Robert Van Wyk is a music educator with 29 years of dedicated service to the Rahway Public Schools, empowering students through the transformative power of the arts. A graduate of Ithaca College, he earned his Bachelor of Music in Music Education in 1997, followed by a Master of Music in Music Education from Northwestern University in 2006, with a concentration in wind conducting.
Since 1997, Robert has taught at Rahway High School, serving as Band Director from 1997 to 2014 and Choir Director from 2014 to the present. In these roles, he has led the Marching Band, Jazz Ensemble, Wind Ensemble, Concert Band, Pit Orchestra, Choir, and Madrigals, while also teaching musical theatre, vocal and instrumental lessons, and piano.
His work has strengthened collaboration across Rahway Public Schools and the local arts community, building partnerships that expand student opportunities through performances, workshops, scholarships, guest artist residencies, and trips to Broadway productions, competitions, and festivals nationwide. Robert’s ensembles have been featured in Teaching Music magazine, The New York Times, the Newark Star-Ledger, and a PBS documentary on New Jersey high school musicals, I Can’t, I Have Rehearsal. His students have performed onstage in Broadway’s Little Shop of Horrors, at the Paper Mill Playhouse, at Lincoln Center in 2024, and are scheduled to perform at Carnegie Hall in 2026.
His students and alumni have appeared in Broadway productions including Six, & Juliet, The Lion King, Wicked, Funny Girl, Death Becomes Her, and New York, New York, both onstage and in pit orchestras. Notably, alumna Shanice Williams starred as Dorothy in NBC’s The Wiz Live and appeared in Netflix’s The Six Triple Eight.
Robert has been named Rahway High School Teacher of the Year in 2001 and 2020 and Star-Ledger Scholar Teacher of the Year in 2001. Under his leadership, ensembles have earned honors including US Bands NJ State Champion Marching Band (2006, 2008), Paper Mill Playhouse Rising Star Award for Best Overall Musical (2009), and NJ.com Best High School Musical (2019). His students regularly earn placement in regional and state ensembles and pursue arts education at institutions such as Juilliard, the Manhattan School of Music, Cincinnati Conservatory, Cleveland Institute of Music, and Berklee College of Music.
Generations of his students have gone on to become music educators themselves, while many others now serve as first responders, members of the armed services, doctors, lawyers, teachers, engineers, business owners, and community leaders making a positive impact in their communities.
Beyond the classroom, Robert is an accomplished professional musician, performing trumpet and piano in jazz and classical settings with artists including Chuck Mangione, Phil Woods, and Toshiko Akiyoshi. He has also recorded with Phillip Smith and Joseph Alessi as a member of the Imperial Brass Band.
Robert is a proud husband to Amara Van Wyk, a fellow music educator in the Rahway Public Schools, and a proud father to Cameron and Molly, both New Jersey All-State Musicians.
Organization Name: New Jersey Music Educators Association
Award Title: Master Music Teacher
Year: 2026
