November 25, 2025 – – Celebrating over a decade of grant making, Winchester Community Music School (WCMS) has funds to award professional development grants and continuing education training awards to its faculty for special projects, professional development seminars, and other initiatives that advance their education and training. The grant application process is overseen and reviewed by the music school’s Programmatic Council of Department Chairs. Since the program’s inception in 2015, WCMS has supported its teaching artists with fifty-five awards for their professional development.

WCMS is pleased to announce that the Programmatic Council recently made awards to the following five faculty members for the 2025-2026 grant cycle. The school is delighted to help these teaching artists further their professional goals and looks forward to hearing more about the results of their projects and training. Gifts to the school’s Annual Fund and special underwriting help WCMS provide this funding through its operating budget each year.

Congratulations to the following 2025-2026 recipients:

  • Monika Gibbons (music therapy faculty): Tuition assistance toward Trauma Training coursework.
  • Yoshiko Kline (Suzuki piano faculty): Tuition assistance for training in Anxiety Disorders in Kids & Teens
  • Olga Patramanska-Bell (violin faculty): Support toward engraving costs for a chamber music guide
  • Valerie Walton (saxophone faculty): Tuition assistance for instrumental lessons with master teachers
  • Sylvie Zakarian (percussion faculty): Support for a recording session of the Syldason Duo