Douglas and Margaret Strong Scholarship
(est. 2003)
Douglas Strong and Margaret Schofield met at the University of Texas where they were both students.
Doug was a retired head piano technician at the Jacobs School of Music where he worked for nearly 30 years. For many years, he played the french horn in the Bloomington Symphony Orchestra. At Jacobs, he was also a life-long member of the Friends of Music. Doug was an avid swimmer, having swum at Northwestern. He held a number of state masters records, especially in the 75-79 and 80-84 age groups. In 2010, he placed in the top 10 nationally in four long-course events in the 85-89 age category.
Born in Lockhart, Texas, Margaret (Schofield) Strong studied clarinet performance at Baylor University. However, during World War II, she left school to work at the San Marcos Army Air Force Base. After her service, she earned her Bachelor of Music Education degree at the University of Texas. Margaret and Doug married in 1949 and settled in Houston, Texas, where Margaret performed and taught piano. She was one of only two piano teachers in the 1950's who taught both black and white students in Houston.
The couple moved to Bloomington, Indiana in 1959 when Doug was hired to be the Head Piano Technician at the Jacobs School of Music. Margaret built her private piano studio in Bloomington, and became active in the Indiana State Music Teachers Association and Mu Phi Epsilon, the music sorority. In 1970, Margaret began tutoring college music students, preparing them for their theory, sight singing, and piano proficiency exams. She fostered lifelong friendships with her students.
Margaret and Doug were members of many civil rights and social justice organizations, including the NAACP, Common Cause, and the Smithsonian National Museum of African-American History & Culture. They were members of The President's Circle at Indiana University. In addition to the Douglas and Margaret Strong Scholarship at the Jacobs School of Music, they have also endowed a scholarship for swimming students.
The Jacobs School of Music is honored to award the Douglas and Margaret Strong Scholarship to undergraduate composition students at the Jacobs School.