Mrs. Sarah Catt, Choir Teacher
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Sarah Catt has served as the choir teacher at Elk Grove High School since 2010. She received her Bachelor of Music Education from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), her Master of Arts degree in Educational Leadership from Concordia University Chicago, and her Master of Music Education degree from UIUC.
Mrs. Catt has been honored to serve as guest conductor for various ILMEA Junior Choruses, ILMEA Senior Choruses, ILMEA Vocal Jazz Ensembles, the UIUC Illinois Summer Youth Music Junior Chorus, and other school music festivals. In 2015, Mrs. Catt received an Award of Recognition from the Illinois State Board of Education in the "Those Who Excel" education awards program. Mrs. Catt is an active member of the Illinois Music Education Association, the National Association for Music Education, and the American Choral Directors Association, where she served as the Illinois High School Repertoire and Resources Chair. Outside of her musical endeavors, Mrs. Catt enjoys spending time with her husband Brandon, the fine arts department chair and co-director of choirs at Glenbard East High School, and their spunky, adventurous, and inspiring daughter, Amelia. sarah.catt@d214.org (847)718-4499 |
Ms. Heather Messer, Choral Accompanist
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Heather Messer enjoys a varied career as a performer, teacher, and accompanist in the Chicagoland area. In addition to joining the Elk Grove High School staff as choral accompanist in 2016, she teaches piano to students of all ages at Bellas Artes School of Music in Glen Ellyn.
Ms. Messer graduated from the Wheaton College Conservatory of Music with degrees in Piano Performance and Piano Pedagogy. Through studying piano with Dr. Karin Edwards at Wheaton College, and Mrs. Dianne Nichols in pre-college years, Ms. Messer has grown a deep appreciation for music and excellent teaching. Besides piano, Ms. Messer’s other musical love is choral music. She grew up singing in church choirs, and has also sung in the Rainier Youth Choir, Green River College Jazz Voices, and accompanied the Green River College concert choir. At Wheaton College, Ms. Messer had the opportunity to accompany both the Women’s Chorale and the Men’s Glee Club, as well as sing in and serve as the student Honor’s Conductor in the Women’s Chorale under the direction of Dr. Mary Hopper. When not occupied by musical activities, Ms. Messer enjoys a variety of activities including being outside, hiking in the mountains in her home state of Washington, playing Ultimate Frisbee, trying new restaurants, and drinking coffee. |
Ms. Marissa McLean, Mint Condition Vocal Jazz Director
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Marissa McLean is thrilled to join the Elk Grove High School Music Faculty directing the co-curricular women’s ensemble. Ms. McLean also acts as the Assistant Choral Director at Glenbard East High School directing two sections of Treble Choir, WAVE, and Voices of East, along with overseeing the student-directed men’s and women’s a cappella groups. Additionally, she directs the Choirs at Westlake Middle School.
Before coming to Elk Grove, Ms. McLean was the Director of Choirs at South View Middle School, in Danville, IL. She graduated in 2014 from Elmhurst College with a Bachelor of Music in Music Education. She was twice nominated for the Elmhurst College Founder’s Award and was honored to be selected as the Elmhurst College Senior of the Year in 2014. She studied voice with Ms. Amy Pickering, was a member of both the Late Night Blues and Blue vocal jazz ensembles, and performed with the Elmhurst College Concert Choir, Chamber Singers, Women’s Choir, Philharmonic Orchestra, and Varsity Band. During her time in these ensembles, she held many executive positions and served as Head of House for the 45th Annual Elmhurst College Jazz Festival. Ms. McLean has performed in many venues across the US and Canada including: Toronto, St. Louis, Chicago, New York City and Boston. In 2013, she had the opportunity to travel to Montego Bay, Jamaica where she taught music in both primary and secondary schools through a study abroad program. Ms. McLean is an active member of the American Choral Director’s Association (ACDA), Illinois Music Educators Association (IlMEA) as well as the National Association for Music Educators (NAfME) and spent 3 summers during college, as an intern for the Say Yes to Education program in Syracuse, NY. Outside of teaching and music, she enjoys spending time with her friends, volunteering, traveling and visiting her family at home in Upstate New York. |
TBD, A cappella Director
Bio forthcoming
