Karen Ajamian Smaldone
Fields of Study:
Music Education
Degrees and Studies:
BA in Music, Queens College
MS in Special Education, Queens College
Biographical Information:
Karen Ajamian Smaldone brings 34 years of practical experience as a public school teacher of Choral and General Music to her Queens College classroom. She teaches courses in the Music Education Program, as well as "Music for Children", a course requirement for Elementary Education Majors. She has taught General Music, Chorus, Class Guitar and other courses to students in Carle Place School District and Lynbrook School District in Nassau County. As choral director, she has prepared over 150 programs, concerts, assemblies and special events. In addition to these programs she was Music Director for over 20 elementary School Musical Productions, for which she also served as accompanist. During her career, she was instrumental in developing curriculum in the general music classroom, choosing text books to be used district wide and developed many Inter-Disciplinary Projects with her elementary classroom colleagues. She has presented at regional Music Education conferences such as the Balanced Mind, sponsored by the Nassau Music Educators Association and is a frequent NYSSMA adjudicator for piano. Ms. Ajamian Smaldone is a certified Orff Schulwerk instructor and is a member of The National Association for Music Education, Nassau Music Educators Association and New York State School Music Association. Ms. Ajamian Smaldone holds a BA in Music and an MS in Special Education, both from Queens College, CUNY.