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By Dr. Allyn Phelps
We are pleased to share that two MMEA Collegiate students will be representing our state’s organization at NAfME’s 2024 Collegiate Leadership Summit! This annual event in Washington, D.C., involves two days of sessions on a broad range of relevant and timely topics, including strengthening the profession and equity in music education. This is followed by a day on Capitol Hill, where the collegiates represent Massachusetts Music Educators and speak with legislators about the importance of our discipline.
After a competitive application and selection process, MMEA will be sponsoring Juniper Montalvo of Berklee College of Music and Blessings Martins from Boston University to represent MMEA at the Collegiate Leadership Summit and Capitol Hill Day.
Please read more about these outstanding music educators below:
Blessing Olorunwa Martins
Blessing Olorunwa Martins is a graduate student at Boston University, College of Fine Arts,
School of Music, pursuing a Master of Music in music education. He is an aspiring music
educator, violin instructor, and performer who lived in Lagos, Nigeria, before moving to Boston,
Massachusetts, in the United States of America, for his studies. Blessing earned his Bachelor of
Arts in Music at the University of Lagos, Nigeria, Diploma in Violin Performance from the
Musical Society of Nigeria (MUSON), Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music
(ABRSM) Grade 8 violin performance, Grade 7 theory. He is also a Level 1 A Suzuki violin teacher. His passion for music education and inclusivity made him volunteer to co-teach and observe at Madison Park Vocational High School in the special education program. He recently co-presented at the MMEA 2024 conference, advocating for students with disabilities, and
volunteered as a collegiate ambassador.
What Blessing has to say about attending the summit:
“Music educators hold the key to the future of music. I am excited to meet with legislators to advocate for and share my ideas about the importance of music education in my life and the lives of my future students.”
Jupiter Montalvo
Jupiter Montalvo are originally from Worcester Massachusetts, but they currently live in Cambridge. They are a fourth-semester music education major at Berklee College of Music along with being a vocalist and violinist. Jupiter grew up listening and performing music and fell in love. They knew from their first performance that music would be in their life forever. Jupiter started teaching music in high school and that sprouted their love for teaching as well. They are a creative soul and love to bring that energy into their teaching as well. Besides performing and teaching, Jupiter loves to paint, go hiking, and go thrifting.
What Jupiter has to say about attending the summit:
“I am so excited to advocate for music education at this summit. Music belongs in schools and I can't wait to show every single government official the importance of music in schools.”
To learn more about the Collegiate Leadership Summit, visit the website: https://nafme.org/event/2024-nafme-collegiate-leadership-advocacy-summit/