Professional Biography

Katie Willey remains active as a music educator who guides students towards musical competency and confidence. She has pursued this work for over a decade and continues to balance the roles of musician, conductor, amateur comedian, supportive cheerleader, and positive role model for hundreds of students across the public and private sectors. She currently teaches full time as a Vocal Music teacher in Orange Public Schools (Orange, NJ). Outside of the school music classroom, she teaches piano lessons, voice lessons, and beginner piano group classes independently and is a conductor in the Training Division with Brooklyn Youth Chorus.

She completed her Master of Music Education with a choral emphasis at Westminster Choir College (Princeton, NJ) in 2021 and taught K-4 music at a charter school in Manhattan prior to her graduate studies. Her pursuit of music education started with the completion of her Bachelor of Music at Northwestern University (Evanston, IL) in 2014, where she focused on general music, choral music, and arts administration. Her past experiences as a classically-trained musician include solo piano and choral performances at Carnegie Hall, New York City Center, Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts (Philadelphia, PA), and venues across New Jersey and New York City. Her other musical pursuits include serving as jazz pianist at restaurants and private events, creating musical content online, and acting as keyboardist and back-up vocalist in a cover band.

Katie maintains her pedagogy and musicianship through workshops and memberships with the Gordon Institute for Music Learning, the American Choral Directors Association, and the National Association for Music Education. Some of her favorite workshops include Dr. Carol Krueger’s Fostering Music Literacy series, Estill Voice Training, and GIML Piano Level 1. 

When Katie is away from teaching, you can find her on a nature walk, pursuing artistic projects such as crafting and sewing, cooking, or cuddling on the couch with her rescue cat Mimi.

If you'd like to learn more about Katie's professional experiences, view her LinkedIn profile here.

Educational Background

2021 - Westminster Choir College (of Rider University)

Master of Music Education, Choral Emphasis

Princeton and Lawrenceville, New Jersey

2014 - Northwestern University, Bienen School of Music

Bachelor of Music, Music Education and Arts Administration

Evanston, Illinois