Tammie Walker named director of University of Iowa School of Music

Joins the UI faculty from Western Illinois University
Thursday, March 28, 2019

Tammie L. WalkerThe University of Iowa College of Liberal Arts and Sciences has appointed Tammie Walker as the next director of the UI School of Music. She will start in her new position on July 1.

Walker is currently director of the School of Music at Western Illinois University, where she began her academic career in 1998. She earned the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in piano performance and literature, with a minor in musicology, in 2001 from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, as a student of Ian Hobson. She completed her undergraduate studies in piano performance at the University of Wisconsin—Eau Claire.

An active teacher, clinician, and performer, Walker has given more than 300 solo and collaborative performances, and has delivered more than 100 lecture-recitals, presentations, workshops, and masterclasses, including internationally. In addition, she has published research, as well as musical editions and arrangements.

Joe Kearney, interim dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, hailed Walker’s appointment.

“Our School of Music is among the finest in the nation, and deserves an outstanding, innovative leader,” said Kearney. “We have found exactly that in Dr. Tammie Walker. Her broad experience as a teacher, performer, and administrator, and her commitment to student and faculty success, will enhance the University of Iowa’s world-class reputation in the performance and study of music. We are delighted to welcome her to the Iowa family.”

Professor Benjamin Coelho, the interim director of the School of Music, agreed that Walker is an excellent fit for the position.

“We are thrilled to welcome Tammie Walker to the School of Music,” Coelho said. “We look forward to adding her voice and vision to our school. She has an engaging personality and while in Iowa City, she articulated a very clear vision for the future. She will certainly build relationships within the school’s family and make strong connections to the UI community and beyond.”

Walker replaces David Gier, who is now dean and Paul Boylan Collegiate Professor of Music at the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance.

The University of Iowa College of Liberal Arts and Sciences offers about 70 majors across the humanities; fine, performing and literary arts; natural and mathematical sciences; social and behavioral sciences; and communication disciplines. About 15,000 undergraduate and nearly 2,000 graduate students study each year in the college’s 37 departments, led by faculty at the forefront of teaching and research in their disciplines. The college teaches all Iowa undergraduates through the college's general education program, CLAS CORE. About 80 percent of all Iowa undergraduates begin their academic journey in CLAS. The college confers about 60 percent of the university's bachelor's degrees each academic year.