Program Director

Rebecca McLaughlin

As one of the first graduates of the BYU 5-year double major in Elementary Music and Classroom Teaching, Rebecca did both kinds of student teaching and licensures. She was the first program graduate hired in the Provo City Schools, where she pioneered the establishment of Kodály music education and school-based children’s choirs. Her outstanding work resulted in the creation and funding of full-time music specialist positions for every elementary school in the District. She was appointed District-wide Kodály Program Teacher Coach, established an elementary choral festival, became Director of the BYU InterMuse Academy, President of OAKE-UFOLKS, a frequent UMEA and UFOLKS presenter, and sang in the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. A master teacher and vocal-health advocate, she is now applying her expertise as the owner-director of a private music school serving all ages. Rebecca will instruct our Vocal Health, Solfa and Musicianship Level I and the Elementary Choral Development Track.

Guest Faculty

Judit Walter

Judit Walter graduated from the University of Debrecen with a Bachelors in elementary school music teaching, solfège teaching, and choral conducting, then a Masters in music theory teaching, solfège teaching, and choral conducting. She has taught secondary school music, solfège and theory at the University of Debrecen, done broadcasting for the Debrecen Kodály Philharmonic and Debrecen City Television, and is currently the assistant conductor of the Hungarian Radio Children’s Choir. Some of her other appointments were as a teacher of pedagogy and solfège in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and in the Waldorf School of Valencia, Spain. Judit will instruct Level I, II, III Solfa and Musicianship Classes.

Faculty

Jessica Heaton

Jessica Heaton has taught music to K-12 students for eight years; three years in Winslow, Arizona as a high school, junior high, and elementary school choir and orchestra teacher; and the last five years as the music specialist at Canyon Crest Elementary in the Provo City School District.  She is currently finishing a Master’s in Music Education from Brigham Young University, and holds a Bachelor’s in Music Education from Brigham Young University–Idaho.  Trained in the Kodály approach to music education, she is Level III Kodály certified from the InterMuse certification program at BYU and currently serves as President of the Utah Fellowship of Local Kodály Specialists (UFOLKS), an affiliate chapter of the Organization of American Kodály Educators (OAKE).  Jessica has received a Winslow Employee of the month award in 2017, the Provo Way award in 2021, and conducted the Provo Elementary Festival/Honor Choirs in 2019. Jessica is our Level I Conducting instructor.

Dr. Jerry L. Jaccard

Dr. Jerry L. Jaccard is a BYU Professor Emeritus and the visionary founder of BYU InterMuse Academy for Kodály Certification. In addition to his many decades of teaching students from Kindergarten through post- graduate levels, Jerry is also internationally respected as an author, editor, and researcher.  Jerry is regularly sought after for his music teaching leadership and expertise. He shares with us his vast travel and collaboration experiences with some of the best Kodály educators in the world. Jerry is the current President of the International Kodály Society, and former Lead Editor of the Bulletin of the International Kodály Society. He is the recipient of many music awards throughout his lifetime, but the most recent and well-deserved is the 2022 OAKE Lifetime Achievement Award. We are blessed to have Jerry continue as our Pedagogy, Music Literature, and one of the Elementary Choral Development Track instructors.

Deanna Lee

Deanna Lee is an award-winning educator with recognition from the Tooele County and Provo City School Districts. She was selected as Utah State’s Sorenson Legacy Award Winner—Outstanding Music Educator (2019), and the Janis Smart Performing Arts Leadership Award for Lifetime Service. During her nearly 30 years of volunteer and professional work in public schools, Deanna has worked in a wide variety of musical and educational capacities. Deanna served as a music specialist for Utah Festival Opera’s “Opera By Children” program and later facilitated operas in her general education and music classrooms. As a K-6 music specialist, she conducted choirs, orchestras, and other musical groups. Deanna has a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Elementary Education and currently serves in administration as a facilitator at her school. She is a guest lecturer helping teachers work with children. At InterMuse she is a director and choir manager for the Children’s Choir Camp.

Logan McKinney

Logan McKinney is a graduate of Utah Valley University with degrees in Music and Philosophy. He further earned his Master of Music Education degree with Kodály Emphasis from the Kodály Center at Holy Names University. With over 20 years of experience in private cello instruction, Logan continues to work within the string community as a conductor, coach, and adjudicator. Having initially taught on the secondary level, Logan now teaches elementary general music classes for the Provo City School District while also directing an elementary orchestra and choir. Logan is a past President of the Utah Fellowship of Local Kodály Specialists and a Regional Representative for the Organization of American Kodály Educators. He has presented at national and international conferences and holds certification levels in Kodály, Orff, Suzuki, Conversational Solfege, and World Music Pedagogy. Logan will instruct in Pedagogy and serve as the Chamber Choir Manager.

Cynthia Richards

Cynthia Richards brings to Intermuse Academy a wealth of experience as a professional violinist and studio pedagogue. She has maintained a successful private violin studio for over 50 years. She received a Bachelor of Arts in Violin Performance at Brigham Young University and studied abroad with Franz Samohyl, professor of violin at the Vienna Academy. She has since taught violin performance and string pedagogy both at Brigham Young University and Utah Valley University. She served as concertmaster of the Utah Valley Symphony for many years. Cynthia developed and co-authored with Jerry L. Jaccard the innovative string curriculum, The Complete Musician, based on principles developed by Zoltan Kodaly. She is the mother of eight children, whom she used as her laboratory subjects in her book How to Get Your Child to Practice Without Resorting to Violence. Cynthia is our Strings Pedagogy Track instructor.

Matt Thornton

Matt Thornton holds a master's degree in music education from Brigham Young University and a bachelor's degree in music education from Utah State University. He has worked with the Opera by Children program of the Utah Festival Opera, the Cache Children’s Choir and is currently the assistant director for the Heritage Youth Chorus. Matt earned his Kodály certification through the InterMuse Academy at BYU and is now an instructor at the Academy for the secondary choral track. He is the fine arts department head at American Fork Jr. High where he has taught 7th-9th grade choirs since 2005. Mr. Thornton has been a clinician at events in Utah and Wyoming and has presented at the national convention for the Organization of American Kodály Educators. Matt is passionate about the power of music and the potential for musical literacy and musicianship in every individual. He is an advocate for the use of the Kodály approach with students of all ages and believes that it is a powerful way to teach musicianship to adolescent students. Matt and his wife Becca met in choir and they love singing with their five children, Cali, Daniel, Logan, Elijah, and Joy. Matt instructs our Secondary Pedagogy and Musicianship Track.