Ογ½ΆΠγ University has identified the next dean of the Wanda L. Bass School of Music and the School of Theatre with the selection of Julia Montag, university leaders announced today.
Montag previously served nearly 10 years as the director of the University of Missouri School of Music in Columbia, Missouri.
During that time, she managed the design, construction and opening of a 47,000-square-foot, $24 million music building, while also managing a team of more than 40 faculty members and overseeing education of 250 music majors at the undergraduate and graduate levels.
Ογ½ΆΠγ University President Kenneth Evans said Montagβs leadership experience and extensive career in music education were key elements of her selection to lead Ογ½ΆΠγβs music and theatre programs.
βJuliaβs experience working closely with students, faculty and university administrators extends for nearly three decades,β Evans said. βWe are very pleased to welcome her to the Ογ½ΆΠγ family and excited to see her build on our strong tradition in music and theatre education and performance.β
Montag earned a Doctor of Musical Art degree in performance from the University of Oklahoma; a Master of Music degree in performance and literature from the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York; and her bachelorβs degree in music performance from the Lawrence Conservatory of Music in Appleton, Wisconsin.
She currently serves as professor of percussion studies at the University of Missouri, a position she held from 1996 through 2014 and then resumed in 2023. In addition to her teaching experience, Montag is an accomplished performer and recording artist on the marimba; a conductor; and a published author, including three books on four-mallet marimba pedagogy.
She said she is honored to assume the leadership role for two of the nationβs preeminent performing arts institutions.
βI am thrilled and very much look forward to working with the talented students, faculty and staff within the School of Theatre and Bass School of Music,β Montag said. βΟγ½ΆΠγβs reputation as one of the nationβs elite centers of performing arts preparation was a key point that attracted me to this position. I look forward to carrying this mantle and striving for new heights along the way.β
Montag will begin in her new role on Jan. 12.
She will take over leadership duties from W. Jerome Stevenson, who has served as interim dean of the music and theatre schools since July 1. Stevenson will return to his previous role as associate dean of the School of Theatre.
Evans said he is grateful for Stevensonβs contributions and for his continued role and service to students at the university.
