At the end of the spring semester, the Dordt University Music Department will honor the career of longtime adjunct music instructor Mrs. MaryLou Wielenga, who has served at Dordt for 45 years.
At the end of the spring semester, the Dordt University Music Department will honor the career of longtime adjunct music instructor Mrs. MaryLou Wielenga, who has served at Dordt for 45 years.
After graduating with a master’s degree in organ in 1977 and later piano performance and literature, Wielenga received a call in the spring of 1978 from Music Professor Dale Grotenhuis, asking her if she would be willing to instruct some piano students at Dordt. She has continued ever since as an adjunct instructor, teaching private piano and organ lessons. At various points throughout her time at Dordt she has also taught class piano, music history, piano pedagogy and literature, and a church music course.
She served as director of keyboard studies for around 10 years, overseeing tuning of the keyboard instruments among other duties. She taught many piano and organ students with a wide variety of backgrounds such as music majors and minors, beginners needing to pass piano proficiency, and many non-majors who desired to study piano and organ during their time at Dordt. Some of her students have gone on to receive advanced degrees in music, and many have used their skills to teach piano and organ lessons themselves or serve in their local churches.
Wielenga’s piano students appreciate her contributions. “While I am not a music major and do not anticipate going into a musical field, my study with Mrs. Wielenga has cultivated in me a deep love for playing piano—its emotional and spiritual elements as well as its technical demands,” says Joya Schreurs, who takes piano lessons from Wielenga. “She has constantly reminded me to practice and perform for the joy of the instrument and worship of our creator, which significantly shapes the nature of my work as a musician.”
About Dordt University
As an institution of higher education committed to the Reformed Christian perspective, Dordt University equips students, faculty, alumni, and the broader community to work toward Christ-centered renewal in all aspects of contemporary life. Located in Sioux Center, Iowa, Dordt is a comprehensive university named to the best college lists by U.S. News and World Report, The Wall Street Journal, Times Higher Education, Forbes.com, Washington Monthly, and Princeton Review.
Dr. Mark Christians, professor of psychology at Dordt University, will serve as speaker at this year’s commencement ceremony, which will be held on Friday, May 12, at 10 a.m. in the B.J. Haan Auditorium.
“It was a close competition, with Dordt breaking just two more targets than the Beavers,” says Dr. Tom Prinsen, professor of public relations and shooting sports adviser. “All three universities had representatives in the top five male and top five female individual scores.”
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