Integrating STEM with Music

Shawna Longo is the General Music (Music Technology) teacher and Arts Integration Specialist at Durban Avenue School, Hopatcong, NJ. She also serves as the Arts Integration & STEAM Specialist for TMI Education; Coach for The Institute for Arts Integration & STEAM; and an Ambassador/Consultant for Music First, Hal Leonard, and Jamstik. With 19+ years of teaching experience, Mrs. Longo holds a Bachelor of Music in Music Education degree from The Catholic University of America in Washington, DC; a Master of Public Administration in Arts Administration from Seton Hall University in South Orange, NJ; Supervisor/Curriculum Director's certification from Rutgers University in New Brunswick, NJ; and certification as an Arts Integration Specialist (Level 1) as well as certification as an Arts Integration Leader (Level 2) from The Institute for Arts Integration and STEAM. She is an internationally recognized clinician and consultant for music education, music technology, social emotional learning, arts integration, and STEAM. She is also a recipient of the 2019 Mike Kovins Ti:ME Music Technology Teacher of the Year, 2019 New Jersey Governor's Award in Arts Education, 2019 Teach Rock Star Teacher Award from The Rock and Roll Forever Foundation, 2018 NJMEA Master Music Teacher Award, and 2016 Governor's Educator of the Year for Hopatcong Middle School. Twitter: @shawnalongo Zachary Gates is a choral, piano, and music technology teacher for grades 6-7 in East Brunswick Public Schools, NJ. As a graduate of Westminster Choir College, he has performed choral works with the New York Philharmonic, Berlin Philharmonic, and Philadelphia Orchestra. Zachary can be seen in a televised performance of Beethoven's 9th Symphony with the Vienna Chamber Orchestra at Princeton University and can also be heard in the Deutsche Grammophon release of Bernstein's Mass with the Philadelphia Orchestra. During his work involving choral conducting, he has brought high-school choral ensembles to perform at the NAfME Eastern Division Conference and at Carnegie Hall. He has also commissioned new works for orchestra and choir by nationally recognized composers. In addition to his work teaching and performing choral and classical music, Zachary is a music technologist, electronic synthesist, studio musician, and music producer for multiple artists in and around New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and New York. He has presented workshops for Ti:ME, NAfME Eastern Division, NJMEA, TMEA, PMEA, and the American Choral Directors Association. His examples of methods for strategic lesson planning in choral rehearsals have also been included in recent publications on choral pedagogy. Zachary's conference work and research has centered around developing choral methods, programming, and projects for 21st century learners, as well as how to best teach electronic music, electronic synthesis, music production, and modern music making to students of all ages. In addition to topics such as coding for music, Zachary has presented on developing his own "Virtual Choir" after his school district was awarded a grant to develop the inspired project. Using a lense of Critical Pedagogy, he seeks to empower students by putting the means of sound design, beat design, and general modern music making into their hands. Zachary aims to continue exploring and teaching how music and technology can be used to enhance music education for all students.