EMMY DELL'ORFANO
Emmy Dell’Orfano is a graduate student at the University of Connecticut. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Education and a Bachelor of Arts in Music. She has also earned the UConn Honors Laureate in both the Neag School of Education and the UConn School of Fine Arts. She has fifteen years of piano experience and is a working accompanist and organist in the UConn area. She has ten years of voice training and has studied with Constance Rock and Lisa Williamson. She currently works as a substitute voice and piano teacher at Company ‘N’ Tempo in Cromwell, and as a voice and piano teacher independently. She is also a choral scholar and the substitute music director and organist at St. Mark’s Episcopal Chapel. In the summer, Emmy is the assistant musical director for Glastonbury Youth and Family Services’ summer theater, and she is a songwriting teacher at YPI creative arts camp.
Emmy has taught choir and musical theater at all grade levels, most recently having done her internship at Illing Middle School in Manchester, teaching seventh and eighth grade choir. During that internship she studied how student participation changes when students are given more opportunities to share their opinions on their music.
PHILOSOPHY STATEMENT
I believe that education is meant to help students grow as individuals, both emotionally and mentally. Music education in particular should embody this idea by validating students’ cultural and personal identities, and by teaching music as a tool for expression. Music learning should be free of right and wrong, and rather be an open space where students can experience and interpret art without judgment, and make decisions about the art they produce. Music education serves a role in the social progression of a community because of the power that music holds to bring people together and to elicit emotions such as empathy, compassion, and love. I believe that music teachers have a duty to provide a safe space for all students to question and challenge power structures and to assume responsibility for their own learning. Music teachers must ensure that their students understand how music can be used for personal connection, expression, and to create lasting social change.
STATEMENT ON DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION
As an educator, I am fully committed to fostering an environment where every student feels safe, accepted, and valued. I teach from a position of inclusivity and I believe that the arts should be accessible to everyone. Much of my research centers around themes of DEI, and has been done with the goal of making music education a more equitable field. My teaching methods specifically aim to highlight each student’s voice, and to make sure the young musicians I work with learn how to advocate for themselves and take responsibility for their learning. This is done through questioning strategies and student-choice activities. I also strive to create a program that makes an impact on the greater world, by creating opportunities for community outreach and schoolwide collaboration.