each course in the program has been developed to
build on the previous one. The Foundations course leads to Design, Design to Drawing I,
Printmaking I, Painting I, and Ceramics I. The first level studio courses lead to the
second level studio courses, and the second level to the third. If the student is not
successful in fulfilling the requirements of any of the courses they work closely with the
faculty, through tutoring, to accomplish the criteria of the course. The student receives
the same guidance through the art history sequence. From the beginning of their art
program experience the student is preparing for their senior portfolio. The senior
portfolio is a screening for the senior exhibition. The student will present a professional
exhibition, complete with a written artist’s statement before they qualify for graduation.
The student will graduate with a completed professional portfolio that demonstrates the
student’s course criteria accomplishment.
The art education students also need to accomplish the professional education track for
their degree. This track includes a successful PRAXIS / PPST test, the professional
education sequence, the student teaching review, student teaching, and the education
portfolio. The art faculty members work closely with both the student and the Education
Division through this track.
The Department is in the process of developing and integrating ability language
assessment into the existing portfolio assessment process. The Art Department has
mapped the abilities in the program and is working on the assessment as it relates to the
abilities portfolio.
DRAFT—Abilities “MAP” for the BA in Art and BS in Art Education—November, 2000
Art
Major
Outcome
Perceptual
Ability
Description of Outcome


Conceptual
Ability


Demonstrates the knowledge of art
Making language
Draws
(sculpts,
fabricates)
perceptually
Demonstrates
the
theoretical
understanding of the concepts of art
making beyond replication of what
is observed
Demonstrates
the
practical
understanding of the concepts of art
Courses
which
meet this Ability
Art 231*
Project identified for each course
Art 112*
Design portfolio - Visual Comm. (2)
Art 321
Advanced print portfolio – Creative
Thinking (4)
Drawing portfolio – Creative Thinking,
(4)
Painting Series – Creative Thinking,
(4)
Art 331*
Art 341*
Drawing portfolio – Visual Comm. (3)
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Use of tool


making beyond replication of what
is observed
Uses systems (proper use of tool)
Works with systems (studio
operations)
Art 381*
Art 111*
Art 221*
Art 241*
Art 281*
Critical
Analysis




Demonstrates understanding of the
history of art making
Demonstrates understanding of
critical analysis of art and art
making
Demonstrates the ability to critically
analyze artwork of others
Demonstrates the ability to critically
analyze one’s own artwork
Art 322/332/342
382
Art 311*
Art 312*
Art 490*
Art 230/370/400
Professional
Portfolio

Presents artwork professionally

Documents work professionally

Presents vita appropriately
Art 490*
Ceramic Series – Creative Thinking,
(4)
Digital images of Foundation portfolio
Technology - Selects (2)
Print edition portfolio – Technology,
Applies (2)
Painting Portfolio – Technology,
Applies (2)
Ceramic portfolio – Technology –
Applies (2)
Written and spoken analysis of one’s
own art and the art of others (critique)
Written and Spoken (3-4)
Formal presentation of the artwork of
non-western peoples - Spoken (3)
Formal presentation of contemporary
artwork – Spoken (3)
Formal analysis of one’s artwork
(artist’s statement) Written (4)
Lesson plan portfolio - Written (3, 4)
Senior exhibition – Self-Management
(5)
Slide and digital documentation of
artwork - Self-Management (4)
Appropriate
portfolio
–
SelfManagement (4)
Strengths. In conducting the self-study, the following strengths were identified:
(1) The Art Department is determined to continue to foster enrollment growth in
existing programs by continuing to develop a learner-center environment. The
faculty members believe that they possess the expertise in this area to offer the
kinds of courses that will expand the range of employment opportunities for its
graduates.
(2) The Department has adequate space, facilities and equipment to support its
current enrollment.
Concerns. The following items were identified as concerns for the future:
(1) With the addition of the computer based teaching and learning the Art Department
has added important computer graphics courses. The laptop initiative has given
students an opportunity to begin the development of excellent graphics skills but
the lack of good quality equipment hampers their employability.
(2) Prior to 1992 the Art Department relinquished a significant amount of space to
provide for the addition of a methods classroom for the Department of Education
and for the development of a large, general use multimedia and connected
classroom. The Department was left without a large painting and drawing studio.
In 1996 the shared wall between room 355 and 354 was removed to create a room
large enough to function as painting and drawing studio. That room is adequate
for the number of students currently enrolled but it will not be adequate with a
larger enrollment. The Department is lacking storage space.
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(3) The faculty members in the Department of Art do not have adequate access to
secretarial assistance. This is a function of limitation on the secretary’s time and
the location of the secretarial workstation. Having reliable student assistants or
Work-Study students is crucial to the program. If the Division were allocated a
full-time secretary, a portion of the hours could be spent in the Art Department
area.
(4) The Department needs to have a larger exhibition gallery space somewhere on the
campus. The third-floor “walk-through” space of the VCSU Student Art Gallery
was developed in 1985-1986 and has been used as the only exhibition space in
Valley City since 1997. The space is small and lacks security, which disallows
many types of exhibitions.
(5) The Department does not have adequate ventilation in the printmaking studio, and
ceramics studio. Toxic chemicals and dust create health hazards. Progress was
made in alleviating these conditions with the renovation of the Ceramics studio
but toxic gas from the electric kilns is still a concern. The ventilation problems in
the print lab will be circumvented with the installation of a non-toxic printmaking
system by fall of 2001. The VCSU Community School of the Arts has given the
Art department funds for the purchase and installation of the non-toxic system
into the print lab.
(6) The Department area is not air conditioned, except for two small window air
conditioners, which do not provide sufficient cooling for general activity in the
warm seasons.
