Gwyn Richards Scholarship
The Gwyn Richards Scholarship was established by Hon. P.A. Mack, Jr., who believes in the importance of the educational mission of the Jacobs School of Music. It is the inspiration of his friend and Dean of the IU Jacobs School of Music, Gwyn Richards, that motivated the creation of this scholarship.
Gwyn Richards is the current Dean of the IU Jacobs School of Music, in addition to being a Professor in the Department of Choral Conducting. Dean Richards was born in Wales and is a naturalized U.S. citizen. Richards received his Bachelor of Music degree in 1973 and a Master of Music in Choral Conducting degree in 1974 from the University of Michigan.
Richards completed his coursework for a Doctor of Music in Choral Conducting degree at Indiana University in 1979, leaving to become the director of choral activities at McGill University in Montreal. From 1980 to 1986, he was the assistant dean of music and director of choral activities at the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University, where he started a master's degree program in choral conducting. He then went on to serve as associate dean of music and associate professor of choral music at the University of Southern California.
In 1992, he returned to IU as the director of admissions, eventually becoming the associate dean of admissions and financial aid. On July 1, 2001, Richards was appointed dean of the Jacobs School of Music after serving as interim dean since 1999. Soon after his appointment, Richards began to develop an infrastructure focusing on development, admissions, and faculty appointment. In May 2006, he received an Honorary Doctor of Music degree from Anderson University.
Dean Gwyn Richards resides in Bloomington with his wife, Barbara. The couple have two children: Megan and Jillian Richards.
The Jacobs School of Music awards the Gwyn Richards Scholarship to incoming freshmen who will study at the Jacobs School.