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| Dean Gwyn Richards received a gift in support of the Jean Sinor Memorial Lecture Series from Distinguished Professor Emeritus Denis Sinor, June 2006 |
The IU Jacobs School of Music is pleased to announce that the Music Education Department is the recent recipient of a generous endowed gift in the memory of Professor Jean Sinor, who passed away suddenly in 1999. Her husband, IU Distinguished Professor Emeritus Denis Sinor has made the gift possible.
The endowment will make possible the Jean Sinor Memorial Lecture Series, designed to invite renowned guest scholars to the Bloomington campus for several days each year, to meet, speak and interact with Jacobs School students. The gift will provide enough funds to initiate the Jean Sinor Memorial Lecture Series in the Spring of 2007 and will provide matching funds to additional gifts up to $20,000.
For more information on the gift and opportunities to contribute to the Jean Sinor Memorial Lecture Series, please contact Patrice Madura, Chair of the Music Education Department.
JEAN SINOR
 Jean Sinor attended the Liszt Academy in Budapest and earned a certificate in solfege, pedagogy and conducting there in 1969. Later, she worked as a general music teacher in the Greensboro, North Carolina and Bloomington, Indiana schools and was a co-founder of the University Children's Choir. Jean Sinor completed the Master of Music Education degree at Indiana University School of Music in 1975 and was appointed as a Lecturer in music education in 1976. In 1984, she completed the Ph.D. degree in music education and was appointed as an Assistant Professor and chair of music education. She was promoted to Professor of Music in 1998.
Jean Sinor was dedicated to the teaching principles of Hungarian composer Zoltán Kodály (1862-1967). She received a National Endowment for the Humanities Kodály Fellowship and became internationally known for her work as a clinician and author of teaching materials. Professor Sinor was known by colleagues and students as a versatile and gifted teacher. She served as a visiting lecturer at twenty institutions and taught over seventy workshops, nationally and internationally. She authored several scholarly articles and four textbooks, including the Silver Burdett publications, Kodály Curriculum Guides, and World of Music. Sinor's contribution is well summarized by one of her international colleagues: "Jean was clearly outstanding in her field...I know of no music educator in the United States I would rank above her... I would rank few as her equal or superior even internationally in terms of her impact on her profession."
 Her contributions to the Music Education Department at Indiana University covered with great distinction the full range of the music curriculum from elementary music methods through doctoral seminars. She advised over thirty theses and dissertations. As chair of Music Education, she oversaw significant development in the Department's curriculum and mission.
Jean Sinor's service was distinguished at all levels of her profession, university, school and department. She served two terms as the president of the International Kodály Society. In 1991, she was named Director of Undergraduate Studies in the School of Music and was a member of the Bloomington Faculty Council, Budgetary Advisory Committee of the Bloomington Faculty Council, and the Freshman Curriculum Committee. She chaired a number of committees including a Dean's review and search and screen committees. Her keen leadership, intellectual, critical thinking and communication abilities were sought out and valued by many.
Jean's humanity, incisive humor and generosity were appreciated by all who worked with her. As Director of Undergraduate Studies, Jean Sinor advised over 1000 undergraduates each year and served as a mentor to many graduate students.
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