(7) The Department requires an equipment and repair budget in order to purchase
need up grades and keep older equipment in operational condition in both the
printmaking and ceramic labs. The ceramics lab roof leaks causing dangerous
conditions in the lab.
Plans for the Future. In addition to correcting the inadequacies noted above in
connection with space, facilities, equipment, accessibility, and secretarial support, the
faculty intends to work to increase enrollments in Art courses through recruitments of
traditional and non-traditional students, retention of currently-enrolled students, and
encouraging students to take Art courses as part of the Cultural Block for the Bachelor of
Arts degree. The faculty intends to improve the image of the Department by promoting
student art exhibits, working with area public schools and other educational
organizations, sponsoring educational trips to art galleries and museums, and conducting
other cultural tours.
The Department plans to incorporate into its courses the use of the newest computer
software and other audiovisual resources, and CD-ROM technology.
The Department will continue to seek suitable larger exhibition space for student artwork
and alternative space for educational exhibitions.
Documentation
VCSU 2000-2002 Bulletin
1997 Consultant’s Report
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Art Department Syllabi
VCSU Budget
DEPARTMENT OF MUSIC
Goals. The goals of the Department of Music are to: (1) provide superior training for
future public school music teachers; (2) assist musicians to perform at their highest
possible level of ability; (3) develop in students a broad understanding of music within
the context of a liberal arts education; and (4) contribute to the cultural environment of
campus and community.
Size and Scope. In harmony with the mission of Valley City State University, the
Department of Music offers two baccalaureate degrees: the Bachelor of Arts, a liberal arts
program, and the Bachelor of Science in Music Education (K-12 Vocal Music, K-12
Instrumental Music, and K-12 Vocal-Instrumental Music). The majority of VCSU music
students select the more marketable composite K-12 Vocal-Instrumental program which
prepares them for the requirements of positions in the public schools in and near North
Dakota. While fewer students enroll in the liberal arts program, this degree requires no
additional resources beyond those already utilized for the music education program. In
addition to the two majors, students may elect to minor in music or in piano pedagogy the
only undergraduate pedagogy program in the state of North Dakota).
Student Enrollment. Table #__ following displays the numbers of students graduating
with a major or minor in Music from 1994 through 2000.
TABLE #__
Graduates with Music Majors and Minors
1994-2000
1994-95
1995-96
1996-97
1997-98
1998-99
1999-00
Major
Music
4
2
6
3
3
2
Minor
Music
2
2
2
1
4
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Students who completed the degree Bachelor of Science in Music Education are presently
employed in the public schools or as private studio teachers or are enrolled in a graduate
music program. The Bachelor of Arts music major graduates went on to attend graduate
programs in performance.
North Dakota’s base salary for teachers is among the lowest in the nation, and recent
graduates are finding attractive positions across the border in Minnesota. Other graduates
who have been employed as K-12 Vocal - Instrumental teachers in the North Dakota
public schools find the demands of managing the entire school music program singlehandedly to be a daunting challenge: many leave the profession. As a result, public
schools who have not provided adequate funding for arts programs are now facing a
significant teacher shortage. Superintendents are offering signing bonuses, higher
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salaries, and in some cases, a year of tuition to the university senior who can be
persuaded to sign an early contract. Approximately thirty instructors are currently
teaching music in North Dakota schools with a music minor or less: as school systems
find it necessary to hire less-qualified teachers the preparation of students who are the
university music applicants of the future will surely suffer.
Finances. The budget of the Department of Music is derived from state appropriations,
VCSU student activity fees, “Friends of Music” donations, named scholarships, ticket
revenues, federal work study assistance dollars, and tuition income from the Community
School of the Arts and the Piano Pedagogy Laboratory program. The budget is adequate
to maintain the present programs, with the exception of funds for repair and replacement
of musical instruments and equipment and for music-specific technology.
Department of Music Budget
Compared with the Total Instructional Budget, 1997 – 2001
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
229,350
236,418
205,440
228,889
236,592
3,011,339
3,034,016
3,096,342
3,127,575
3,247,628
Music
16,100
16,100
21,300
21,300
21,300
Total Instructional Budget
394,936
230,699
316,445
290,897
286,326
Salaries and Wages
Music
Total Instructional Budget
Operating
Equipment
Music
Total Instructional Budget
-
-
3,700
-
-
27,818
9,278
14,373
19,000
37,400
245,450
252,518
230,440
250,189
257,892
3,434,093
3,273,993
3,427,160
3,437,472
3,571,354
Totals
Music
Total Instructional Budget
Faculty.
Following their appointment, new faculty members receive extensive
information about the Department of Music prior to their actual arrival on campus:
VCSU Bulletin, class schedule, Music Student Handbook, samples of syllabi and course
outlines, textbook order forms, and lists of applied and ensemble students and equipment,
as well as an orientation document designed to acquaint new faculty with departmental
assignments and policies.
Faculty evaluations conform to university policy, with the exception that, since 1992,
student course assessments have been routinely conducted in every course, every term
(rather than just a single course as required by policy). Faculty take seriously the
information gathered from the assessments and use it to improve their teaching.
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Of the five full-time faculty in the department, two hold the terminal degree and three
have a masters degree (one of those, an A.B.D., is a sabbatical replacement for a faculty
member who is currently completing the Ph.D.). Of the three part-time faculty, two hold
the masters degree, and one has completed all coursework for the masters degree.
Gender of faculty is balanced. The present faculty are qualified by educational and
performance background to provide the necessary program instruction.
Fine Arts division loads have been analyzed each term since fall, 1992, and have been
brought more closely into balance. Credit for contact hours in art and music studio
courses and music ensembles is calculated at sixty-six percent of lecture credit, or a ratio
of 3:2. While an attempt is made to contain the loads of full-time instructors at twelve
hours, music assignments tend to be less predictable than in other academic areas,
expanding and contracting depending upon enrollment in the applied areas (there is not a
local pool of qualified applied teachers from which to draw).
