Miriam Altman has been a music educator for nearly 30 years. Most of her career has been spent teaching middle school students in both public and independent schools, with a focus on chorus, West African and Brazilian drumming, and songwriting. In 2020, Miriam made the switch to the elementary level and now teaches general music at a K–6 school in Shorewood, Wisconsin.
I was attracted to the MSPE program because of the emphasis on collaboration with other educators. I’m someone who enjoys the intellectual companionship of mentoring, and my current point in life offers many opportunities for that. I work with other music teachers around the state in a coaching role. I mentor new teachers in my district, and as my school is a hop, skip and jump away from UW-Milwaukee, I welcome in many pre-service music educators for clinicals, field work, and student teaching. I’m eager to hone my skills in these roles and possibly add new ones in the future.