The music department at California State University, Dominguez Hills has recently been given another full ten-year accreditation by the National Association of Music Schools (NASM). Richard Kravchak, professor of music and the department’s chair, says that CSU Dominguez Hills is one of only nine music departments in all of California to hold accreditation from both NASM and the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing, an achievement he is proud of in the face of the state’s budget reductions in higher education and that he credits “the degree of personal involvement of all of our faculty in the education of every music student.”
“All of our music professors are practicing creative musicians at the highest level as well as being pedagogues,” says Kravchak. “They all can ‘walk the walk,’ and this gives their pedagogy relevance and credibility with our students.”
Kravchak says that accreditation requires departments to employ highly qualified faculty, design a course of study that features the most current best practices, and show that students can demonstrate appropriate learning outcomes. He says that he and his colleagues make every effort to maintain their international standing as musicians and composers while using these experiences to enhance their teaching in the classroom.
“While it may sound simple, it seems to be the exception rather then the rule that music units are able to accomplish all of this,” he says. “Despite our small size, over the last few years, our faculty has presented performances throughout Latin America, Europe, Asia, as well as major performance venues in the U.S. We combine this with our love and ability to teach. I truly believe that there is no better small music department in the United States.”
Kravchak’s CD “California Oboe” is now available at arkivmusic.com and on itunes. It includes compositions by past and present CSU Dominguez Hills faculty including Jonathan Grasse, Marshall Bialosky, and the late Rod Butler.
For more information on the music department at CSU Dominguez Hills, click here.