Full-time salaries within the music unit are comparable to other salaries on campus.
However, there is a precarious balance between available salary dollars and the need for
additional applied part-time instructors as enrollment increases. The results of a review
of credit hour production by full-time and part-time faculty between 1998 and 2000 is
shown in the table below:
Table #__
Credit Hour Production of Full- and Part-Time Faculty
Spring 1998
Spring 1999
Spring 2000
Full-Time Faculty
89%
82%
94%
Part-Time Faculty
11%
18%
06%
The faculty are active as performers, presenters, clinicians, adjudicators, and leaders in
professional organizations. Although state funding for development has been limited and
sabbaticals non-existent, faculty have received BUSH funding for professional activities,
and music faculty routinely engage in self-study, perform for their students, and fund
their own travel to professional conferences.
Staff. The Division of Fine Arts has a one-half time secretary who works in the
Department of Music office in the afternoons, assisted by approximately 40 hours of
music student staff. Given that the department must maintain several extensive music
libraries and a large wardrobe of concert apparel; raise its own scholarship funds and
coordinate large recruitment mailings; manage the stage, take admissions, and make
recordings of concerts; transport equipment for athletic pep band performances; create
publicity, posters, and concert programs; and keep instruments in repair and supervise
instrument and equipment checkout/in, the allocation of clerical staff hours is, quite
simply, inadequate. The necessary tasks are completed by the chair and by faculty and
student volunteers.
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The Department shares one custodian with Allen Memorial Library. When assisted by
adequate student staff hours, a single custodian is able to maintain both buildings.
Facilities. Foss Music Hall, constructed in 1962, was the first independent music
building in North Dakota. The building has had good care: its first major improvement
was the addition of a new roof in fall, 1996. In fall, 2000, air conditioning units were
added to Froemke Auditorium and the choir and band rehearsal rooms. These are
expected to ease problems with excessive humidity during the summer months, and to
resolve the lack of ventilation in the choral rehearsal room cited by the 1985 and 1994
consultants, and by NASM evaluators in 1997.
The facility is more than adequate for the present music program: Foss Hall could easily
serve more than twice the present enrollment. Vangstad Auditorium, an 850 seat facility
across the street in Vangstad Hall, and the first floor of Foss Hall, including Froemke
Auditorium, are handicapped accessible.
Foss Hall is open from 7:30 am to 10:30 pm Monday through Thursday and 7:30 am to
8:00 pm Friday. Students who need access for practice in the late evenings or on
weekends are able to checkout a building key. All faculty and staff share responsibility
for security of the building.
Equipment. The present budget is adequate for delivery of the programs with the
exception that no provision has been made for repair and replacement of musical
instruments and equipment. Since the late 1980s, funds for equipment have been largely
diverted to purchase new technology. Since 1995, all campus budgets for equipment and
durable supplies have been allocated to the notebook initiative.
The Department has sought creative ways to fund purchases of instruments. The band
inventory has been upgraded by trading antiquated, defective, or unused instruments for
new ones: an instrument rental fee has been applied to offset repair expense. A fiveoctave marimba was acquired by combining grant funding, local funds from the Student
Senate Finance Commission, and sizable donations from city gaming organizations. A
grant awarded to the Community School combined with tuition revenues provided four
new Spectrum 7Vlr computers and Casio CTK-611 keyboards and a printer, for a
laboratory which is shared by community and university students.
In 1992, a new sound and video system was installed in Froemke Auditorium. In 1994,
the Alumni Foundation funded replacement of the console of the Vangstad Möller organ.
In 199_, the university equipped one of the Foss Hall classrooms as a multi-media
laboratory and in 1998-99??, added nine new Korg X5D keyboards to the laboratory for
use in music theory classes.
Through tuition revenues generated by the Community School of the Arts and the Piano
Pedagogy Laboratory program, the faculty have purchased five new studio pianos, an
electronic keyboard, and an amplifier.
With a special allocation from the university,
one of the Steinway grands was rebuilt in 1992; two more were rebuilt during 1998-1999.
However, the dry winters wreak havoc upon instruments made of wood, and one of the
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recently rebuilt instruments has since suffered major damage due to lack of
humidification. The grand piano in the choir room (an eighty-year-old Chickering) needs
to be replaced. With the exception of the new pianos purchased by the Community
School for the Arts and the Piano Pedagogy Laboratory Program, the practice pianos are
forty years old and all are in need of voicing and regulating. There is no technician in
Valley City, and the Department contracts with a tuner-technician from Fargo-Moorhead.
Although dollars are very tight, the department has, by carefully husbanding the
instructional allocation and more effective planning, been able to purchase or refurbish
new chairs for the band and choir rooms and the conference room and to purchase new
music stands.
Library. Music holdings in Allen Memorial Library cover the needs of the Music
Department. The Department is engaged in an ongoing study of the Library’s music
resources in order to weed outdated material and identify areas where the collections
need upgrading. Since the 1997 comprehensive evaluation by NASM, the Department
has prioritized expenditures of the library allocation toward strengthening the collection
in the areas of music education, scores, and recordings. The storage of recordings is not
secure and a number of recordings have recently been discovered missing. The band and
choral libraries are located on the first floor of Foss Hall and are maintained by the music
faculty.
Recruitment and Retention. All full-time and some part-time faculty are actively
engaged in recruitment activities, ranging from visiting schools, performing, writing
letters, making telephone calls, developing publicity materials, giving workshops and
clinics, adjudicating, lecturing, and assisting with summer registration. No release time
or stipend is provided for recruitment.
Each year, new freshmen are surveyed to learn the reasons they selected the university.
