Karen Salvador

ABOUT

Karen Salvador is Associate Professor and Chair of Music Education at Michigan State University’s College of Music, where she teaches courses regarding music in early childhood and elementary general music as well as graduate seminars in music education psychology and research. Prior to her appointment at Michigan State, Dr. Salvador coordinated the music teacher certification program at the University of Michigan-Flint. She previously taught elementary general music (K-4) in Eaton Rapids, MI; choir and drama in Palmerston North, New Zealand; early childhood music at the MSU Community Music School; children’s choirs in Grand Rapids, MI; and early childhood music at the UM-Flint Early Childhood Development Center.

Dr. Salvador earned her PhD in Music Education and Master’s degree in Choral Conducting from Michigan State University, and holds a Bachelor’s degree in vocal performance from Western Michigan University. Her research pertains to how music educators meet individual student needs, particularly in early childhood and elementary grades. This research extends into music teacher education, exploring both program practices for music educator preparation and the lived experiences of music educators who are working to become more inclusive and responsive educators. Her research appears in journals including Journal of Research in Music Education, International Journal of Music in Early Childhood, Arts Education Policy Review, Research Studies in Music Education, Journal of Music Teacher Education, and Music Educators Journal. Dr. Salvador’s work also appears in books including Music Education: Navigating the Future (2015); Oxford Handbook of Philosophical and Qualitative Perspectives on Assessment in Music Education (2019); Music Play 2: Early Childhood Music Engagement Plans. Guide for Parents, Teachers, Caregivers, and Children (2020); and The Routledge Companion to Creativities in Music Education (2023).

Dr. Salvador directs the Early Childhood Music Play Laboratory, which includes extensive education programs for children ages birth-7 years old at Michigan State’s Community Music Schools in East Lansing and Detroit. She serves on the editorial boards of the Journal of Research in Music Education Journal of Music Teacher Education. She is a past president of the Michigan Music Education Association and a Past President of the National Association for Music Education’s ten-state North Central Division. A frequent presenter, Dr. Salvador is in demand for workshops on early childhood and elementary music (particularly regarding ability-responsive and culturally sustaining instruction) and as a facilitator working with music teaching and learning organizations to strategize toward more inclusive, responsive, and sustaining practices.

Selected Recent Research Publications

Salvador, K. & Sierzega, A. (2024). Lived experiences of diversity equity inclusion leaders in US music education professional associations. Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education. 241 7-29.

Salvador, K. & Menon, S. (2024). Lived experiences of adult caregiver “nonmusicians” and “non-singers” in early childhood music classes. Journal of Research in Music Education. Prepublished April 26, 2024. https://doi.org/10.1177/00224294241247578

Salvador, K., Knapp, E., J., & Mayo, W. (2024). Moving beyond data collection: Fostering community engagement in community music schools. International Journal of Music Education 42(2) 203-216. https://doi.org/10.1177/02557614231163556

Salvador, K., Bohn, A., & Martin, A. (2023). Divisive Concepts Laws and music education:  PK- 20 music educators’ perceptions and discourses. Arts Education Policy Review. Published online first. https://doi.org/10.1080/10632913.2023.228659

Salvador, K. & Sierzega, A. (2023). Formative experiences of DEI leaders in music education. Journal of Research in Music Education 71(2), 133-154. https://doi.org/10.1177/00224294221123076

Salvador, K. & Mayo, W. (2022). Lived experiences of caregivers in early childhood music classes. International Journal of Music in Early Childhood. 17(1), 25-46. https://doi.org/10.1386/ijmec_00041_1

Salvador, K., & Culp, M. E. (2022). Intersections in music education: Implications of universal design for learning, culturally responsive education, and trauma-informed education for P–12 praxis. Music Educators Journal. 108(3) 19-29. https://doi.org/10.1177/00274321221087737

Salvador, K., Svec, C., Glaser, J., Sierzega, A., & Broadway, A. (2022). At the intersection of belief and practice: A mixed-methods study of elementary general music educator praxis. Psychology of Music. 50(5) 1494–1510. https://doi.org/10.1177/03057356211050670

Salvador, K., & Culp, M. E. (2021). Characteristics of early childhood and elementary general music methods coursework for preservice music teachers. Journal of Music Teacher Education. 31(1), 39-53. https://doi.org/10.1177/10570837211024529

Salvador, K., Knapp, E., J., & Mayo, W. (2021). Reflecting on the ‘community’ in Community Music School after a transition to all-online instruction. Music Education Research.  23(2), 194-210. https://doi.org/10.1080/14613808.2021.1905623

Culp, M. E., & Salvador, K. (2021). Music teacher education program practices: Preparing teachers to work with diverse learners. Journal of Music Teacher Education. 30(2), 51-64. https://doi.org/10.1177/1057083720984365

Salvador, K., Paetz, A., & Lewin-Ziegler, A. (2020). Being the change: Practicing music teachers’ self-reported changes in mindset and practice after graduate study Update: Applications of Research in Music Education. 39(1), 17-26. https://doi.org/10.1177/8755123320925754

Salvador, K., Paetz, A., & Tippetts, M. (2020). Gemütlichkeit, vulnerability, emotion, and story: A constructivist grounded theory of transformative experience for practicing music teachers. Journal of Research in Music Education. 68(2), 193-215. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022429420920630

McEvoy, C. & Salvador, K. (2020). Aligning culturally responsive and trauma-informed pedagogies in elementary general music. General Music Today. 31(1), 21-28. https://doi.org/10.1177/1048371320909806

Salvador, K. (2019). Early childhood music making in educational settings: A comprehensive analysis of peer-reviewed research, 2000-2017. International Journal of Music in Early Childhood. 1(1), 35-69. https://doi.org/10.1386/ijmec.14.1.35_1

Salvador, K. (2019). Individualizing music instruction in elementary general music. Research Studies in Music Education. 41(1), 18-42. https://doi.org/10.1177/1321103X18773092