The Governor’s Award in Arts Education has special significance to each winner.
This month, NJAEP features two messages that were written for the 2017 nominees. Each speaks to the confidence, courage, and perseverance developed through the arts. Enjoy!
My name is Morgan Mastrangelo and I won two Governor’s Awards in the spring of 2016; one in Choral Music and one in Opera. I remember being thrilled to win one after being nominated in 2015 and falling short, but when I heard I had won a second one I really couldn’t believe it! I had no expectations going into the ceremony but remember being very impressed with the state building in Trenton, the reception afterward and of course, being surrounded by all that talent. I was honored to be invited to sing the National Anthem to kick off the ceremony and I remember how gratifying it felt to walk across that stage to receive my awards—a culmination of 4 years of really hard work.
Since then, I was accepted to Northwestern University where I am a Freshman in their (classical) Vocal Performance program. I was also selected to join their Musical Theatre Certificate Program. In my spare time I sing in the co-ed a cappella group, The Undertones, am involved in a student-run theatre group which writes and produces their own musical every year and was recently cast in two campus musicals: as JD in “Heathers: The Musical” and as Jon in “Tick, Tick Boom!”. This summer I was selected to perform at the New York Musical Theatre Festival and then I will be participating in an Opera and workshop back at Northwestern. I am very busy, but so happy to be doing what I love and performing across all genres of music.
My advice to future awardees is to keep doing what you love! Obviously, if you have earned a Governor’s Award you have the talent–now keep going and don’t let anything stand in your way. I definitely think that my two Governor’s awards gave me (and my parents) extra confidence in my abilities and solidified my choice to continue my studies in music after High School. Good Luck!!
Sincerely,
Morgan
Winning the 2015 New Jersey Governor’s Award in Art Education — Multidiscipline has enabled me to follow my dreams and keep an open mind about what I’ll be doing in the future. I never realized how much confidence the Governor’s Award would give me. It has encouraged me to pursue a wide array of interests as well as reap rewards that I never thought possible.
This year, in addition to art opportunities and competition awards, I was so excited to be accepted to a week-long national advocacy institute in Washington, D.C. I also received a federal scholarship to study Mandarin in China for seven weeks while living with a host family. Sometimes I feel this isn’t real since I’m still a junior in high school!
The most important intangible I received from the Governor’s Award in Arts Education, but never expected, is the courage to persevere — especially when not reaching goals the first time around — and the resilience to redouble my efforts, reapply myself and seek new opportunities.
What do I think the Governor’s Award can mean for you? It means that you too can follow your heart and your dreams can really come true!!!
Sincerely,
David Jansen
I was awarded the 2016 New Jersey Music Educators Association (NJMEA) Master Music Teacher Award. When I attended the 2016 Governor’s Awards Ceremony, the amazingly talented students blew me away. By watching them, it inspired and rejuvenated me as a teacher. It reminded me that my young students can aspire to be a recipient of a Governor’s Award. I am so honored to have been a recipient and will continue to work diligently at creating a musically successful and inspiring classroom environment so that my students can be a recipient of this award some day.
Since the awards, our performing arts program at Far Hills Country Day School was named as one of the recipients of the NAMM SupportMusic Merit Award (SMMA) for 2017. The NAMM Foundation each year selects individual schools with excellent music education programs to receive the SMMA. We were very honored to be selected as one of only 92 schools in the entire country to receive this recognition.
My advice for future awardees is to keep doing what you are doing. If you love it, that is all that matters. Life is short. Find what you love to do, whether it is performing, singing, writing, acting, drawing, painting, etc, and live your life to the fullest. This country needs the fine arts, the visual arts, the performing arts, and other creative fields, to keep the creativity alive.
Sincerely,
Amy