Every attempt is made to address student needs: faculty routinely take time outside of
classes for students and tutors are procured for students experiencing difficulty with
coursework. Students receive much personal attention from faculty, and those with the
motivation to succeed do so. The music program is one of the most challenging degrees
on campus, both academically and in terms of the demands made on individual time,
paralleling the expectations of the public school music instructor.
The majority of new music students have not had private lessons prior to their enrollment
at the university, and some do not read or write music. Most are placed first in class
piano to develop ability in basic music reading, followed by a fundamentals class to
prepare them for freshman music theory courses.
Published Materials. The programs of Valley City State University are published in its
biennial Bulletin. In addition, the Department of Music has published a Music Student
Handbook (since the early 1980s), as well as fact sheets, publicity brochures, recruitment
and fund-raising letters, and scholarship applications and contracts. Due to the lack of
clerical staff, faculty are responsible for preparation of these departmental materials.
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Community Involvement. Developed in 1994, granted approval by the VCSU Faculty
Senate the State Board of Higher Education in 1996, fully certified by the National Guild
of the Community Schools of the Arts in 1999, the VCSU Community School of the Arts
(CSA) has in six short years opened cultural doors to hundreds of individuals who had no
prior access. From its origins as a preparatory department with two piano teachers, the
CSA has expanded to provide private lessons on guitar, organ, woodwinds, voice, brass,
percussion, and strings, the Valley Voices Women’s Choir, a Community Chamber
Orchestra, and a music theory computer lab. For the first time in sixty years, a public
school string program and an orchestra exists in Valley City, along with an annual
Chamber Music Festival, all under the umbrella of the Community School for the Arts.
In the visual arts, classes and private lessons are given in ceramics, painting, drawing,
and printmaking. The CSA partners with the Girl Scouts (“Girl Scout Art Day”) and
with area churches (fifth graders making their own first communion cups). In the literary
arts, the Inkwell magazine publishes the creative writings of area students. An “Acting
With Style” class highlights theatrical skills for junior high school students. “College
for Kids” has provided summer classes for area youth in the arts and sciences.
In recent years, faced with limited budgets, area public schools and universities found
that they needed to scale back or eliminate programs in the fine arts. These
communities then faced a shortage of qualified teachers for private lessons on all
instruments and limited performance opportunities for young people. The Valley City
Orchestra had met its demise in the 1940s: since then, lessons and performances on
stringed instruments had since been unavailable to area residents. The CSA served as a
creative response in an era of declining federal support for the arts and tight funding for
North Dakota public schools and the North Dakota University System.
Planning began in 1993-94. In 1994-95, the first year of its operation, VCSU’s
Preparatory Program provided private piano lessons, group performance classes, and
Kindermusik classes, and served an initial enrollment of approximately twenty
community students. By 1995-96, the program had been enlarged to include private
lessons on guitar, flute, saxophone, and percussion, music theory classes, and a Senior
Music Hour at Sheyenne Care Center.
A John Spencer Sterns grant provided
Kindermusik instruction for special needs students. Two new pianos were purchased
for the university by combining funds with VCSU’s Piano Pedagogy Laboratory
program.
In 1996-97, the program was expanded to become a true Community School of the
Arts, with a summer art program, studio art classes in drawing, painting, printmaking,
and mixed media, a creative writing course with a literary magazine (The Inkwell),
private lessons on voice, brass, and organ, and a women’s chorus (Valley Voices).
String performers were hired to perform with student pianists from the area in a festival
of chamber music. Private lessons on violin, viola, and cello were soon added to the
regular offerings and a community chamber orchestra formed. The Director received a
Valley City Area Chamber of Commerce Community Award in recognition of her
efforts to enhance arts opportunities and the quality of community life. A third piano
14
was purchased. Modelled on the successful program at Valley City, a second
Community School was developed in Mayville, a community which had lost its
university-level fine arts programs in 1992.
By summer, 1998, CSA had received an NDCA Special Projects grant to sponsor
“College for Kids,” including classes in science, creative writing, art, Spanish, and
computers for 8-12 year-olds.
A partnership with Music Teachers National
Association provided MusicLink scholarships to area students based on financial need.
MIDI keyboards and software to complete the CSA computer lab for weekly training in
music theory and composition was made possible by a second grant from the North
Dakota Council on the Arts. An organ scholarship program was developed in 1999 to
assist with filling organist vacancies in area churches. The CSA was awarded full
certification from the National Guild of the Community Schools of the Arts. An
advisory board was established with representatives from community, civic
organizations, students, parents, and campus. Two more grants were received, one an
NDCA award for the Director to attend the annual conference for the National Guild of
Community Schools of the Arts, the second a special projects grant to support a
percussion clinic for area public school students.
In fall, 2000, the annual chamber festival featured a recital by the Chiara String Quartet,
four Juilliard School graduates based in Grand Forks for a Chamber Music America
rural residency program. In collaboration with the Valley City public schools, a new
string program was introduced. A theatrical skills program for junior high students,
“Acting with Style,” was presented. Today, nineteen credentialled and experienced
staff members (sixteen faculty and three student interns) provide instruction for the
CSA. It is anticipated that this year nearly 1000 individuals will benefit from CSA
instruction and performances.
The development of the CSA has expanded and
strengthened opportunities in the arts for Valley City and the surrounding communities,
making this a more desirable place in which to live.
A printed agreement defines the relationship of VCSU and the Community School of
the Arts. The university provides support in the form of facilities and release time for
the Director, who is a member of the music faculty. The Director is the sole
administrator of the school: she has a separate budget, and must raise all funds for
programs and teacher salaries without financial assistance from the college.
INSTRUCTIONAL PROGRAMS
Program Reviews. In 1985, a comprehensive review of the Department was funded by
the Bush Foundation. The chair of the Department generated a self-study and hired Dr.
