About Kate
I was inspired by my marching band experience in high school to pursue a career in music education. While completing my undergraduate degree at Penn State, I discovered my passion for drill writing in my marching band techniques course, and also loved my time teaching visual basics as a section leader in the Blue Band my junior and senior years. Upon graduation, I taught high school band and orchestra at La Plata High School in Southern Maryland. While at La Plata, to save money, I began writing my own drill for our marching band, and we went on to earn many high visual and high effect awards in our competitive circuit, US Bands. I became very passionate about visual design during this time, and enjoyed every aspect of the design process. |
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I earned my masters degree in music education and conducting full time at Towson University, and worked as a graduate student staff member for the World Famous Towson University Marching Band. During my time on staff, I choreographed the visuals for the winds section and assisted in drill teaching. I was also mentored by experienced drill writer and TUMB director John Miliauskas. During the spring semester, I served as the assistant director of the Towson University Winter Guard, overseeing all administrative tasks and assisting with design and educational planning.
In summer of 2023, I was selected to be a Bluecoats Design Fellow. This selection was made based on an application and portfolio submission. I was paired with Jon Vanderkolff, the artistic director and drill writer for the Bluecoats, and was able to shadow him for all of Bluecoats' spring training.
Currently, I write drill for multiple schools in Maryland and Pennsylvania, and this past fall season (2024) I was the visual caption head for the Cavalcade of Bands Independence A Champions, the Plymouth-Whitemarsh Marching Colonials.
This upcoming fall, I am pursuing my Ph.D. in music education with a research focus in marching band pedagogy.
In summer of 2023, I was selected to be a Bluecoats Design Fellow. This selection was made based on an application and portfolio submission. I was paired with Jon Vanderkolff, the artistic director and drill writer for the Bluecoats, and was able to shadow him for all of Bluecoats' spring training.
Currently, I write drill for multiple schools in Maryland and Pennsylvania, and this past fall season (2024) I was the visual caption head for the Cavalcade of Bands Independence A Champions, the Plymouth-Whitemarsh Marching Colonials.
This upcoming fall, I am pursuing my Ph.D. in music education with a research focus in marching band pedagogy.