Administration

Stephen W. Müller, B.M., M.M., D.Min.
Dean, School of Music

Sean Beavers, B.M., M.M., D.M.
Associate Dean, School of Music

Paul Rumrill, B.A., M.M., M.A., D.M.
Associate Dean, School of Music

Gabriel Miller, B.A., M.A., D.W.S., Ph.D.
Associate Dean, School of Music

Program Directors

A listing of program directors can be viewed on the Program Director webpage.

Purpose

Liberty University School of Music is the seventh largest collegiate level institution in America devoted to training and equipping professional musicians as performers, music educators, worship leaders, ethnomusicologists, artists, film score composers, music publishers, recording engineers and producers, and songwriters. The School of Music is a member of and Accredited by the National Association of Schools of Music (NASM). NASM is recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation as a programmatic accreditation organization for institutions offering degree and non-degree educational programs in music and music-related disciplines.

Mission

The mission of the Liberty University School of Music is to train and equip musicians to be Champions for Christ. The School of Music is a community of God-honoring musicians committed to a culture of manifest core values that include:

• Worship Lifestyle
• Servant Leadership
• Stylistic Diversity
• Academic Inquiry
• Skilled Musicianship
• Artistic and Creative Expression
• Sharing Christ through Music

These core values demonstrate what the music faculty believes a “Champion for Christ Musician” is devoted to in their everyday private and professional life. It is the general consensus of the School of Music faculty that the mission statement and clearly articulated core values conform to and promote the broader university mission to “develop Christ-centered men and women with the values, knowledge, and skills essential to impact the world”.

While the School of Music has only one mission, two distinctly unique and focused tasks emerge. These tasks are accomplished through two organizations within the School of Music structure:

1. The Center for Music Education and Performance – trains and equips passionate musicians as skilled performers, and music education specialists;” and,
2. The Center for Music and Worship – trains and equips highly skilled musicians to serve as worship practitioners and commercial musicians in the evangelical community.

In fulfillment of the School of Music Mission, communication of the Core Values and application of the Focused Tasks and the various entities representing the music unit, it is the aim of the School of Music leadership to graduate students that are thoroughly equipped to assume their role in the market-place. And, that the School of Music provides for these student-musicians comprehensive curricula that is broad enough to encourage collaboration, imagination, diversification, scholarship and practical application. It is important to the leadership of the School of Music that students are equipped to identify their calling (desired career), find gainful employment (a job) and contribute to their chosen vocation(s) for many years to come.

The purpose of the Graduate Music Studies Division is to train highly skilled musicians to serve as music and worship practitioners, music educators and ethnomusicologists specifically for and in the evangelical community. These purposes are accomplished through curricula development, student internship and apprenticeships, local church ministry, professional teaching opportunities, publishing and recording, artist development and empirical research.

Programs of Study

Graduate programs offered by the Graduate Music Studies Division prepare students to meet the challenges of their profession with skill, insight, and intentionality.