Thomas Tyra as a consultant. The following recommendations resulted from the review
process:
(1) that ensemble repertoire and rehearsal techniques be improved;
(2) that methods courses be brought up-to-date and that additional field experiences
be provided for methods students;
15
(3)
that barrier examinations be developed for students before admission to upperdivision work, at minimum in the area of applied instruction;
(4) that a piano proficiency requirement be instituted;
(5) that more research activities be required of students;
(6) that an advisor in music be assigned to students immediately upon their arrival
on campus;
(7) that faculty make a greater effort to develop themselves professionally;
(8) that inequities in faculty loads be resolved;
(9) that the department improve its recruiting and promotional efforts;
(10) that the library collection be improved in the areas of choral and instrumental
music education;
(11) that additional secretarial help be secured.
Recommended improvements (1)-(9) were implemented immediately by the Department,
and in subsequent years, purchases made for the library strengthened the areas of choral
and instrumental music education (10). Additional secretarial help (11) was not secured.
Interest in affiliation with NASM grew, and permission was granted to secure the
services of a consultant, in order to compare Departmental standards with those of
NASM. The evaluative visit by Dr. Charles Ball in February, 1994, resulted in the
following recommendations and departmental responses:
(1) that a more explicit mission statement and statement of goals be developed;
A new mission and goals statement was developed in 1995 and published in the
1997-98 Music Student Handbook and the 1998-2000 VCSU Bulletin.
(2) that applied music be credited according to NASM guidelines, giving a more
accurate reflection of the actual work done;
Since the 1996-98 catalog, the number of credits awarded for applied lessons
has been doubled (to two credits for lessons on the primary instrument
requiring a minimum of six hours of practice per week).
(3) that the adequacy of methods courses be reviewed;
Classroom methods courses, along with vocal and instrumental methods
courses have been coordinated and strengthened, and now include additional
field experiences.
(4) that the usefulness of the small major be examined and compared carefully with
NASM standards;
The small major was dropped from the 1998 catalog. The remaining composite
K-12 education degree was strengthened to meet NASM standards.
(5) that the musicianship component of the Bachelor of Arts degree be expanded;
The Bachelor of Arts degree was strengthened through the addition of courses
in conducting and class piano.
(6) that expectations for accomplishment in individual performance be increased,
and that proper concert etiquette be required;
Student performances and concert etiquette have been improved.
(7) that faculty loads be reduced slightly;
A review of faculty loads from spring semester 1994 shows the following
average loads for full-time faculty:
16
Spring Semester 1994
14.2 load credits
1994-1995
13.3
1995-1996
11.7
1996-1997
11.3
1997-1998
12.9
1998-1999
13.1
1999-2000
12.7
Fall Semester 2000
12.8
(8) that recruitment efforts be expanded;
To the level possible, given limited clerical staff, recruitment has been
expanded.
(9) that additional scholarship funds be secured;
An admission charge has been applied to ensemble concerts and faculty
recitals; and a madrigal dinner scheduled in alternate years to augment the
student scholarship fund.
(10) that the collection of scores and sound recordings be housed together; that a
plan for literary acquisitions be adopted, and the collection of scores and music
education materials be improved;
In 1995, the collection of scores and sound recording were moved to Allen
Memorial Library, near the remainder of the music collection.
(11) that a budget for equipment repair, restoration, and replacement be adopted;
Beyond its ability to cover the most basic tuning and repair, the Department has
been unable to plan for equipment restoration and replacement.
(12) that additional clerical assistance be provided.
No additional clerical assistance has been secured.
The Department of Music applied to the National Association of Schools of Music
(NASM) for membership and received its initial evaluation visit in April 1997. The
visiting evaluators noted eleven strengths: appropriate institutional and departmental
missions; strong administrative leadership; effective governance structure and
policies; competent faculty; a good facility; a well-conceived plan for assessment of
music student achievement; good student advisement and record-keeping; attention to
student well-being; collaboration with community and public schools; use of
technology; and a tradition of excellence in the preparation of teachers with a good
record of placement. The evaluation team also identified nine needs: additional
enrollment, clerical staff, and scholarship resources; reduction in load for the music
executive; additional budgetary support for instruments and equipment; solutions to
poor ventilation and lack of humidity control; additional listening stations in the
library; examination of the music education minor; and improved standards in student
musical performance. Five of these needs were cited as issues of compliance with
specific NASM standards; all five have since been addressed:
(1) The minor in Music Education does not appear to be in compliance with
standards and essential competencies for a professional music education degree.
Offering such a program appears to be in violation of NASM regulations
regarding preparation of specialist school music teachers.
17
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
NASM guidelines for the preparation of the professional music educator require
a major program with a substantial number of credits and K-12 music
education methods courses. Since the 1997 NASM visit, the minor in Music
Education has been dropped from VCSU’s program offerings. However, as,
North Dakota is experiencing a severe shortage of public school music
instructors, small school systems continue to employ at least thirty individuals
who hold a minor in music; others have hired instructors with only sixteen
credits in music; and some music programs are being maintained temporarily
by parents or community members because the school has been unable to find a
music teacher.
The degree, Bachelor of Science in Music Education does not appear to be in
compliance in the area of “. . .functional knowledge of wind, string . . .and
percussion instruments. . .” Changes proposed by the institution, beginning in
1998, appear to satisfy “wind” and “percussion” criteria.
A course in String Methods has been incorporated into the curricular
requirements for the Bachelor of Science in Music Education degree and
appears in catalogs from 1998 forward.
Financial resources do not appear to be adequate to support the current music
program.
VCSU has consistently demonstrated support for the music programs and a
commitment to the Fine and Performing Arts. The university has managed to
maintain staffing and other resources for the department. Entrepreneurial
efforts within the department (the Community School for the Arts, the Piano
Pedagogy Laboratory program) have provided funding for new pianos.
Judicious trading of band instruments has improved the collection.
Facilities need better ventilation, temperature and humidity control.
