Music Faculty Member Honored with Award from the Muckenthaler
Dr. Monica Lee, Fullerton College music instructor, is the recipient of the Muckenthaler’s Dr. James Young Arts Legacy Award. Dr. Lee will be honored at a reception on Nov. 3 at 7:30 p.m. at the Muckenthaler.
The evening will include tributes and piano music played by Dr. Lee’s mentors, colleagues including Faculty Jazz Cadre, Aram Barsamian, Christopher Luthi, and Dr. Brian Park, current and former students, and herself.
Dr. Lee is the coordinator of piano studies and the Piano Teaching Certificate Program at Fullerton College. Each semester, the piano program provides service to many students taking beginning piano, piano ensemble, applied piano, jazz piano, and piano pedagogy courses. She served as the chair of the Fullerton Piano Ensemble Festival for more than 15 years.
“Dr. Monica Lee has a long history of excellent artistry and teaching at Fullerton College and beyond,” said Interim Fine Arts Dean Nicola Dedmon. “Students of hers have approached me to give their accolades to her pedagogy and her teaching style. She has had an unforgettable impact on our Music Department, and we are all honored to call her our colleague.”
With flexibility at the top of her mind, Dr. Lee has successfully taught classes in both online and in-person modalities to accommodate students who might not live close to campus. For the upcoming spring semester, Dr. Lee will continue to offer online beginning piano sight-reading courses to support flexible options for students and continue to offer in-person classes such as the ever popular, Introduction to Piano for Non-Music Majors.
The Muckenthaler’s Dr. James Young Arts Legacy Award is presented annually to someone who has made a long-term impact on Arts Education in the local Fullerton community. The recipient is chosen by a committee that includes local arts leaders, previous recipients, and Muckenthaler board members.
The award is named after James D. Young, a longtime theater professor and the founding chairman of Cal State Fullerton’s Department of Theatre and Dance. He also served as associate dean for the School of Letters, Arts and Sciences and as associate vice president for academic programs.
Previous recipients of the Dr. James Young Arts Legacy Award include Robert Jensen (2011), Vicki Schindele (2012), Jan & Griff Duncan (2013), Sara McFerrin (2014), Tony Trasport (2015), Lois Ellyn (2016), Laralyn Eschner (2017), McCoy Rigby (2018), Magoski Arts Colony (2019), and Dr. Joseph Arnold (2021).
Tickets for the award ceremony can be purchased at the Muckenthaler.
The sponsors for this event include Yamaha Co., Faust Harrison Pianos, and OC Elder Law.
