Episode 113 – Building a Thriving Middle School Orchestra with Ashley Culley
In this episode of The Orchestra Teacher Podcast, Charles talks with Ashley Culley, director of orchestras at Dodgen Middle School in Cobb County, Georgia. Over her 25-year career — 19 of them at Dodgen — Ashley has grown her program from 190 to over 380 students while serving as a leader, performer, clinician, and adjudicator.
She shares strategies for program growth, student engagement, and community building, along with insights from her upcoming invitation to perform at The Midwest Clinic.
— BIOGRAPHY —
Ashley Culley is the director of orchestras at Dodgen Middle School in Cobb County, Georgia. She has been an orchestra director for 25 years with the last 19 years at Dodgen. While at Dodgen, the orchestra program has grown from 190 students to 380 students. She is a Cobb County Teacher Leader for middle school orchestras. Her prior teaching experiences include Kell High School in Cobb County, Georgia and Milton High School, Northwestern Middle School and several elementary schools in Fulton County, Georgia.
Mrs.Culley earned a Bachelor of Music Education with Performance Certificate from the University of South Carolina. While at USC, she worked in the USC String Project. She earned a Master of Music in Cello Performance and a Master of Arts in String Pedagogy from the Ohio State University. Mrs.Culley is an active performer, clinician and adjudicator. As an adjudicator and clinician, she has worked with orchestras in Georgia, Ohio and South Carolina.
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