In summer 2000, air conditioning has been installed in three large spaces in
Foss Hall: Band Room 100; Froemke Auditorium 121; and Choir Room 118.
Students’ level of musical performance appears to be below that of NASM
accredited institutions.
The music faculty take very seriously the improvement of solo and ensemble
performance standards, while recognizing the challenge of educating students
who come from small rural school systems with a single music instructor who
has not been given instructional time to teach theory and private lessons.
Proficiency (barrier) exams have been strengthened and applied syllabi and
grades undergo regular review. Videotaped juries, recitals, and concerts
provide documentation of steady student improvement in the applied areas.
Following the initial evaluation, the Department was awarded Associate Membership in
the National Association of Schools of Music. The next comprehensive evaluation will
take place in 2002-2003.
Music Studies for the General Public. The Division of Fine Arts recognizes its role in
developing aesthetic responsiveness in the general student population, and in contributing
to the cultural environment of campus and community. As part of the general education
component, all VCSU students are required to enroll in HUM 202 Fine Arts and
18
Aesthetics, an appreciation course taught by faculty from the art and music programs.
Surveys conducted of the students each semester show that few of these (primarily rural)
students have had arts opportunities during their high school education (North Dakota’s
State Board of Higher Education currently requires music and art only in grades 1-6).
Elective students are encouraged to enroll in ensembles and applied lessons and Bachelor
of Arts students may apply music and art coursework toward the cultural block
requirement.
The Department of Music serves the university community by providing music for
numerous campus events: home football and basketball games, homecoming, graduation,
Medicine Wheel Festivities, Spanish Day, and Business Day. Faculty and student
soloists and ensembles perform frequently for campus concerts and community
organizations and events. Foss Hall is the site of the Region V High School Vocal and
Instrumental Festivals and the State Class A SubRegion Vocal Festival, which are
organized by a member of the music faculty; the Barnes County Music Festival and the
Southeast Central Nationally Federated Music Clubs Junior Festival; and the regional
Science Olympiad “Sounds of Music” event, which is adjudicated by VCSU music
students.
Assessment. Evidence of quality in the educational programs is provided through the
Department’s accreditation by the National Association of Schools of Music, through
placement records of graduates, and through the Department’s Plan for Assessment of
Music Student Achievement accompanied by documentation of that achievement. The
Department’s assessment plan had its origins in the 1985 visit of the BUSH consultant.
Over the last fifteen years it has been continuously refined, through faculty observation of
test results, through additional input from the 1994 NASM consultant and the 1997
NASM evaluation team, and through recommendations made by the chair of the
department who serves as an NCA consultant-evaluator and a member of the NCA
Accreditation Review Council. The assessment mechanism has become a seamless part
of the departmental operation, so that assessment, documentation of student achievement,
review of results, adjustment of the curricula, and improvements in instruction have
become a natural and ongoing part of departmental life. The department prioritizes
operational and library funds to strengthen the necessary instructional areas. The Plan is
understood by faculty and students alike and provides a practical and thorough system for
identification of program strengths and areas for improvement, as well as for evaluation
and documentation of student achievement.
Assessment of Ability to Read Musical Notation. All potential music majors and minors
must take a theory placement test, measuring their ability to read pitches, rhythms, scales,
and chords. Students who score seventy percent or higher may enroll in freshman-level
theory and ear training courses; those who score less than seventy percent must enroll in
MUS 100 Music Fundamentals prior to enrolling in the music theory sequence.
Placement exams are kept in individual student files. Based upon the perceived readiness
of recent students for freshman theory, the placement test and the minimum required
score will undergo revision this year: the test will be made more challenging.
19
When was this test implemented?
Applied lessons and freshman theory are known to be the courses which determine music
student success and retention. All faculty offer extra time to theory students and the
theory instructor promptly finds tutors for students in academic distress. The Department
has been able to retain approximately sixty percent of students in recent freshman theory
classes.
Assessment of Functional Piano Skill. The Functional Piano Proficiency Examination
was the first barrier exam developed by the department after the 1985 visit of the Bush
consultant. All students applying to the university as music majors and minors must
take the piano skills test: results place the student in the appropriate piano class (given
sufficient background, students are encouraged to test out of the piano proficiency
requirement). Students with little or no background will generally progress through four
semesters of class piano before attempting the proficiency exam. Those who do not pass
all exam components must continue enrollment in applied or class piano until they can
pass. The length of time necessary for beginning pianists to meet the requirement is
directly related to their work ethic.
The criteria are centered upon the practical piano skills expected of a public school music
teacher. Course goals have been solidified and performance examinations established at
three-week intervals: as a result, students in the classes achieve at a higher level than
fifteen years ago. Each student’s file contains videotaped and written documentation of
proficiency performances.
Assessment of Applied Music. Auditions are required of prospective majors and minors.
Pianists are expected to perform repertoire equivalent to NFMC Moderately Difficult II.
Instrumentalists and vocalists are expected to perform repertoire equivalent to NDHSAA
contest solos. Students who are performing at a less advanced level may anticipate
additional semesters of study to reach the proficiency level expected at the end of the
freshman year.
When was this test implemented?
Each semester, applied students attend weekly private lessons; perform in weekly studio
classes (ongoing critique of performances by instructor and peers); perform on student
recitals; and perform a final jury examination for the music faculty (who provide written
critiques). Lastly, students submit a written evaluation of their own progress and goals.
Applied students must pass three proficiency examinations (demonstrating
accomplishment in repertoire and technique) at the end each of the freshman,
sophomore, and junior years. Students who are not judged by the faculty to perform at
the desired level must continue applied study until they can retake one or both portions of
the exam. Students enrolled in Senior Recital must preview their program for the faculty
one month in advance of their recital date: students who were not well-prepared (or, in
the case of vocalists and pianists, did not have their music memorized) would be obliged
to postpone their recital date to allow for more preparation.
