ALUMNI
Obituaries
Sayonara passed away on September
school in 1969. In 1974 Kathy received her Bachelor’s degree in music education from the University of Connecticut. She continued her studies at Ithaca College, where she obtained her Master’s degree in music education in 1981.
as a music educator. Her career spanned four countries, with appointments at ASIJ, Victoria Teachers College, and HC Crittenden Middle School, among others. During her time at ASIJ from 1996–2001, Kathy taught elementary school music and is remembered by many for leading the Elementary School Choir and being involved with the drama program. In the words of Elementary School music teacher Jody Fuller, who worked closely with Kathy, “she was a musician and music educator whose creativity
knew no bounds. Her music classes were rich with creative and artistic experiences that made music-making joyful and memorable. Students danced, sang, improvised and found joy in making and experiencing music.”
choirs, to whom she taught the fundamentals of singing — pitch matching, breathing, posture, and diction. She enjoyed staging creative choir performances several times during the school year, and was always coming up with innovative choral choreography, incorporating hand gestures, and using props. She was highly involved in holiday celebrations, such as Chinese New Year, where she led the fourth grade students in a lion dance complete with paper mâché lion heads, and Halloween, where the Elementary School Choir kicked off the parade with several spooky songs. She brought a friend from Ghana to share Ghanaian culture practices or music and dance, and added a musical dimension to the second graders’ Africa unit.
THE AMBASSADOR \\ FALL/WINTER 2021
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