In less than two years it hasn’t taken elementary music teacher, Alissa Mujanovic long to leave her mark on her students. Mujanovic joined the Cardinal family last year and has already broken many barriers for those students who are interested in music and fine arts at the elementary school level.
At the beginning of this school year, Mujanovic created Huskie Choir, an opportunity for 3rd and 4th grade students who are interested in singing and performing and don’t want to wait until they get into middle school to begin their singing journey.
“My philosophy of music education revolves around the desire to provide the music experience that I was not provided in my rural upbringing,” she said. “Not only is an extracurricular choir something that I would have enjoyed as a child, it also serves as a means to open up opportunities for students to explore their interests early, connect with each other through expression, explore social-emotional processing, develop musicianship and vocal skills necessary for secondary ensembles, serves as a feeder program for the middle school and high school choir programs, and provides a source for students to connect to additional musical opportunities such as the OMEA All-State choir, honor choirs, and community choirs.”
This past December, the Huskie Choir performed for residents at the Ohman Family Living Facilities, just days after showing off their talents at the winter concert. There, Mujanovic and company performed some of their holiday favorites like “Do You Want to Build a Snowman,” and “Frosty Hand Jive.”
“It is a testament to both our students’ musicality and our community and parent support for the arts that more than 40% of our 3rd and 4th graders are involved in Huskie Choir,” Mujanovic noted. “Our voluntary music concerts involve nearly 100% student participation. I am thrilled to witness our Huskies develop such musicianship and care, but also to see them take pride in their music that they develop such excitement and confidence in sharing their craft with others.”
The ninth-year teacher grew up in the village of Salesville located in Lore City, OH and attended Buckeye Trail High School. Mujanovic participated in multiple fine arts programs as a child, but always felt like her isolated surroundings held her back from more, and now, she wants to provide her students with more.
“As a former child that attended a rural school, I experienced a lack of enriching music classes with a revolving door of music teachers,” said Mujanovic. “Frustrated from not feeling challenged or supported in my musical endeavors, it has been my goal as an educator to provide rural students with the experiences that my education lacked. Where a child lives should not impact the effectiveness or meaningfulness of their education.”
After high school graduation, Mujanovic continued her education at The Ohio State University where she graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Music Education with a concentration in piano. She is currently completing her Masters Degree in Music Education and is on track to graduate in May of 2025 from Case Western Reserve University.
“I am interested in identifying the societal structures and school policies that inequitably impact marginalized students,” she added. “By identifying these exclusionary practices, I hope to be able to implement change both within my classroom, and through my leadership role in state music education association policy in order to combat these inequitable structures and create a more socially just music education experience for my students.”
At the beginning of the month as she was supporting two of her students at the Ohio Music Education Association Children’s Chorus in Columbus, she had the opportunity to also present her research at the OMEA Professional Development Conference from her current case study.
Mujanovic has already taken her students and the elementary music department to new heights and at the end of last school year, Mujanovic was the recipient of two grants where she was awarded a generous amount which improved her classroom materials greatly. The K – 4 music teacher was able to purchase seven floor toms and one tubano which can help with instrument development at an earlier age.
“I will now be able to incorporate these instruments in all 15 of my classes, ages K – 4th grade, for years to come. In total, these instruments would benefit more than 400 students per school year,” said Mujanovic on what the purchase of these instruments mean to her.
All of these tools that Mujanovic has implemented in her classroom and every day teaching skills had prepared her for her big moment in Columbus.
Mujanovic has other ideas that she would like to present for her students including a musical for the district’s 3rd and 4th grade students this spring.
“These students will take the stage with the musical “It’s a Hit!” on Monday, May 13th at 6:00 pm,” said Mujanovic.
