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In this study I present and analyze the cases of nine participants who attended an after-school care program at a homeless shelter for families in the southwestern United States. Participants were 8 to 12 years old and represented diverse ethnicities and genders. Data were gathered over a period of two to eight months, depending on participant, via interviews, music and art making, and observations. Research questions in this study included: What are the relationships, as experienced in, through, and around music, in the lives of children experiencing homelessness; and, What do music experiences tell us about the lives of children experiencing homelessness?
Some children experienced fractured music relationships and could not continue to engage with music in comparison to their lives before homelessness. Some children continued to make music regularly before and during their shelter stay. A few children discovered new connections through music interactions at the shelter and hoped to engage with music in new ways in their new homes. Multiple children faced barriers to music making in their respective school music programs. Children preferred to engage in music consistent with current popular culture, accessed through the radio, smart phone, and computer. Use of hands-on activities that fostered active engagement engendered the most participation and connection to music.
Recommendations include examination of current procedures and practices to ensure alignment with the McKinney-Vento Homeless Act federal mandate, development of a supportive environment to foster social and emotional growth, facilitating communication with parents, and the inclusion of music from the child’s background in the classroom repertoire. Performance and interactive music opportunities can mitigate the effects of homelessness and restore a sense of dignity, relationship, and autonomy. All stakeholders in the wellbeing of children should include conversations about student experience of homelessness in current dialogue on educational policy and practice.
Emilie Mayer (1812-1883) was a prolific composer whose musical works, which encompassed eight symphonies, four overtures, an opera, dozens of sonatas, eight string quartets, solo piano works, and nearly 130 songs for solo voice or vocal quartet, were performed in the foremost concert halls in Berlin and across Germany. She studied with lauded teachers: Carl Loewe (1796-1869), Adolph Bernhard Marx (1795-1866), and Wilhelm Wieprecht (1802-1872). Her talent was applauded by audiences and critics wrote favorably, despite their reservations about women composers. However, even with this unusual pedigree, Mayer’s works nearly disappeared from concert stages after her death. How did this happen? This study aims to answer this question and will delve into Emilie Mayer’s life and works in context with the prejudices against female composers at the time, in order to determine how those biases have shaped the classical canon. Included is an in-depth stylistic analysis of Mayer’s surviving seven Lieder, along-side comparisons to similar works of other composers. In addition, appendices present Mayer’s remaining Lieder in a new, modernized edition, with selected songs transposed for better accessibility for lower voices. Relative lack of female representation in modern-day concert halls and music history books correlates to previous misconceptions of female composers. Studying the works of Emilie Mayer will support her addition to the classical repertoire, help correct the male-gendered canon that persists, and help modern female composers realize their history is not confined to a footnote.
This project was an exploratory take on outreach in the life sciences - looking into the existing literature and practices and formulating a proof of concept for future outreach with synthesizes my findings. The research culminated in the creation of an insect guide for the novice observer, which reads as a modern take on the dichotomous key and allows amateur insect observers to develop some skills of identification with relatively little entomological knowledge.
The WELL Building Standard is the first of its kind to focus on the health and wellness of building occupants. It’s a dynamic rating system between design and construction with evidence-based health and wellness interventions. It’s a holistic design approach addressing seven concepts: air, water, nourishment, light, fitness, comfort, and mind. Within these concepts are 100 “features” intended to address specific aspects of occupant health, comfort, and knowledge. To model these concepts and features, I will be using my Spring 2022 interior design studio project to exemplify the importance and benefits of the WELL Building Standard in workplace design.