Alumni

Macel Reising

Macel Reising completed the combined Music Therapy Equivalency and Master of Music Therapy degree. From Annapolis, Maryland, she had graduated Summa Cum Laude the prior spring from Washington & Jefferson College in Western Pennsylvania, with a double major in Education and Music and a minor in Psychology. While at W&J, Macel volunteered at a local assisted living home, where she had the opportunity to play piano for people with Alzheimer’s and dementia. This experience inspired her to...

Sophie Rymarowicz

Sophie Rymarowicz is a graduate student pursuing her master’s degree in composition. She graduated Summa Cum Laude from the University of New Mexico, with a BM in Performance (violin). While at the University of New Mexico, she formed a student-run string quartet, and participated in the annual John Donald Robb Composer’s Symposium where she had the opportunity to hear readings of her own work.

Jason Sivert

Jason Sivert is a recent graduate from West Liberty University in West Liberty, West Virginia. He received a BM in Music Technology and Music Performance. He was involved in several music ensembles, which included: percussion ensemble, steel band, African drum and dance ensemble, and marching band. He has also been involved with the electronic music ensemble and jazz ensemble. Sivert is a percussionist who is proficient on all the core percussion instruments, as well as steel pan and African...

Wiley Smith

Wiley Smith is a board-certified music therapist who earned both a Master of Music Therapy and a Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at Appalachian. A native of North Carolina and an alumnus of UNC-Chapel Hill, Wiley practiced music therapy in Cleveland, Ohio after completing his equivalency at Cleveland State University. Before working as a music therapist, Wiley was a part of l’Arche Cleveland, a faith-based community for people with disabilities.

Katelyn Sutton

Katelyn Sutton is a board-certified music therapist from North Carolina. She received her Bachelor’s of Music in Music Therapy degree from Appalachian State in 2019. She completed her clinical work at Springfield Hospital Center in Maryland, working with adults with severe and persistent mental illness. Katelyn is a music therapy supervisor and coordinator for the Learning, Research, and Technology Lab. Throughout her graduate studies, Katelyn specialized in mental health and is working as a...

Timothy Tang

Wing Nam (Timothy) Tang is a board-certified music therapist who completed his Master of Music Therapy degree and the Expressive Arts Therapy Graduate Certificate. He is an international student from Hong Kong. He graduated from the University of Hong Kong with a bachelor’s degree of Actuarial Science in 2014 and completed the equivalency in music therapy at Appalachian State University in 2020, received his Bachelor of Music degree in Music Therapy. He completed his music therapy internship at...

Chris Tkacik

Christopher Tkacik is pursuing a Master of Music Performance degree with a concentration in Wind Conducting, and also serves as graduate assistant of bands. He graduated Summa Cum Laude with a Bachelor's degree in Music Education from East Carolina University in Greenville, NC in 2012. From 2012-2015, he taught K-8 general music, middle grades band, and 4th and 5th grade orchestra at Stokes Elementary School in Pitt County. Since 2015, he has served as the director of bands at Greene Central...

Hayley Turner

Hayley Turner is excited to be pursuing dual master’s degrees in Music Theory/Composition and International Business. A Greensboro, NC native, she studied voice under the tutelage of Dr. Robert Bracey and earned her bachelor’s in Music Education from UNCG in 2018. For the last two years she has taught middle school Chorus, General Music, and Theatre in Guilford County. She has played piano for sixteen years and grew up singing in church and the Greensboro Youth Chorus. She has taught...

Renae Tuschner

Originally from St. Paul, MN, Renae Tuschner is a Music Therapy Equivalency/Master's student. She recently graduated from Lawrence University and Conservatory in Appleton, WI with a B.A. in Psychology and Neuroscience as well as a B.M. in Performance (Bassoon). Renae caught the "research bug" at Lawrence while working in the Child and Adolescent Research in Emotion (C.A.R.E.) Lab. As a member of the C.A.R.E. Lab team, Renae assisted in the development of both a school-based screening tool to...