Spotlight On: Mike Zdeb

Here at Rowan University, many students take the opportunity to get involved in extra-curricular activities in order to get hands-on experience in their major. Senior jazz education major Mike Zdeb is one such person.

Zdeb holds many credentials and participates in three different bands: jazz band, lab band and concert band. This year, however, Zdeb is going to add on another musical challenge to his work load as a student teacher.

“Because this is my senior year I am going to be student teaching next semester,” Zdeb said. “My advisers will choose an elementary school for me to go to for next semester and then after that is completed, I will head to a middle or high school as well.”

Zdeb will teach instrumental studies to high school and middle school children, teaching the younger students the basics of music and how to understand the chords. Zdeb looks forward to his elementary school teaching position with the younger children because they show more excitement for music.

“When I came into this program at Rowan University, I was thinking that I wanted to teach high school and college aged students,” Zdeb said. “However, when I finished the class – teaching and learning A – I found out that I chose the wrong age group. Teaching children allows me to play games with them and basically be a kid myself. It is really a fun job.”

Coming from a non-musical family, Zdeb had to travel the musical road alone. With the support of family and friends, he succeeded in his endeavors to become a musician.

“My family is very supportive even though they do not have a musical background,” Zdeb said. “My mom sings when she is doing chores around the house, but that is about it. The only family member who knew a little bit about music was my grandfather and he was my inspiration to follow through with my dreams and become a musician.”

With so much determination and skill behind him, Zdeb started to learn music and play the guitar around the age of 11.

“I started on the drums first in elementary school, but at one of my annual recitals I saw a boy playing a guitar and I said to myself that this was the instrument for me,” Zdeb said. “Now I play guitar and I enjoy it so much more.”

For his future endeavors, Zdeb will be auditioning for graduate school at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh. He will be doing a guitar performance in hopes of impressing advisers with his talents. In addition, he will be looking for a steady teaching job in an elementary school while teaching private lessons on the side.

If you want to hear Zdeb in person, come to his senior recital on Sunday, Nov. 15 at 5 p.m. in Wilson Hall.