Gerard Knieter Honored for Dedication to the Arts

    STEVENSON RANCH, CA, March 02, 2023 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Gerard Knieter has been included in Marquis Who's Who. As in all Marquis Who's Who biographical volumes, individuals profiled are selected on the basis of current reference value. Factors such as position, noteworthy accomplishments, visibility, and prominence in a field are all taken into account during the selection process.

As professor emeritus of music at California State University, Northridge, Dr. Gerard L. Knieter, EdD has exhibited a lifelong love and passion for music, the arts and education.

Dr. Knieter prepared for his career by matriculating at New York University, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in music education in 1953 and a Master of Arts in music education, with an emphasis in higher education, in 1954, all while supporting himself financially as a performing musician. By 1961, he had also attained a Doctor of Education in music education, with an emphasis in psychology and teacher education, from Teachers College, Columbia University.

His teaching career began with various secondary schools in New York. It was at West Hempstead Secondary School in West Hempstead where he became known as an interdisciplinarian in the arts by creating a "Symposium in the Creative Arts," which he team-taught with an art teacher. Pivoting to higher education and moving across the country, Dr. Knieter joined the faculty of San Jose State University, where as assistant professor of music and education from 1962 to 1965 he introduced their first course in ethnomusicology, "Music in World Cultures." Following this period, he served Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania as an associate professor of music and acting dean within the Mary Pappert School of Music, teaching graduate students "Psychology of Music" through 1967.

Leaving Pittsburgh for Philadelphia, Dr. Knieter dedicated the next decade to educating music teachers working on master's and doctoral degrees at Temple University. During his 11-year tenure, he served as chairman, professor and head of the doctoral program in the Department of Music Education and Music Therapy within the Boyer College of Music and Dance. During this time, he conducted several workshops for high school and college teachers, where the goal was to demonstrate the structure of teaching and learning in interdisciplinary arts programs at all levels of development. From 1978 to 1986, he excelled as a professor of music and dean of the College of Fine and Applied Arts at The University of Akron, while simultaneously serving as an adjunct professor of behavioral sciences at Northeast Ohio University's College of Medicine where he taught sixth-year medical students "Psychology of the Arts" and physicians "Creativity in the Arts: Implications for Medical Practice."

In 1986, Dr. Knieter joined California State University, Northridge, where he would flourish as an educator and musician until his retirement in 2006. In posts such as dean of the College of Fine Arts, professor of music and executive assistant to the vice president for administration, he achieved the honorable rank of professor emeritus of music after two decades with the university. In service to the university, he has assisted with leadership in numerous areas, as president of the Faculty Senate, as co-chairman with the president, on the Commission on the Future of the University, as chairman of the Promotions and Tenure Committee of the College of Music and on the Undergraduate Policies and Programs Committee for the College of Education. Dr. Knieter also obtained grants and funding for projects in music and the arts for the universities.

Notably, Dr. Knieter has contributed greatly to the educational development of several institutions, as well as developing literacy in the visual arts, theater, dance and film. Recognized for his grand efforts, he was honored by Outstanding Educators of America in 1972 and was the recipient of the Arch Award at New York University. Among numerous achievements, Dr. Knieter has also served as a board member to the National Center for Research in Arts Education at New York University and Theodore Presser Company in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. He has also been vice president of the board of the Initial Teaching Alphabet Foundation in Roslyn, New York and chairman of the Committee for the Advancement of Music Education of the Music Educators National Conference, which is now the National Association for Music Education.

As part of his dedication to his field outside of his role as emeritus professor of music, Dr. Knieter has held membership in the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, the American Association for Higher Education and the Society for Ethnomusicology. He also participates in and supports the National Association for Music Education, the International Council of Fine Arts Deans, the Council of Colleges of Arts & Sciences, the College Music Society and the American Association of University Professors.

Additionally, Dr. Knieter has been a contributor for articles on the arts, education, psychology and philosophy for numerous professional journals and encyclopedias. He also co-edited "The Teaching Process and the Arts and Aesthetics" alongside Jane Stallings in 1979. He recently finished writing his book, "Tonal Harmony for Professional Musicians."

Reflecting upon his career, Dr. Knieter believes one of the most important things was to associate himself with significant values that last the test of time. He adds, "Those values in my experience relate to the best human qualities that we all share, respect, integrity, and honesty. The innovations that I brought about in teaching and learning in the arts hopefully contributed to the quality of people's lives. This process brings success to everyone and is exciting for all who participate in the arts."

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