Heather DeSanto

Bryna G. Goldhaft Dance Award

Heather DeSanto is graduating Summa Cum Laude with a B.A. in Dance and a minor in Marketing. Coming from Aston, Pennsylvania, Heather found her love for dance at age six and trained at Concord Dance Center before attending Rowan. 

Heather performed in many mainstage productions at Rowan, including the Faculty and Student Dance Concert, Making Good Trouble, Convincing the Unconvinced, Small Gifts, Eurydice, Groove, HerView, and Beloved Community. She had the honor of working with professors Dawn Marie Bazemore, Melanie Stewart, Paule Turner, Dr. Chris Roche, guest choreographers Joe González and Hailey Hubbs, and other students in these productions. 

Most recently, Heather has devised and performed an improvisational dance solo titled, Wholeheartedly for her senior project and made it into a dance film with the help of Stephen Minder. She also had the chance to devise, direct, choreograph and perform a theatre and dance piece titled, The Celestial Sphere alongside her best friend, Kaya Snow.

Heather served on the Dance Extensions E-Board for three years as a Treasurer and then moved up to Vice President. She is also a member of the Theatre Honor Society, Alpha Psi Omega. During her sophomore year, Heather was given the opportunity to be a Teacher’s Assistant for Dance Improvisation II with Dr. Leslie Elkins. This past year, Heather became a marketing intern for Project Moshen Dance Company. After graduation, Heather plans to dance in professional dance companies as well as do marketing for dance companies, studios, and other organizations.

Heather wants to thank all the RUTD professors she has encountered in her four years here and her peers who have always supported her. She would especially like to thank Leslie Elkins, Abby Lamb, Kaya Snow, Isaiah Griffin, her parents and sister, and her dog Thor.

Rachel Dunn

Bryna G. Goldhaft Dance Award

Rachel Dunn is a senior at Rowan University and will be receiving double Bachelor of Arts degrees in Dance and in Advertising. She has been a dancer in “Beloved Communities” choreographed by Dawn Marie Bazemore, “Groove!” Choreographed by Paule Turner, “Small Gifts'' choreographed by Melanie Stewart, and “Making Good Trouble” co-choreographed by Dawn Marie Bazemore and Joe González. Rachel also choreographed her own dance work as that is her passion. She has created  “Free of charge” which is a virtual dance film that was taken in Philadelphia PA meant to explore the relationships we have with the architecture around us. Whether it be through murals, art museum steps, or a statue, Rachel takes the viewer through a story where the dancers are constantly using the space around them to inform their movement. Another piece she has choreographed is called “I see it differently”. In this piece Rachels main direction was to have as many connections as possible between the dancers on stage. There are moments of loneliness and feeling like they are outside the group and moments where everyone is together dancing in harmony. Just as in life when people go in and out of relationships As Rachel nears the end of her years here at Rowan she wishes to keep pursuing dance as well as advertising work. Rachel would like to thank everyone who has helped her through these four short years at Rowan University.

Ian Hipps

W. Clarke Pfleeger Award for Musical Excellence

Ian Hipps started his journey with violin in the public school system at age 13. Just two years later he won an audition as concertmaster of the Northern Tier Symphony Orchestra and won many young artist competitions. He has performed recitals throughout the United States and Europe. Ian is also a recipient of many performing arts awards. Most recently, he has been awarded a career scholarship by the Theodore Presser Foundation.

Ian is graduating from Rowan University this May with a full tuition scholarship in Violin and Viola Performance. He has studied with many renowned violin pedagogues including Nancy Ellsworth, Ihor Shablovsky, and Dr. Timothy Schwarz.

Currently, Ian freelances with many orchestras in the greater Delaware-Valley, performs chamber music recitals, and teaches violin and viola privately.

Noah Kralyevich

Dr. Barbara Chamberlain Award for Outstanding Excellence in Music Production

Noah Kralyevich is graduating with a B.A. in Music Industry with a specialization in Music Technology. Noah has always had a knack for music, whether playing in bands throughout high school, producing Hip Hop albums, or his most recent endeavor, dabbling in the DJ scene. 

Noah has been writing, recording and producing music for friends, colleagues and himself since high school. He has produced singles and albums from concept to completion, including  writing, recording on location and in-studio, and submitting music to streaming services as commercial content. 

Since March 2020, Noah has been heavily involved in the Rowan work study program, recording and live streaming concerts and recitals for viewers to watch in the comfort of their own home. Noah has collaborated closely with many performing arts peers, providing professional quality video and audio content. 

Over the last year, Noah has had a unique opportunity to work with a sound design company on the west coast, helping to create sounds and sonic IDs for consumer products and applications. Some of his projects included creating consumer-friendly tones and musical soundtracks for mobile apps.

