K - 3 / Chorus
Jami DeSiena - Originally from Littleton, CO., she went to the University of North Texas and got a degree in Music Education. Voice was her concentration and she also plays piano, guitar, recorder, percussion (marimba and steel pan), and the autoharp. She taught Elementary music for 4 years in Long Beach Unified at Tucker Elementary School (K-5) and a 4/5th grade chorus where she also produced and wrote many musicals. She teaches 2nd grade classroom music and the Chorus program.
Jana Gruss - teaches ALL Kindergarten, 1st and 2nd grade classroom music in the Newhall School Disctrict. She also introduces music performance to ALL 3rd graders with Recorders. 4th, 5th and 6th grade students benefit from Jana's direction in the Chorus program.
Orchestra
Ilizabeth Gilbert - received her Bachelor of Arts in Music and Master of Education from UCLA and holds her Master of Music in Flute Performance from California State University, Northridge. A strong advocate for Arts Education, Ilizabeth taught for six years with the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District and since 1995 has been an instrumental music teacher with the Newhall School District. She is a member of the Music Educator's National Conference (MENC) California Music Educator's Association (CMEA), and the Music Teacher's Association of California (MTAC). Ilizabeth currently also maintains her own private flute studio in the Santa Clarita Valley.
Tara Speiser - joined NSD in 1995. She holds a BA from UC Santa Cruz, an MFA from California Institute of the Arts and a professional clear teaching credential. Since moving to Southern California in 1992, Tara has demonstrated a commitment to the development of young musicians serving as wind specialist with the Santa Clarita Youth Orchestra, a teaching artist with the Los Angeles Jewish Symphony, adjunct bassoon faculty at CALARTS and as program coordinator and chamber music teacher for the Santa Clarita Valley Community Arts Partnership (SCVAP) music workshops at CALARTS. Tara maintains a local private bassoon studio and plays bassoon with local professional orchestras, early music ensembles and avant-garde experimental groups and is a member of MENC and CMEA.
Peggi Stoffel - received her Bachelor of Arts in Music and Master of Education degrees from UCLA. A native of Pasadena, Mrs. Stoffel has taught in Illinois for the last 9 years. While in Illinois, Mrs. Stoffel taught instrumental music grades 5-8. Her middle school wind ensemble was consistently awarded "superior" ratings at Illinois Grade School Music Association contests. She has served on several committees during her tenure in Illinois and is a member of the Music Educators National Conference, California Music Educator's Association, and the American String Teachers Association.
Jami DeSiena - Originally from Littleton, CO., she went to the University of North Texas and got a degree in Music Education. Voice was her concentration and she also plays piano, guitar, recorder, percussion (marimba and steel pan), and the autoharp. She taught Elementary music for 4 years in Long Beach Unified at Tucker Elementary School (K-5) and a 4/5th grade chorus where she also produced and wrote many musicals. She teaches 2nd grade classroom music and the Chorus program.
Jana Gruss - teaches ALL Kindergarten, 1st and 2nd grade classroom music in the Newhall School Disctrict. She also introduces music performance to ALL 3rd graders with Recorders. 4th, 5th and 6th grade students benefit from Jana's direction in the Chorus program.
Orchestra
Ilizabeth Gilbert - received her Bachelor of Arts in Music and Master of Education from UCLA and holds her Master of Music in Flute Performance from California State University, Northridge. A strong advocate for Arts Education, Ilizabeth taught for six years with the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District and since 1995 has been an instrumental music teacher with the Newhall School District. She is a member of the Music Educator's National Conference (MENC) California Music Educator's Association (CMEA), and the Music Teacher's Association of California (MTAC). Ilizabeth currently also maintains her own private flute studio in the Santa Clarita Valley.
Tara Speiser - joined NSD in 1995. She holds a BA from UC Santa Cruz, an MFA from California Institute of the Arts and a professional clear teaching credential. Since moving to Southern California in 1992, Tara has demonstrated a commitment to the development of young musicians serving as wind specialist with the Santa Clarita Youth Orchestra, a teaching artist with the Los Angeles Jewish Symphony, adjunct bassoon faculty at CALARTS and as program coordinator and chamber music teacher for the Santa Clarita Valley Community Arts Partnership (SCVAP) music workshops at CALARTS. Tara maintains a local private bassoon studio and plays bassoon with local professional orchestras, early music ensembles and avant-garde experimental groups and is a member of MENC and CMEA.
Peggi Stoffel - received her Bachelor of Arts in Music and Master of Education degrees from UCLA. A native of Pasadena, Mrs. Stoffel has taught in Illinois for the last 9 years. While in Illinois, Mrs. Stoffel taught instrumental music grades 5-8. Her middle school wind ensemble was consistently awarded "superior" ratings at Illinois Grade School Music Association contests. She has served on several committees during her tenure in Illinois and is a member of the Music Educators National Conference, California Music Educator's Association, and the American String Teachers Association.
Music Teachers :
