RIPON, Wis. – Kurt Dietrich, Ripon College professor of music, was recently honored with the International Association for Jazz Education Wisconsin Chapter Distinguished Service Award, recognizing outstanding jazz educators in the state.
The association has selected one recipient every year since 2000 based on significant contributions made to jazz education in Wisconsin.
“Wisconsin has been at the forefront of jazz education since the late 1960s,” Dietrich said. “Ever since that time, jazz programs in Wisconsin colleges, universities and high schools have been widely recognized as among the finest in the United States.”
Dietrich is being honored for his many years of service to the organization, years of work as an adjudicator and clinician around the state and for maintaining a successful and fruitful music program at Ripon College. He accepted the honor along with a plaque at the Lawrence University Jazz Ensemble reunion concert.
“Receiving this award is a true privilege,” he said. “Joining some of the legendary figures in Wisconsin jazz education as a recipient is a humbling and gratifying experience.”
In addition to teaching, Dietrich has also penned and contributed to several books on jazz, most recently Jazz ‘Bones: The World of Jazz Trombone (Advance Music, 2005). He resides in Ripon with his wife, Maria, and has two sons, Erik and Paul.
About Ripon College
Ripon College, founded in 1851, prepares students of diverse interests for lives of productive, socially responsible citizenship. Ripon’s liberal arts curriculum and residential campus create an intimate learning community in which students experience a richly personalized education. Ripon has been recognized as a “best value” and “Best 361 College” by The Princeton Review, a “Best Buy in College Education” by Barron’s, and among the 160 best schools in the nation by Colleges of Distinction. For more information about Ripon College, visit www.ripon.edu. |
