Women in Music Symposium Returns to Campus

Saint Mary’s College is hosting the third annual Women in Music Symposium on Saturday, March 19, 2022, after taking a two-year absence due to COVID-19. This all-day event allows  participants to connect with alumnae and current students, and hear about the diverse career opportunities with a music degree. The symposium is open to the public, but high school and college students will benefit most from the takeaway—answers to why they should major in music.

The symposium will begin with opening remarks from President Katie Conboy and Music Department Chair Nancy Menk. Throughout the day, four successful alumnae will present and share their unique experiences with a music degree. Katie Trnka ’01 is a senior recruiter at Exelon Corporation in Chicago, and Breighan Brown Boeskool ’02 is the assistant director of analytics at the University of Notre Dame Investment Office. Both earned their bachelor’s of music while at Saint Mary’s. Marcie Kumor ’94, an elementary music educator, has taught music all over the world, including in Dubai and India, and Mary Frances Dini ’98 is the elementary general music and chorus director in the Fairfax County Public Schools in Virginia. Both earned their bachelor’s in music education.

The alumnae presentations aim to encourage current and prospective students who have an interest in music and give them an idea of what life can offer after majoring in music. “We’re trying to let them know what is possible with a degree in music; that it can be a gateway to lots of different things,” Menk said. Though the program is titled “Women in Music,” men from the tri-campus community are welcome to participate, and can even enroll in music classes at Saint Mary’s. 

To end the day, the women’s choir, which Menk directs, will perform a mini concert followed by a reception for attendees to talk individually to the alumnae.

“There’s nothing in this area quite like this symposium that focuses on women in music,” Menk said. 

Saint Mary’s is an accredited institutional member of the National Association of Schools and Music and offers two degrees in music, a bachelor of arts in music and bachelor of music education. Menk, who has been with the College for 37 years, says the BA allows students to combine with another degree, which oftentimes becomes their career. The music education program prepares students to teach in pre-K-12  and has a 100% job placement.

To register and view the detailed list of speakers for the 2022 Women in Music Symposium, click here.