Eastman School of Music, of the University of Rochester, welcomes Dr. Crystal Sellers Battle as the inaugural Associate Dean of Equity and Inclusion. As Associate Dean, Dr. Sellers Battle will provide expertise and vision to embrace and support diversity, equity, and inclusion in all forms at the Eastman School of Music, with a particular emphasis on supporting and enhancing the student experience.
Dr. Sellers Battle comes from Juniata College in Huntingdon, PA, where she currently serves as the Dean of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion and Chief Diversity Officer. She holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in voice performance with a specialization in Singing Health from The Ohio State University and a Bachelor of Music from Bowling Green State University, a Master of Music degree from Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University, and a Postgraduate Diploma from Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester, UK.
“Joining the Eastman community is exciting for me as it marries two of my passions into a beautiful fit – music and equity and inclusion work,” shares Dr. Sellers Battle. “I am eager to help our Eastman community think about how we can be more equitable and inclusive of all. I look forward to seeing who will meet me at the starting line, as it will take all of us to work together, as we move towards what’s to come.”
As the Associate Dean, Dr. Sellers Battle will also serve as the inaugural Director of the George Walker Center for Equity and Inclusion in Music, to be formally dedicated on April 16 at 10 AM in Miller Center. The George Walker Center was created as a designated space to bring together and lift up every voice in the Eastman Community.
“We are thrilled to welcome Crystal Sellers Battle to the Eastman School of Music as our first Associate Dean of Equity and Inclusion,” says Eastman Dean Jamal Rossi. “An accomplished musician and professor, Dr. Sellers Battle has a proven track record of dedication and success in furthering issues of diversity, equity, access, and inclusion in every community she has been. We are excited about the passion Dr. Sellers Battle brings to Eastman, and all that our community will accomplish together in the years ahead.”
Media Only: Jessica Kaufman, Director of Communications (585) 278-4748, jkaufman@esm.rochester.edu
###
Dr. Crystal Sellers Battle currently serves as the Dean of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion and Chief Diversity Officer at Juniata College in Huntingdon, PA. In this role, Crystal works to advance programs and policies that promote mindsets and behaviors that value and support equity, diversity, and inclusion. She co-founded DIEMA (Diversity, Inclusion and Equity in Musical Arts) Consulting Group LLC, to help schools of music address DEI related challenges and initiatives. She has presented to several groups around the country about DEI in music including the Northeastern Regional Conference of College Music Society. Crystal holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in voice performance with a specialization in Singing Health from The Ohio State University and a Bachelor of Music from Bowling Green State University, a Master of Music degree from Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University and a Postgraduate Diploma from Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester, UK. She will be joined in Rochester by her husband Larry and their precocious four-year-old daughter Carey.
About Eastman School of Music:
The Eastman School of Music was founded in 1921 by industrialist and philanthropist George Eastman (1854-1932), founder of Eastman Kodak Company. It was the first professional school of the University of Rochester. Mr. Eastman’s dream was that his school would provide a broad education in the liberal arts as well as superb musical training.
More than 900 students are enrolled in the Collegiate Division of the Eastman School of Music— about 500 undergraduates and 400 graduate students. They come from almost every state, and approximately 23 percent are from other countries. They are taught by a faculty comprised of more than 130 highly regarded performers, composers, conductors, scholars, and educators. They are Pulitzer Prize winners, Grammy winners, Emmy winners, Guggenheim fellows, ASCAP Award recipients, published authors, recording artists, and acclaimed musicians who have performed in the world’s greatest concert halls. Each year, Eastman’s students, faculty members, and guest artists present more than 900 concerts to the Rochester community. Additionally, more than 1,700 members of the Rochester community, from young children through senior citizens, are enrolled in the Eastman Community Music School.
The three-semester-long Eastman Centennial celebration began in Fall 2021 and continues throughout 2022. Highlights include acclaimed guest artists performing alongside Eastman’s ensembles; national academic and music conferences; alumni events throughout the country; a documentary being produced in partnership with WXXI, and over 50 commissioned premieres.
Full listings of these and other events, along with feature stories, ways to engage and more, can be found on our Centennial website at https://www.esm.rochester.edu/100.
About the University of Rochester:
The University of Rochester is one of the nation’s leading private research universities, one of only 62-member institutions in the Association of American Universities. Located in Rochester, N.Y., the University gives undergraduates exceptional opportunities for interdisciplinary study and close collaboration with faculty through its unique cluster-based curriculum. Its College, School of Arts and Sciences, and Hajim School of Engineering and Applied Sciences are complemented by the Eastman School of Music, Simon School of Business, Warner School of Education, Laboratory for Laser Energetics, School of Medicine and Dentistry, School of Nursing, Eastman Institute for Oral Health, and the Memorial Art Gallery.