Upon entering his senior year, Noah took on a new hobby, DJing. Since then, he DJed over 22  shows at Rowan University, Rutgers Univ, Univ of Delaware, and other parts of New Jersey. In addition, he has spun beats at premiere nightclub shows in Philadelphia. 

Upon graduation, Noah plans to apply his great talents, skills and passion to careers as Sound Engineer, Producer and DJ.

Samuel Minker

Dr. Barbara Chamberlain Award for Outstanding Excellence in Performing Arts Education

Samuel Minker will be graduating with a Bachelor of Music in Music Education: Instrumental and a Bachelor of Arts in Education. Originally from Newark, Delaware, he came to Rowan as a Euphonium/Tuba player, and was delighted by the many opportunities for continued growth. During his time at Rowan University, Samuel has had the pleasure of performing with the Concert Band, Wind Ensemble, University Brass Band, Men’s Chorus, and the Concert Choir.  Samuel currently interns at Rowan’s Community Music School assisting with both logistics and rehearsals. He would like to thank the countless friends and professors who not only helped him improve as a musician but also as a person. A special thank you goes out to Dr. Adrian Barnes, Dr. Elizabeth Guerriero, and the incomparable Professor Brian Brown for helping him start to become both the teacher, and the person he wants to be.  Samuel plans to work as a music teacher after graduation and eventually get his masters in education.

Michaela Navarro

Phillip Graneto Excellence in Theatre Award

Michaela (Mica) Navarro is a Senior Design/Tech student at Rowan University. Recent Rowan credits include: Lighting Designer for 21 Chump Street, Lighting Creator for Making Good Trouble, Assistant Lighting Designer/Programmer for Plum Bun and Our Lady of 121st Street. Michaela has worked on every Mainstage production during her tenure with the Rowan University Dept. of Theatre and Dance. She also composed the scores for Lab Theatre’s Colors in the Dark and The Artist’s Eye. Michaela has worked as a lighting technician for StageRats, EGI Productions and Legacy Lighting. Michaela is extremely excited to accept the Phillip Graneto Excellence in Theatre Award. She would like to thank her friends, family, professors, and mentor, Robert Thorpe, for their constant support.

Kayleigh Scott

Dr. Barbara Chamberlain Award for Outstanding Excellence in Singing

Kayleigh Scott will be participating in Rowan University’s graduation in Spring 2022. As a music education major at Rowan, she had the privilege of performing in Rowan’s Concert Choir as a section leader and Rowan’s chamber ensemble, Voces. In her freshman year, Kayleigh performed the role of Despina in the Rowan Opera Company’s full production of Cosi Fan Tutte. Kayleigh has also performed in ROC’s scenes program, her past roles include; Cunegonde in Candide, Laetitia in The Old Maid and the Thief, Monica in The Medium, and Susanna in Le Nozze di Figaro. Most recently, she performed as Rosalinda in ROC’s full production of Die Fledermaus. Kayleigh is very fortunate to have received mentorship during her time at Rowan from Marian Stieber, Dr. Christopher Thomas, Dr. Joseph Higgins, and Debra Scruto Davis. She intends to finish her student teaching in the Fall of 2022 and continue teaching music from there on. Kayleigh plans on attending graduate school in the next following years to continue her musical studies.

Kaya Snow

Joseph Robinette Excellence in Theatre and Dance Award

Kaya Snow (she/her) will be graduating Summa Cum Laude with a B.A. in Dance and a B.A. in Theatre Arts concentrating in Musical Theatre and Acting. She began dancing at age two and trained in varying styles at The Dance Academy of North Jersey.

While at Rowan, Kaya had the opportunity to perform in many productions including Making Good Trouble, Small Gifts, Urinetown, Hair, and her senior project, The Celestial Sphere. These productions gave her the opportunity to work with many wonderful professionals and peers such as Paule Turner, Dawn Marie Bazemore, Melanie Stewart, Michael Dean Morgan, Christopher Marlowe Roche, and Heather DeSanto. She also gained experience in the roles of dance captain, choreographer, director, deviser, sound operator, video editor, assistant stage manager, and swing.

Kaya is grateful to have participated in multiple recruitment initiatives such as dancing for the Rowan University Be Unstoppable commercial and doing voiceover work for the Rowan Dance Department. Additionally, she served as President of Dance Extensions for two years and has been the Social Chair of Alpha Psi Omega for three years. She is a four year member of the Rowan University Dance Team and recently joined RU Hoofer’s Club.

Kaya is excited to use her newly acquired skills as she begins her journey as a professional artist. She is ready to create her own path, performing and creating work that she is passionate about. Kaya is thankful for the continuous love and support from her ever growing community.