Strickland named next Dau Professor of Instrumental Music

Sept. 22, 2022

Dr. Katy Strickland, an associate professor of music and the director of bands at Northwest Missouri State University, has been named the Department of Fine and Performing Arts’ third Dennis C. Dau Professor of Instrumental Music.

Dr. Katy Strickland

Strickland was granted a three-year appointment in the role upon a committee’s recommendation and review by the provost. She succeeds Dr. Robert Pippin, who departed Northwest during the summer.

Faculty are selected to receive the designation based on continued exemplary service in the field of instrumental music, a high level of productivity and significant impact at Northwest.

“We are confident that she will represent the department and donor exceptionally well in all of the attributes and expectations attendant to this honor,” Dr. Mike Steiner, the dean of Northwest’s College of Arts and Sciences, said. “Dr. Strickland has established herself as not only a leader within the Northwest community but also a highly recognized and respected figure regionally among high school and university band directors.”

Strickland joined the Northwest faculty in fall 2013 and was the University’s recipient of the 2018 Governor’s Award for Excellence in Education. She has played a significant role in the growth of the Bearcat Marching Band while incorporating technology and unique instruction methods into classes and rehearsals. She served as chair of Northwest’s Department of Fine and Performing Arts from 2017 through last spring.

Prior to joining Northwest, she taught for 13 years at public schools in rural southern Louisiana. She has served on the Louisiana Music Educators Association Board of Directors and as the Missouri chair for the National Band Association. Additionally, she is active as a guest conductor, adjudicator and clinician of marching bands, concert bands, and percussion groups of all ages.

Strickland earned a Ph.D. in music education, a Master of Music Education and a Bachelor of Music Education, all from Louisiana State University. Her academic interests include innovative technology for teaching intonation to instrumental musicians, participation in music across the lifespan, varied pedagogical approaches to the instrumental ensemble sight-reading experience, hearing loss among wind and percussion players, and quality teaching methods for young percussionists.

Dr. Katy Strickland joined the Northwest faculty in 2013 and conducts the Bearcat Marching Band. (Photo by Todd Weddle/Northwest Missouri State University)

“I’m grateful to the Northwest administration for always working to recognize my dedication, and that of so many of my peers, to impactful teaching and scholarly work,” Strickland said. “To be recognized in this way is an honor, especially because the award carries Dennis Dau’s name. Mr. Dau’s bands at Maryville High School changed the lives of those in them for the better, and his lifelong support of the arts — from donations, to concert attendance, to cheering for the marching band at every game and more — are serving to do the same. It’s an honor to receive any award with Mr. Dau’s name on it.”

Northwest announced the founding of the Dau Endowed Professorship in 2017 after receiving a $500,000 cash gift in honor of Dau, a Northwest alumnus and long-time supporter of instrumental music at the University. Dr. William Richardson, a professor of music, served as Northwest’s first Dennis C. Dau Professor of Instrumental Music from 2018 to 2021.

An endowed professorship gives special recognition to a faculty member for continued exemplary service to their field, based on outstanding teaching, creative and scholarly activity, and contributions through professional organizations and service beyond the regional level. It recognizes individuals who maintain a high level of productivity and impact during an extended period of time and are considered role models for faculty, staff and students.

Dau, a native of Manning, Iowa, played the snare drum in Northwest’s Bearcat Marching Band and the clarinet in the University’s wind symphony on his way to earning a bachelor’s degree in 1970 and master’s degree in 1971, both in music education. His career as an educator took him to Farragut, Iowa, and then to Maryville High School, where he was a band director from 1979 until his retirement in 1999.

To make a gift in support of the Dennis C. Dau Endowed Professorship in Instrumental Music or for more information about the Northwest Foundation, contact the Office of University Advancement at 660.562.1248 or advance@nwmissouri.edu.