by Jenny Collins ‘05

Within her first five years of teaching, Emily (Cromwell ’06) Danger, a music education graduate, received two awards for excellence as a music educator.

The South Dakota chapter of the American Choral Directors Association presented Danger with the Overture Award for 2011. The award is presented to choral directors working in South Dakota in recognition of excellence in their first five years in choral music education.

“The award was especially meaningful because it came from my peers and colleagues in the choral music education world,” said Danger, the assistant choir director at Washington High School in Sioux Falls. “They know the ‘ins and outs’ of what goes into my job every day.”

In receiving the honor, Danger became the second recipient of the Overture Award in the state. “Sometimes as an educator it’s hard to see the results of what you do every day,” she admitted. “To be recognized like this was a nice confirmation that I’m on the right track.”

In 2009–10, while teaching at T.F. Riggs High School in Pierre, S.D., Danger was selected as the National Honor Society’s Teacher of the Year for their chapter.

“I am so thankful for the professors and experiences at NWC that helped me prepare for a career in music education,” Danger said. “My professors made sure that I was placed in excellent training experiences that helped shape who I am as an educator today.”