Millennium Magazine_2ndEd

A Marquis Who's Who Magazine 307 P atricia Jo Hartnell Rinkenberger, who has been dancing and playing the piano since the age of 6, also played preludes and performance pieces in church by the time she was in middle school and sang with her mother in the adult choir. During high school she studied voice privately and learned to sing in multiple languages, thus propelling her forward in her career. She then completed coursework at Illinois Wesleyan University and earned a Bachelor of Music, with highest honors, from DePaul University in 1970, followed by a Master of Science in music education from the University of Illinois in 1977. She is certified through the VoiceCare Network. Throughout her career, Ms. Rinkenberger has served as an adjudicator, music educator, choral coordinator, choral director, voice teacher and performer. Demonstrating passion and versatility in her field, she also spent a significant amount of time as a senior staff vocal director for the NightBlue Performing Arts Company. In addition to these roles, she was a musical producer and director, as well as a consultant in the states of Illinois and Michigan. Ms. Rinkenberger has been affiliated with the National Association for Music Education, the American Choral Directors Association, the Delta Kappa Gamma Society International and the Phi Beta Kappa Society, as well as several local service organizations and boards. However, she is most proud of her ability to build music programs in music education and church music, which have provided countless students and singers with experience and education in music that will serve them for the remainder of their lives. Ms. Rinkenberger attributes her success to her mentors, who include Marjorie Kalkbrenner, her choir director at church; Thomas S. Olson, her high school choral director who recognized her gifts; her first voice teacher at age 15, Elizabeth Vleugel; Anmarie Gerts, her voice professor at DePaul University; and Dr. Charles Leonard, the dean of the University of Illinois Graduate School of Music Education. She recalls that the most rewarding aspect of her career was watching the seeds of education that she planted flourish across the globe. PATRICIA JO HARTNELL RINKENBERGER MUSIC EDUCATOR, CHURCH DIRECTOR OF MUSIC, PERFORMER Homewood, IL