20
Each student’s file contains thorough documentation of his/her achievement in the area of
applied music: videotapes of the entrance audition, student recitals, juries, and junior and
senior recitals, recital programs, student self-assessments, and faculty critiques.
The area of applied study has provided the greatest challenge to the music faculty, who
recognize the difficulty of educating, in just a few years, the under-prepared rural
student. The consultants of 1985 and 1994 and the NASM evaluators of 1997
consistently stressed the need to raise the performance standard (in both applied lessons
and ensembles) to one acceptable for future music educators. Student performance levels
undergo the constant scrutiny of the music faculty. Each term, grade distribution reports
are issued and compared to the faculty perception of student achievement, always with
“an eye” for possible grade inflation. Over the last fifteen years, applied teaching has
become more organized and focused; a common syllabus and common criteria for
grading applied lessons have been developed to assure that requirements are
communicated evenly to students in all studios. Orientation materials with information
about applied teaching and the goals of the department are distributed to all new faculty.
Applied teaching is an important item on the agendas of the first and last departmental
meetings each term.
Two courses in diction have been added. 1.32 faculty load credit has been allocated to
coordination and coaching of piano accompanists. Special fees added to applied lessons
are used to pay accompanists. Student performance levels have improved and attitudes
have become more serious. From its beginnings as a single barrier exam administered at
the end of the sophomore year, the assessment process for applied lessons has expanded
to include proficiency exams at the end of the freshman, sophomore, and junior years.
However, the applied performance level is not yet where it needs to be for graduates who
wish to apply to enter a masters program in music education. Higher expectations for
students pose an obstacle to retention.
Assessment of Professional Education. Music Education students are introduced to the
requirements which must be met to successfully complete the Teacher Education
program in EDUC 200/205 Introduction to Teaching Elementary/Secondary. In order to
be admitted to Teacher Education, students must have sophomore standing with a
minimum cumulative grade point of 2.5; a “C” or better in English 111 and 112;
successful completion of a speech screening test; a record of good conduct; evidence of
good physical and mental health; positive faculty recommendations; and the required
institutional scores on the Pre-Professional Skills Test (PPST), current minimum scores:
Reading-167; Writing-169; Math-168).
Assessment of Content Knowledge and Music Teaching Competencies. Students must
earn a minimum grade of “C” in all required music courses or repeat the course. From
entry into the program, student skills in written and oral communication are scrutinized
by the faculty. As a result, additional opportunities for oral presentations and written
papers have been incorporated into the music core courses.
When was this test implemented?
21
One full year prior to student teaching, the music education student takes a series of
proficiency tests in which he/she must demonstrate the following: (1) the ability to
analyze a musical composition and present it (as to a class); and to identify errors heard
in a performance of the same composition; (2) the ability to sightsing examples in major
and minor tonalities, using scale degree numbers and solfege; (3) the ability to play on
the piano choral warm-up exercises and an elementary school melody with a piano-style
harmonization, and to sightread at the hymn level; (4) the ability to prepare organized
lesson plans to develop an understanding of various historical eras; (5) the ability to
conduct a rehearsal of an instrumental and/or choral composition (depending upon the
degree program of the student); and, (6) the ability to sightread simple melodies on
instruments from the brass, woodwind, percussion, and string families.
In the semester following the comprehensive examination, the student will receive
additional instruction in any area(s) of deficiency, leading to a retake of that/those
portion(s) of the examination. Given the breadth of the experiences required of the
public school music teacher, it is highly unlikely that the university junior or senior
will/can pass all exam areas on the first attempt (e.g., brass primaries are likely to be
deficient in woodwind instrument performance; woodwind students may need additional
tutoring on the percussion instruments, and so forth). The examinations serve to identify
competency areas which need additional development. All exams required for the
student’s degree program must be passed satisfactorily prior to student teaching in music.
Each performance examination is videotaped and “paper” examinations are placed in the
student file, as are all evaluations received during the student teaching experience. Thus,
music student files contain a complete picture of the student’s achievement over time,
from the entrance interview and audition, through the various proficiency examinations,
through student teaching, to graduation.
Peripheral Assessment Mechanisms. Additional peripheral assessment information is
gained through review of the programs by the music accrediting agency, formal faculty
evaluations, continuous student assessment of courses, review of curricular changes and
departmental policy by music faculty and the music student advisory council, and survey
of music graduates at five-year intervals.
The Abilities. The department recently applied for and received a Bush Grant entitled
The Mapping and Assessing of Music Department Abilities/Skills Requirements and
Student Portfolios. The purpose of this grant is to develop a comprehensive and cohesive
departmental plan for Abilities and Assessment in order to:
(1) Determine the specific skills and levels of the Abilities requirements for the VCSU
Music Department
(2) Develop language for the skill levels which better reflects the expectations and
achievements of the music students at VCSU
(3) Map the music courses which fulfill these requirements
(4) Develop an assessment plan for the VCSU Abilities and Skills within the
Music Department; to incorporate that plan into the department’s present, working
assessment model
(5) Develop a plan for assessing student portfolios within the department
22
(6) Insure that all of the above areas of Abilities, mapping and assessment form a cohesive
plan for future assessment
The Divisional goals for the Bush Grant include graduating students who demonstrate
competence in the Division’s/Department’s Ability areas. Although the Division has
chosen several Abilities to emphasize, there are at present no guidelines for the skills or
levels within those abilities as applied to music students. A music student would have
difficulty understanding the present Abilities expectations within the department.
The objectives of the Bush Grant include establishing the VCSU Abilities and Skills
within the department; developing student electronic portfolios and a means to assess
them. This grant will address all of these areas by: translating the departments abilities
requirements into specific skills and levels; mapping the courses which fulfill
departmental requirements; developing an assessment plan for the chosen abilities;
developing wording which best enables students to be assessed fairly and accurately
within their discipline; and developing a plan for assessing students’ digital portfolios.
