We believe the best way to train music teachers is to provide authentic teaching opportunities while engaging in a community of reflective practitioners. Additionally, we believe in creating a space for discussing and applying many contemporary approaches relevant to music education while remaining informed by the excellent traditions that have made music education strong in America over the last two centuries. As a community of passionate, well-prepared teachers, this opportunity serves to grow the next generation of great music educators to serve students in our public schools.

As human beings continually developing in a complex world, music can provide a means for us to understand who we are, where we've been, and where we're going. Oriented toward a social justice mission, the Middle School Outreach Ensemble aims to cultivate an artistic disposition by enabling young adults to develop an understanding of how the creation, interpretation, and performance of music can reflect the world around them. In its inaugural year, the program saw over one hundred middle school participants from schools within a fifty-mile radius of CSU. The Middle School Outreach Ensemble teaching component involves all levels of music lovers from our local community; participants and artist-teachers from middle schools, high schools, CSU, local public schools, and even retired teachers come together to learn and teach each other about music.

During the eight-week program, all participants are involved in teaching local middle school students who are members of the MSOE virtual music ensembles. With the assistance of master teachers, undergraduate and graduate music education students design, implement, and teach all aspects of the program, culminating in an online showcase for parents, friends, and community members.