DRAFT—Abilities “Map” for the BA/BS in Music—11/27/2000
Course which
meet this Ability
Project identified for each course
Matching VCSU Ability, Skill and Target
Level for Graduation
MUS 402
MUS 131
MUS 101
MUS 112
MUS 121
MUS 303
MUS 182
MUS 151, 161,
171, 181,191
MUS 251, 261,
271, 281, 281
MUS 351, 361,
371, 381, 391
MUS 452, 462,
472, 482, 492
MUS 141
MUS 142
MUS 331
MUS 332
MUS 442
MUS 163
MUS 211
MUS 303
MUS 182
MUS 141
MUS 332
MUS 153
MUS 111
MUS 101
MUS 121
MUS 151, 161,
Power Point
Choir Concert
Written paper/analysis
Performance of accompaniment
Recorded Sight Singing
Conduct ensemble
Performance
Freshman Proficiency
Spoken, Level 5
Performance Skill, Level 4
Written Level 4
Performance, Level 3
Performance, Level 3
Spoken, Level 4
Performance, Level 3
Performance, Level 2
Sophomore Proficiency
Performance, Level 3
Performance Jury
Performance, Level 4
Senior Recital
Performance, Level 5
Final Concert
Jazz Improvisation Project
Power Point
Graphic Notation
Special Project
Concert
Class Teaching Project
Conduct ensemble
Performance
Final Concert
Graphic Notation
Performance as accompanist
Performance of final Repertoire
Written paper/analysis
Recorded Sight Singing
Freshman Proficiency
Performance, Level 3
Performance, level 5
Spoken, Level 4
Visual, Level 4
Performance, Level 4 or Spoken, Level 4
Positive Interdependence, Level 3
Leadership, Level 3
Leadership, Level 3
Positive Interdependence, Level 3
Positive Interdependence, Level 3
Positive Interdependence, Level 4
Positive Interdependence, Level 5
Visualization, Level 2
Visualization Level 3
Visualization Level 3
Visualization. Level 2
Music Department
Abilities
(* required)
Communication
Collaboration
Aesthetic
Engagement
23
171, 181, 191
MUS 251, 261,
271, 281, 291
MUS 351. 361,
471, 381, 391
MUS 452, 462,
472, 482, 492
MUS 303
MUS 142
HUM 202
MUS 331
MUS 101
MUS 142
MUS 321
MUS 332
MUS 301
MUS 182
MUS 212
MUS 151, 161,
171, 181, 191
MUS 251,
261,271. 281, 291
MUS 351, 361,
371, 381, 391
MUS 452, 462,
472, 482, 492
MUS 321
MUS 456
MUS 321
MUS 331
Sophomore Proficiency
Visualization, Level 3
Performance Jury
Visualization, Level 4
Senior Recital
Visualization. Level 5
Conduct Ensemble
Jazz Improvisation Project
Listen and Analyze
Power Point
Written paper/analysis
Jazz Improvisation Project
Review of Percussion pedagogical
materials
Graphic Notation
Scoring Project
Receptivity, Level 4
Visualization, Level 4
Receptivity, Level ?
Visualization, Level 4
?/level 3
Decision Making, Level 4
Gathering Information, Level 3
Creative Thinking, Level 5
Creative Thinking, Level 4
Performance
Perform all major and minor scales
Freshman Proficiency
Self-management, Level 1
Self-Management, Level 3
Self-management, Level 3
Sophomore Proficiency
Self-Management, Level 4
Jury Performance
Self-Worth, Level 4
Senior Recital
Self-Worth, Level 5
Review of Percussion Pedagogical
Materials
Pedagogy students perform in final
recital
Review of Percussion Pedagogical
Materials
Power Point
Teaches Others, Level 1
Teaches Other, Level 5
Effective
Citizenship
Applies, Level 4
Applies, Level 3
Technology
Problem Solving
Wellness
Strengths.
The mission of the Department of Music is in harmony with the university mission and
serves to focus the efforts of the faculty.
The music faculty are well-qualified for their teaching assignments and dedicated to the
continuous improvement of student learning and department operations.
The music unit enjoys a fine facility which is more than adequate for its needs. The
building has been well-maintained by the staff.
Communication is facilitated through monthly divisional meetings, weekly music faculty
meetings, and bimonthly meetings between the music faculty and the music student
advisory council.
24
The plan for assessment of music student achievement has been noted as a model by
NASM evaluators: it assesses the knowledge and skills necessary to be successful in
public school music teaching or in a music graduate program; it is clearly communicated
to faculty and students and information gained is utilized to improve instruction and to
the extent possible, to make budget allocations.
Records of student graduates from 1975 forward are on file in the chair’s office. Student
files provide a complete and well-organized record of student achievement.
The Community School of the Arts provides quality music instruction to strengthen
community musicianship while providing internship opportunities for university music
students and funding for equipment and instruments.
Challenges.
Enrollment needs to be increased. The music faculty are committed to increasing student
numbers while maintaining the program quality necessary to produce strong public
school music teachers.
The Department has been unable to plan for instrument and equipment repair and
replacement.
The Department needs flexibility in hiring adjuncts to cover applied lesson instruction as
enrollment increases.
Clerical support continues to be a critical need for the Department.
The theory placement examination needs to be strengthened.
There is a need for high-quality publicity photographs and other recruitment materials.
Documentation
VCSU 2000-2002 Bulletin
Music Student Handbook
BUSH Consultant’s Report, 1985
NASM Consultant’s Report, 1994
NASM Self-Study and Visitors’ Report, 1997
1995 Alumni Survey (1990-1995 graduates)
2000 Alumni Survey (1995-2000 graduates)
Music Department Syllabi
VCSU Budget
.